Here’s what I do to work out and eat healthily on a tight budget.
MY FITNESS ROUTINE
I wouldn’t dream of joining a gym: it’s expensive, and I don’t want to be away from my baby for too long. I think I may have serious attachment issues and separation anxiety!
Instead, I work out at home. I have a workout DVD that I bought years ago, and I have been using it ever since.
Working out at home saves me a lot of time and money. It takes me one minute to get ready for my workout, 25 minutes to complete it and another five minutes to take a quick shower afterwards. All in all, I’m done in about 30 minutes!
All you are going to need for a home workout are a pair of trainers, workout outfit, a pair of dumbbells (or some weights) and a mat if you’re working on a hard surface.
I bought a set of dumbbells years ago for about £10.00. I use my yoga mat when I do my abs workout. These days, you don’t even have to buy a workout DVD. Instead, you can look up a workout video on YouTube. It’s totally free!
I also have my fitness ball which is proving to be a great investment. I bought it for a home pregnancy workout. These days, my partner uses it to soothe our crying baby, and we also use it often to play with our baby (our son loves it).
Going for long walks with your children is also an excellent way to get some much-needed exercise into your daily routine. We go out walking daily; it also feels great to spend time outdoors now that it’s a little warmer outside and the sun is out.
We all need a bit of motivation to stick with our exercise routine, which is why I created a Facebook group and was joined by other Mums who are trying to lose pregnancy weight and eat right.
We share our progress, support and encourage each other, and publish interesting articles about fitness and healthy eating. This group has so far provided me with great support.
HEALTHY EATING
My eating habits have changed a lot, too. We don’t have any chocolate or biscuits at home – I banned them from our house! Yes, seriously.
Eating right does not have to be expensive either. A lot of people think that it’s expensive to eat right. In fact, this cannot be further from the truth. If you think about the cost of takeaway food or ready meals, you will realise that bad eating habits can cost a fortune!
We don’t order takeaway at all. Everything that we eat is homemade and made from scratch. I cook a lot these days but this is one of the benefits of being a stay-at-home parent – you have all the time you need to cook, clean your house, do your ironing and so on.
I often make a smoothie in the morning as I find it a great and healthy way to start my day. Again, a lot of people think that smoothies are expensive, and although they can be pricey at a health store, it’s relatively cheap to make one at home yourself. Take a handful of spinach, half a banana, half a mango and a cup of almond milk (or water) and whizz it up until smooth. You have just made a delicious smoothie that will keep you full for long for just over 50p!
I also save money by not eating as much meat as I used to. I eat meat about twice a week, usually chicken fillets which are not as expensive as red meat.
TO CONCLUDE
Keeping fit and healthy doesn’t need to be expensive. In fact, you can make it as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be.
It doesn’t cost anything to work out at home and saves a lot of time. If you don’t feel like working out at home, go for a walk or a run. You can also take up cycling. Make cheap and healthy meals at home.
So far, I have lost 1st 3 (~18 pounds) in five weeks simply by working out at home and eating healthily on a budget!