Keeping Fit as a Freelancer – No Gym Required!

Keeping fit without the gym — is it possible because I hate the gym. There, I said it. Cat's out of the bag. And I'm sure there are others who feel this way, maybe we should form a support group…

And because of this loathing I have for going to the gym, I've had to find other ways to stay fit. Just because you're a freelancer, doesn't mean you're a superhero – fat is still going to appear in the places it did before you went full-time ‘doing what you love‘.

As well as hating the gym, I'm also not a huge fan of exercising. So I'm always on the look out for routines that I can do for 30 minutes or less. Because, let's face it, there are better things to be doing than exercising – at least that's how I see it!

Exercising to me is just a way to keep all my bits and pieces working, I'm not a runner, I'd prefer to walk instead and I'm definitely not into weights.

[Tweet “I'm not a runner, I'd prefer to walk instead and I'm definitely not into weights.”]

On top of the whole ‘hate gym/hate exercise' thing is the fact that motivation is rather lacking when it comes to getting into a routine to exercise, particularly when it's cold (I'm in the Southern Hemisphere – it's winter in your summer!). 6am is not a time in the morning I want to be jumping around. It's dark outside and I'm just not ready to face the world.

Keeping Fit: The Battle

The battle for me is that even though I set time in my schedule to exercise, just like I do with everything else, I find that I tend to push it further and further down the timeline and then by the time 3pm rolls around, I'm in no mood to exercise at all.

Why does this happen?

Because I work better in the morning, so I tend to front-load my schedule with all the things I need to get done (or want to get done) that day. I'm at my desk from 5am and I typically schedule my exercise for 6.30am or 7am… I'm sure you can see what happens!

[Tweet “Exercise is bumped to 9am, then 11am, then 4pm and then it's not done.”]

I know you're probably thinking to yourself, “Come on Lise, these are just excuses, just suck it up and do it!” And I agree, they are excuses, but they are there all the same.

So, how am I overcoming all of this nonsense? Pinterest. Plain and simple, this is the best place to find anything that you want to do, exercises and healthy eating included.

Plus, I've written a few books about it as well, and it's a great resource if you're looking to create your own workouts at home, with no gym equipment needed!

Below are my top 5 go-to workouts that I'm using right now. As for the scheduling part, I'm sucking it up and getting my bum into my gym gear for 6.30am at least 4 times per week.

Work Out 1 – The Bubble Butt

I know you know what this is! I'm taking the 14-day challenge right now and it is hard! I'm monitoring my progress by taking a picture every 3 days to see my progress, unfortunately I won't be sharing that here! But if you decide to take this challenge, let me know, I'd be happy to compare progress privately!

[images style=”2″ image=”https://hustleandgroove.com/storage/2014/07/bubblebutt.jpg” width=”500″ link_url=”http://fitmommydiaries.blogspot.co.nz/2014/05/diary-of-fit-mommys-14-day-bubble-butt.html” new_window=”Y” align=”center” top_margin=”5″ bottom_margin=”5″ alt_text=”The Bubble Butt” full_width=”Y”]

Work Out 2 – Lose Your Love Handles

While I don't have a lot of weight to shift, I do feel like my waist could benefit from some ‘love handle' focus. I love that this is a 14-day challenge and I'm doing this in conjunction with the Bubble Butt! Look out world, I'm going to be looking super hot, just in time for a hot Southern Hemisphere summer!

[images style=”2″ image=”https://hustleandgroove.com/storage/2014/07/LoveHandles.jpg” width=”736″ link_url=”http://fitmommydiaries.blogspot.co.nz/2014/05/14-day-lose-your-love-handles-challenge.html” new_window=”Y” align=”center” top_margin=”5″ bottom_margin=”5″ alt_text=”Lose your love handles” full_width=”Y”]

Work Out 3 – Toned Arms

This is my favourite workout at the moment. Again, while I'm not hugely overweight, I do feel like everything is a bit wobbly and jiggly, definitely not like it was when I was in my 20's! So my arms are also getting some love with this 14-day challenge. With these three workouts combined, I'm at my 30 minute limit!

[images style=”2″ image=”https://hustleandgroove.com/storage/2014/07/TonedArms.jpg” width=”620″ link_url=”http://fitmommydiaries.blogspot.co.nz/2014/05/diary-of-fit-mommys-14-day-toned-arms.html” new_window=”Y” align=”center” top_margin=”5″ bottom_margin=”5″ alt_text=”Toned Arms” full_width=”Y”]

Work Out 4 – The 7 Minute Workout

This is the first workout I started out with after not having had any regular exercise program for a good 3 months – I used it as a way to ease my way back in. Apparently it has been scientifically proven that this is all you need to do, but I found that after a month of doing this, I got really bored. And that's the crux of it right there – staying interested in exercising is most of the battle for me. I will probably come back to this workout once I've completed the 14-day challenges above.

[images style=”2″ image=”https://hustleandgroove.com/storage/2014/07/7minuteworkout.jpg” width=”575″ link_url=”http://www.livescience.com/32023-how-to-do-the-7-minute-workout.html” new_window=”Y” align=”center” top_margin=”5″ bottom_margin=”5″ alt_text=”7-Minute Workout” full_width=”Y”]

Work Out 5 – The Leg, Chest and Core Workout

This is where I'm heading once I've completed the challenges. My plan is to do this exercise + 10 minutes intense cardio (jumping jacks, skipping rope, etc) for a total 30-minute workout.

[images style=”2″ image=”https://hustleandgroove.com/storage/2014/07/legchestcore.jpg” width=”736″ link_url=”http://backonpointe.tumblr.com/post/43514037611″ new_window=”Y” align=”center” top_margin=”5″ bottom_margin=”5″ alt_text=”Leg, Chest and Core Workout” full_width=”Y”]

Now you know what I'm doing to keep fit. Are you doing something different? Are you like me, do you hate the gym and look for other alternatives? Let me know in the comments below!

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