Staying the Course
Five Tips to Keep you Committed, Connected and Consistent
At FITMOM, we recognize how challenging it can be to settle into a fitness routine when we're also learning how to navigate the demands of pregnancy, recovering from birth and parenting a new baby. During the darker winter months, it can become even more of a challenge to connect with others and get out the door, even to classes we've actually scheduled. We know it's always easier to choose to stay at home and snuggle in bed, but there are benefits to getting out and making time to get some exercise!
Here are our Five Tips to help you be consistent, get connected and stay committed:
1. Preparing to get out of the house is hard to do. Practice makes it easier. We encourage you to spend a few minutes the night before gathering the items you'll need so that getting out the door the next day feels a little less overwhelming. Don't worry if you forget something! There's always a friendly FITMOM member can hook you up if you're ever in need of an emergency diaper, wipe or even an extra onesie!
2. Attending regularly improves stamina. The first few times are always the hardest. Keep coming! We promise, it will get easier!
3. Being consistent with your class attendance will help reduce the likelihood of injury. Pregnancy and postpartum changes to your body (especially hormonal!) contribute to joint laxity. Using light weights and body weight exercises will help you build muscle strength to better support your joints and ligaments and improve stability so that you're less likely to injure yourself. Consistently lifting weights, even light ones, go a long way to improving the post-baby stability issues and reducing injury.
4. Connecting with other people helps us feel happy and reduces feelings of isolation.Motherhood can feel really lonely! Connecting with others who are also in the same stage of life makes the monotony of motherhood more manageable. So many past FITMOMs have come to classes knowing nobody else, only to find they’ve made some of their best mom friends through the program.
5. Following through on commitments feels really good. You may not realize it, but you're currently working through the Transtheoretical Stages of Change. You've already moved through the first two phases (pre-contemplation and contemplation) because you've already found FITMOM and have maybe even made it to a couple of classes. Next, you're probably in the Planning/Action phase where you're working on getting to classes more consistently by looking at the schedule and starting to increase your activity. This is a great place to be. You're building a strong foundation towards a lifestyle that prioritizes exercise and daily movement :)
To help with your commitment and follow through, write out the classes you plan to attend in your calendar and try your best to stick to your plan. Be prepared for some obstacles and pick a back up class you could attend each week in case you have to shuffle your calendar because, after all, life happens!
#jointhemotherhood
New To FITMOM? Take advantage of our New to FITMOM Class Pass for $25 + HST and enjoy any 3 FITMOM and Baby, FITMOM Stroller Strength, FITWOMAN or FIT Family classes on the schedule over a 30 day period.