We women are busy. We have full time jobs, or part time jobs, or raise kids that seemingly manage to take up 150% of our time. Yet somehow, on top of all of this, we are supposed to be healthy, stay active, and teach our kids to stay active. It can seem like a lot. But maybe it’s not as much as it seems. Maybe, by just adding a few simple habits, we can change our mindsets and develop a naturally active lifestyle that doesn’t interfere with our everyday busy schedule.
Here are a few ways our family has stayed active in every season of life.
1. Move every day.
We love the outdoors and so we try and get outside every day, especially during good weather. Whether that means going to the park, walking at the lake or to a beautiful place in your neighborhood. Try and take the stairs at your office building (yes, to the 8th floor) or park all the way across the parking lot with the double parking snobs to get in more steps. We also try and do some kind of exercise 4 or 5 times a week. Make this a habit. Find a place or a method your family enjoys and do it together. Make it fun, change it up all the time, do it with a friend or make your gym your community (that’s the main reason we do Crossfit!).
2. Accountability is key.
This is why it is often easier to become active as a whole family or with a workout buddy than it is by yourself. If you decide you would like to start a workout routine so that you can be a better example for your children, but you don’t involve your family in your accountability, it will be much harder to stick to! Sit down as a family. Write out some activities you enjoy--hiking, biking, fishing, walking, running, CrossFit (try it), etc. Then try and commit to doing one activity as a family a week. Then the next month, try two a week and so on until it’s a habit!
3. Choose food for health, then for taste.
How often do you use the phrase, “My eyes are bigger than my stomach”. The common misconception about health is that you have to sacrifice great food. We would argue that the food we eat not only tastes amazing, but also feels amazing knowing it is fueling our bodies in a way that will help us perform the activities we love. Choose your restaurants, groceries, recipes, FIRST on what is going to be the healthiest choice for your family, THEN on what you think sounds good for that moment. Your body will thank you halfway up that mountain.
4. Rest your body, not your health.
Vacation and holidays are not excuses to eat more and exercise less. We have always worked out or “moved” on vacation. Make it fun and get out and see the city you are in by walking as much as possible. Skip the taxi and walk to see more of the sites. Get in a fun family workout on the beach to start your morning off right. Not only will your body be more prepared when you return to your regular routine when you get home, but you will also get to enjoy the city you are in a little more than if you were sitting inside somewhere. Don’t forget to explore all the local eats, but don’t sacrifice your health for those either.
We like this summation of healthy living by CrossFit co-founder Greg Glassman: “Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat. Bike, run, swim, row, etc, doing so hard and fast. Five or six days per week mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense. Regularly learn and play new sports.”
What are some of you and your family’s favorite ways to stay active? How do you maintain an active workout routine amidst a full schedule? Do you prefer going to the gym or working out from home? Are you looking for some good accountability?
There are so many everyday ways to stay active and we hope you will find ways that work for you.. Let’s get moving!
Meet the Authors!
Tallie is the daughter of CRBC's senior pastor, Rick Thompson. She is an artist that has a heart for missions and children's ministry and enjoys teaching grade schoolers on Sunday mornings. When she isn't traveling, she enjoys sipping on a cup of coffee with her family and friends in good ol' OKC.
Teri is a CrossFit trainer who loves travel and adventure, living up to her grandma name of GoGo. Never one to shy away from a challenge, her next goal is hiking Mount Everest. She studied business at Oklahoma State University and has a Bachelors of Business Administration degree from Dallas Baptist University. She has been happily married for over thirty years to our pastor, Rick Thompson, and loves serving alongside him at Council Road.