5 Fitness Tips Every Parent Needs to Hear

You've got to stop using your kids as an excuse as to why you're not in shape. What is going on? It is your fitness coach, Coach KG, and I'm excited today to be talking to you about how to balance being a fit parent. The amount of times I see people just completely forget about themselves and think that they are not a priority is absolutely mind-blowing. Today, I want to give you simple strategies to help you get in shape, stay in shape, while managing everything that is being thrown at you, which I know is obviously a lot. So the first one is honestly the hardest thing for most people to hear, and this is just the harsh truth. It is simply using your children as your reason, not your excuse. The day that your little one is born and starts to grow up, and multiple little ones, it is so easy to just say, you know what? It's because of them. I'm just not in shape because of them. I have to bring food into the house, and I have to eat it. It's because of them. I can't get a workout in. It's because of them. Do you know how insane that sounds to use them as an excuse? I get it. And by the way, I'm going to give you more simple strategies afterwards. I just have to get the harsh one out of the way because I know everyone has so much potential, and I hear it day to day. I can't work out this week because there's hockey. You know, this week, I'm not able to hit my nutrition goals because I wasn't able to go to the grocery store because I can't sleep. Okay, I get it. There will always be something that pops up, but you can't just consistently use them as an excuse as to why you're not in shape. It is one of the lamest excuses, and I made a Reels on my Instagram. I'll pin it down below, but I said, you know what? I could never imagine looking at my daughter and saying, you're the reason I'm not able to prioritize myself. You're the reason I'm not able to become in shape. It is just, to me, one of the worst things you can actually do, and instead, I look at it as positive. I say, you know what? I've got this amazing daughter. I've got this awesome family. How can I become the best version of myself? I'm using my daughter as a reason for me to succeed, not an excuse, and the day that you start looking at it that way and shift your mindset will be the day that you forever will be able to start to see change. I know it's harsh. I know it sounds intense, but so many people just need a wake-up call where they're just got to be in shape and be like, you matter because if you can take care of yourself and prioritize yourself, you'll be able to then be able to take care of others, and you are important. You are important to be the backbone of the entire family, right? To do everything that's required of you, and if you're not able to prioritize or take care of yourself, every other part ends up catching up to you, right? It may not feel like it right away, but long-term, when healthcare costs add up, when poor health and low energy and low confidence, all that stuff, it just ends up eating away at you, and it ends up being a disservice to your entire family long-term. I've seen this happen over and over again, and that's why I want to start with the most intense one. Next up, now that we got that out of the way, you have to treat your workouts like appointments and put them in your calendar. Treat them like non-negotiables. It is so easy for things to pop up. There always will be something, but when we take our workouts very seriously, our strength training, our cardio, and we treat it as a non-negotiable, it makes it so much easier. I find most of my clients who are newer parents, and I guess you could say veteran parents, they find the early hours are so much easier just to take care of themselves, so then they can obviously have the rest of the evening later on instead of having to go to the gym. I find most of them just get up, they get it done, they make that a priority, and then it just makes it so much easier. But when you actually take it very seriously and say, you know what, no matter what, I'm going to make it work, it just is the best approach. And even myself, looking back to the very poor sleep nights early on, I said, you know what, these workouts aren't going to be record-breaking. I'm not going to be hitting personal records, but I'm going to maintain that routine. And I'm so glad I did. Now, obviously, it's a lot easier. My daughter is about 18 months now. The last time I made this video, I'll link it down below as well with some of my different strategies. She was a couple months old, right? So my tips from there to now are quite a little bit different. But the biggest thing is that they're important. Your workouts are important, the ability to take care of yourself, and when you start to treat it like, hey, it has to get done instead of like, it'll get done if I feel like it, or if I get to bed on the perfect time, then I'll get it done. Just get it done. That is going to be the best way to approach it. It has to be in your calendar, though, and it has to be a non-negotiable. Next up, we've got to talk about nutrition. Have high-protein foods and snacks easily available. When you're tired, convenience always wins. So many times, as obviously, you know, the little ones are born, you know, we get a lot of Uber Eats, and we, you know, people have stuff delivered, and it kind of just carries over into, you know, everyday thing or just like going through drive-throughs a ton. When you have things available, when you do your proper grocery shopping each week, when you sit down and think out what are my meals going to be, what protein snacks do I have, how can I succeed even if it's going, if there's a rougher night, or a rougher day, or if, you know, we've got the activities, like, I think a lot of people just don't think about it. They're always reactive. They end up grabbing a bunch of garbage. They don't think about protein, and it's just so tough when, obviously, you're teaching your little one these habits, but then also even, once again, yourself, because you matter. It's