Busy Single Mom

SparkPoints: (2,385)
Fitness Minutes: (1,485)
Posts: 44
1/30/13 5:36 P

A lot of times I feel like I am the only one who has to struggle with it because none of my friends are in the same boat. They are either a full family or have grown kids or no kids at all. I do not want to offend anybody or diminish anybody's struggles and achievements, but when your full time job is that of a teacher, you find yourself with even less time for your child, healthy meals and workouts compared to other jobs. You inevitably feel like you are failing either your family, or yourself, or your students at school. I am so glad that I have finally made time for the gym. It is not a lot, but it is more than I have ever had.
As far as drinking water, how can one manage to drink that much water and not spend the whole day in the bathroom? No, seriously, I cannot even imagine!

Pounds lost: 6.2

0 6.25 12.5 18.75

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SparkPoints: (5,886)
Fitness Minutes: (3,399)
Posts: 57
1/29/13 10:41 P

I think the best thing you can do is realize you're one person and you are doing all that you can. When your children grow up they won't care that your house was messy - they will care if you were there for them. As a single, full time working mom of two girls, I can tell you I'm always on the hunt for quick low cost healthy meals. I don't have a lot of good ideas for that except that I tend to shop a lot of the clearance area and base my meals around what I find there. Anything that freezes well I buy in bulk, especially on sale.

As for finding the time for everything... just do the best you can. So what if your house doesn't look like Martha Stewart's lol I found the best method for me was to spend time with the kids, in corporate them into some chores, and then get them to bed at a reasonable hour (which they will appreciate anyways!). Once they're down, I designate a small portion of time to cleaning, a small portion to a little work out, and decide mentally what I'm going to make for the next day to eat. Then the guess work is gone, even if the prep isn't.

Also, drink water like it's going out of style. There's few things less productive than a dehydrated single mom. Try and get in the habit of taking a multivitamin every day (I was completely against taking them until I got in the habit - now I swear by them!) I also boost mine with extra vitamin D and vitamin C since they're water soluble.

current weight: 327.0

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308

Posts: 10
1/28/13 11:31 P

I am a single mom of two boys. I work full-time, go to school full-time, we have scouts once a week and Awana once a week. I struggle to make time for fitness and eating right. Does anyone have ideas for quick, low-cost, healthy meals? Or tips for staying on track and motivated? It feels like this vicious cycle. I'm so busy that I don't have time to clean my house, cook healthy or work out, but then when I do have time I'm so depressed and drained from my dirty house, poor eating and lack of exercise that I have work harder to summon the energy.

current weight: 265.0

267 237.75 208.5 179.25

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