Are you a mom of young children?
Do you want to move more in 2024?
In my post a couple of weeks ago about how to make a resolution that lasts in 2024, I mentioned that my 2023 resolution was a smashing success. I wanted another successful resolution year, so I really thought about something I desperately wanted and could prioritize this year. I landed on Mom Move More as my 2024 resolution.
After I had kid #2 almost 2 years ago, my life became pretty sedentary. Even though I had a toddler to chase, I felt like I was sitting for a huge portion of every day. This lead to lots of aches and pains, super tight muscles, and perpetual lethargy. Not the picture of the vibrant 30-something mom I always hoped to be.
Tired of feeling so blah, I’m prioritizing movement in 2024. I know my reality, though. If I resolve to go to the gym at regular intervals or set aside a certain amount of time each day to move in a prescribed way, I was destined to fail. So I examined my daily life and brainstormed ways I could add movement in low-effort ways. Looking at my life, this shouldn’t be hard. And if you’re anything like me, it shouldn’t be hard for you either.
How to move your mom bod more with just a little effort?
1. Change toddler diapers
Sometimes when I’m changing my 1-year old’s diaper I forget where and who I am. Am I a suburban mom changing my toddler’s diaper or am I an alligator wrangler at Gatorland? Either way, this activity certainly counts as movement. It takes both strength and agility to pin your kid down, strip off the dirty diaper without making an absolute mess, and then apply a clean diaper to a bum in constant motion. I am tired after each one of these events and diaper changes need to happen multiple times each day. This totally counts as movement.
2. Prepare a meal with your toddler
My husband works long days, like many of your husbands I’m sure. This often means that I am preparing dinner as the only adult in the house on weekdays. My 1-year old can be clingy, especially on weekdays when she has been at daycare all day. Instead of feeling frustrated that she often demands to be held while I’m trying to get dinner made and on the table, I’m choosing to look at her preference for mom after daycare as another low-effort way to get this mom moving more. Cooking a meal with 25+ pounds of weight on your left hip certainly counts as weight training. Every chop, every stir takes more effort with her in my arms, and I’m embracing it.
3. Walk the dog
Taking the dog for a spin certainly counts as cardio, and your dog will thank you. If you are able to take the dog solo, pop in your earbuds to listen to a great audiobook, podcast, or Taylor Swift re-release, and this activity does double duty as movement and mental health care.
If you want to increase the intensity of your walk, bring your toddler with you. Even if you start with the toddler in the stroller, he or she won’t stay in there for long because his or her demands to “I WALK!” will get old. Fast. Then you’ll have a toddler with tired legs who wants to be carried home because going back in the stroller is non-negotiable. Now you’ll find yourself on a ruck march, huffing and puffing up the last hill toward home. You might not be able to move much for the rest of the day after your unplanned ruck march, but you’ve certainly fulfilled that day’s movement goal.
4. Play a sport with your pre-schooler
My 4-year old is super into hockey lately. Every single day he wants to play mini hockey in the basement. And I’m not talking lightly shooting hockey balls in the goal. No, no, no. He makes us warm up, insists that we participate in face-offs, and often sends an errant hockey ball (or stick) at a sensitive body part. It’s an intense work-out when it’s just him putting me through my paces, but it’s even worse when my soon-to-be 4-year old nephew is involved too. Worse still is when their little sisters are also trying to “play” and you have to engage with the boys while also keeping the girls from being killed. This is good quality movement but be careful. You are not as young as you once were and your chances of pulling something are high.
5. Ice skating
Continuing with the hockey obsession, my son also wants to ice skate as often as possible. I am a Florida girl, so I can barely stand on the ice in ice skates. This typically means that this is a daddy activity, but ice skating with my son is a great way for this mom to get in some more movement. My thighs will absolutely burn by the end of the free skate, as will my abs from hauling myself off the ice a dozen or so times.
6. Pick up toys
Picking up toys around my house could be an all-day activity. Especially here right after Christmas, there is crap everywhere! We have sports equipment, magnatiles, legos, babydolls, and books in every room of our house. Although we are working on clean up accountability with my kids, there is still a fair amount of mom clean-up that happens on a daily basis. Picking up all the toys that migrate to each square inch of my house is a never-ending chore that also provides a never-ending opportunity for mom to move her body. Squats and lunges for days!
7. Chase a toddler before bedtime
Once they figure out how to be stable on their feet, toddlers may rival cheetahs as the fastest land animal. This is especially true when they know you want them to do something they vehemently don’t want to do, like take a bath or go to bed. Once they catch on, they take off and the chase is on. They often zig zag back and forth so your pursuit of them is similar to doing suicide sprints. I don’t know about you, but suicide sprints used to be my undoing when I was young and energetic. Now that I’m middle-aged and perpetually exhausted, this can be enough movement to put me out of commission for a day or two.
8. Change the kids’ bed sheets
We recently ditched my 4-year old’s toddler bed and moved him into a full-size bigger boy bed. The particular full-size bed he now sleeps in is fairly high off the ground, and he is still pretty mobile while he sleeps. In an effort to limit the ability for him to fall out of the bed in his sleep, we have shoved the bed into a corner so he only has one exit path. Although I stand by this decision to prevent injury at 2 a.m., it is an absolute pain in the butt to change his bed sheets. I have to contort myself to both strip the bed and replace the sheets with clean bedding. I often feel like I’ve just finished an intense work out when his sheets are changed. My heart rate is certainly elevated, I’m lifting his incredibly heavy double-sided mattress – this is quality movement!
I hope you too can find low-effort ways to add some more movement in your daily lives. Let’s all hope we can do more dog walks and less toddler chases in 2024!