so important to just think about these things. That's why I really recommend, even though it's super busy, take a few minutes to log your calories, to see where, you know, to pre-plan, to pre-log. These things really make such a big difference, and it doesn't take that much effort. It's not going to take you hours a day. You just have to care about it enough, and one thing I want to say is, obviously, I have gone through a little bit, but nothing compared to some of my clients. I have some clients who have four children. They've got one that's one year old, three, five, and six, and they're all managing it all, but one of the best things I've been able to do over the last 10 years now is be able to give them successful tips and create something that is for them, a workout routine based off of their situation, a nutrition plan that actually works for them, accountability that makes a big difference, and that's why they're able to succeed. Right now, if you're watching this, if you're someone who wants to see better results, you want accountability, you want something created for you, just make sure to click the first link down below. I just redid my website. It's absolutely beautiful, but I did want to just share that, obviously, I've helped somewhere in the area of probably 500 to 800 parents over the last 10 years now succeed and create something for them, so I want you to be next. Now, into number four. Now, this next one is very dear to my heart, especially as my daughter is coming up on the 18-month time frame. It is just simply including them in the exercise, including them in the movement. I've been going on a lot of very long walks with my family, my two beautiful dogs, and it has been amazing. Sometimes, 45 minutes, I walk down to the water, maybe about an hour. Even hikes, I've done so many of these amazing things. The amount of videos I have of my daughter just on my back, of me carrying her, bringing her out in nature, letting her see everything, just not, once again, using it as an excuse, but saying, you know what? I'm looking forward to this. I'm looking forward to some big hikes. I'm looking forward to some nice stroller walks and just playing around and just doing all these amazing things that being a parent has to offer. I know it's easier said than done, but it's so easy just to kind of sit there. I see it happen way too often where, and I'm not trying to judge, but a parent will sit there, and obviously, they're tired, and there's no energy, and there's nothing involved to being an active parent. That's one of my biggest goals and my biggest missions is to be able to be involved, even if it's friends, just going and playing with the boys and playing road hockey and just doing all these fun things, right? I just think there's so many opportunities, and obviously, being a fit person and having a lot of energy, that helps, but at the same time, I'm always looking for these amazing... It's just fun, and I guess I still have a little bit of a child in me that really looks forward to jumping on a trampoline and trying to do this and just go be active, but at the same time, when you start to do all these things, it just leads to more momentum. You feel amazing. The sun is shining. You get outside. One of my biggest tips is not to just sit there, but also look for these different reasons to be active and include them in all that fun activity because they're going to benefit greatly as well. Last but not least, I want to categorize something that's also very important. It is just simply having a plan that works for you, but at the same time, also having goals that actually motivate you on top of that, right? I think a lot about the future. Very often, I think about down the road, I've got a daughter. I want to be that jacked dad. I want to be that dad who's able to bench 315. I know it sounds kind of crazy, but at the same time, I really do think of small things that won't immediately be important, but in the future, right? Even just when it comes down to it, being strong. I always think about that. Having children, carrying them around, just being the best version of myself, all these different things that really add up, I use those as motivators. I think if you can spend time establishing goals that are a little bit more fun as well, it just makes the journey exciting. I think about that often. I think about keeping up. I think about having all this energy, all that great stuff, but once again, my biggest and I guess final tip here is simply just to have a strategy that works for you. I've been working with a lot of amazing mothers. I'll share some screenshots down below, but we've been creating a plan that works for their situation. I've got one awesome mother who I create workouts for. She's got two home workouts, two gym workouts, right? She gets a little bit of childcare and help from her mother-in-law and then two of the days she has to do them at home and she's always making it work, right? I think that's so important to find a schedule that works for you instead of just being so all or nothing and saying, well, I can't work out at all. I've been spending a lot of time with my clients creating a strategy that is actually going to be suitable to them. When you have something that's actually created for you, you can get guaranteed results. You can have accountability, you can have structure, and this is the biggest thing. Honestly, I left it for last. The most important thing to help you stay successful. Thank you so much. I just want to share what's on the top of my head, the things that have helped myself as well as my amazing successful clients. If you're looking to be next and get the results you deserve, feel the way you deserve as a parent and be that fit parent. You deserve it. You deserve it more than anyone. You're taking care of everyone around you. You deserve to feel amazing. Click that first link, fill out an application. Thank you so much. I can't wait to make an updated video when my daughter's, let's say, three years old or maybe two years old. Have a great one. See you guys.