1.Get up even earlier
“I do all my workouts before my son wakes up,” says Sara Colodner. “My husband and I trade off days so he’s there in the morning in case our son wakes up early, and then we tag each other out when I get home.
It’s also good because it makes me feel guilty if I ‘waste’ one of my workout days since then my husband could have worked out.”
2.Keep your workout clothes handy at all times
“As a journalist who’s on the road a lot working a haphazard schedule, I always keep a pair of running shoes and some clothes in my car,” says Garret Woodward.
“That way, wherever I am, I can get a run in. Plus, it’s fun, because you never know where you may end up running and what you’ll see along the way. It can be hard to make the time, but there’s also fun in that challenge, even if it’s just 20 minutes.”
3.Master your mindset
“Think of working out as something enjoyable,” says running coach Patrick Hammond. “Never think of it as something you have to do, but instead as something you want to do. This has worked for me for the past 24 years.”
4. Embrace the run commute
“To make time for exercise, I have embraced a really crazy run-to-work plan,” says Marisa Cummings, who works in investment banking and has an unpredictable and exhausting schedule.
When I lived 6.5 miles from my office in Manhattan, I would run commute – sometimes in both directions. I was a member at a gym right next to my office, so every Sunday night, I would pack a week’s worth of clothes and keep them in a locker at the gym all week. Then I’d run home on Monday, making sure I kept certain shoes, cardigans, and coats at the gym.
Then I would run into work the rest of the week, showering and changing at the gym – and still getting to my desk by 6:45 am I’d occasionally double to get extra miles in during training seasons.
I only messed it up twice: once when I forgot a bra and another time when I arrived at the gym and it was locked. I had to go all the way home to change – 25 minutes on the subway – and then go all the way back downtown.”
5. Sweat while your kids are sweating
“I run during my kids’ activities,” says Gia Alvarez. “I’ll run circles around the hockey rink or do an out-and-back from the ballet studio. If they’re getting their fitness on, I should, too!”