Full-time employed Dopers who "work out"

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

Of course “work out” pertains to weightlifting, not your employment.
Do you ever feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day, or that you just don’t have the energy to work out as consistently as you would like?

Please give me the details regarding your work-out schedule. How do you fit it in/ move it around your work hours?

Coz I tend to find that after a 9-5 job (which actually translates more to an 8-6/7 job depending upon commute) that I’m just too bloody tired to pump some iron.

Also, it feels like my hours are so shrunk that even if I have the energy, I just don’t want to. Maybe I’ve got a couple of hours to kill before bedtime - but really I got other things on the table - such that I even find myself getting lazy about it (oh the pain!!! The pain of it all!!!).

I’ll be glad when I quit in June.

So how about you?

#2

I used to pump iron, and got reasonably strong, but still looked like a stick figure drawing :stuck_out_tongue: Then I took up Tae Kwon Do. It helped immensely with my clumsiness I was one test away from red belt, but I realized that my absolute best would never be more than mediocre (and I got sick and tired of the bruises and injuries). Now, I just don’t have the energy anymore at night. I’m turning into a skinny Homer Simpson. The horror. The horror.

#3

I go to the gym in my apartment building for an hour before work every morning, half cardio, half weights.

My experience is that if I don’t do it in the morning, I won’t do it, as I just don’t have the energy for it after work.

#4

It helps that I don’t have a family…and that I’m a night owl…

But generally, I work out at night (sometimes in the morning, but rarely - it’s just too hard to convince myself to get out of bed early enough to do so. And I’m not as fast/strong/flexible/etc. in the morning) so, I’ll go to the gym on the way home from work. I generally am one of the last ones out of the place at night. It tends to work for me.

#5

I’m at my best in the evening anyway, so that’s when I do it. It helps that my gym is open really late.

#6

When I was lifting more, that’s what I would do. Have my gear with me and stop on the way home. If I tried to go home first, I’d always find a way to talk myself out of it.

Now, I row in the evenings and between rowing and evening classes, I don’t have time to lift much anymore. So I’ve been doing exercises in the morning that I can do without weights. I get up, erg (I own a rowing machine) for a 5 minute warm-up, and then do sit-ups, push-ups, and squat exercises. (the whoel routine takes less than a ahlf hour) I got a book called “Combat Conditioning” that has a whloe bunch of body weight exercises. I can’t do hand stand push-ups yet, but I’m working on it…

#7

I run an hour or two (including warmups, stretches, etc) every other day right after work. I discovered that if I ever, at any point, let my ass contact the couch or my computer chair, I’ll be tempted to take a nap or otherwise give the workout a miss. So I just go on autopilot the moment I get home. Sometimes I’ll get up from my desk at work, and find myself standing in the park in my shorts with only an indistinct blur in my memory to explain how I got there. :slight_smile:

When I lifted weights at the gym, I’d also–like a lot of other people in this thread–just throw my gym bag in my car in the morning and go straight there after work.

I don’t really find that exercise cuts into my free time all that much–I’d probably be spending that time watching tv and snacking or fiddling around on the computer. Hardly a productive way to spend time. I also enjoy it quite a bit–it gets me outside and lets me people-watch. And I like the health and fitness benefits even more. Every time I start to feel like I’ve lost free time, I look at my new muscle definition, remember back to all the pretty women I passed by while running and the feeling goes away.

As for being too tired…that feeling usually goes away after the first mile or so, I’ve found. Of course, the most strenuous part of my job is typing on a keyboard, so it’s not like I’m ever really all that bushed to begin with.

#8

My problem has always been finding a place that’s open when I’m free. My job is technically 10-6, but is usually 10-8, 10-10 or more. There’s a very nice gym right where I live, but the hours are 10am-10:30pm, so it’s usually useless.

I switched to another gym (Tipness, for the Tokyo Dopers), that had longer hours 7am-11:30pm and locations that I could get to faster from work. The new problem was that what was convenient for me was also convenient for everyone else. Tipness Shibuya is so crowded in the evenings that you frequently have to wait in line to use a machine. I started getting up early to go in the mornings. That worked for a while, but it was just too easy to look at the alarm clock and say “I’ll go tomorrow.”

In July I joined Gold’s Gym in Harajuku, which is open 24 hours, and I’m happy now (I’d be happier if they had a pool, buy that’s no biggie). It’s not far out of my way, and it’s close enough to my house (about an hour walk or so) that I don’t worry if the trains stop for the night. The nice thing is that, since they don’t close, there’s no frantic rush like there is at other places near closing time. So far I’ve been able to consistently go 2-3 times a week.

#9

My answer is that I haven’t felt like there were enough hours in the day to get the recommended amount of exercise since college, whether I’ve had a full-time job or not. When I had a full-time job in a corporate environment, I tried working out in the morning, but although I felt like I had a ton of time in the evening when I did that since I didn’t have to work out after getting home, I was always too exhuasted to do anything in the evening. Plus, my peak performance is usually after work rather than just after getting up. So I usually preferred exercising in the evening. That was when I was still doing marathons about once a year (okay, so I’ve only done 3, so that was for 3 years, but I’ve always been an exercise-aholic). So my schedule usually looked like this:

6:30 a.m. - get up
8:30 a.m. - 5:30 or 6 - work
6:30 or 7 - 8 or 8:30 (depending upon where I was in the program), run
9:00 - eat dinner
11:00 bed

That was my schedule about 4 times a week during the weekdays alone, and does not include the long runs (often up to 4-hours of running) each Saturday. Then there’s the recommended weight training, then you’re sore, so you have to take time to do appropriate stretching, blah, blah blah.

I no longer have a traditional full-time job. Instead, I own my own company, so my once 9 - 5, Monday through Friday (or thereabouts) job is now more of a 7 - 7 job, and I usually work at least 3-4 hours on Saturday or Sunday, sometimes both. I still work out about one hour four times a week, and try to fit in time for weight training and stuff like yoga, but I just don’t have the time or inclination to work out like I used to. My house was a big enough disaster during marathon season when I was working a regular job, plus I want to have time to enjoy life and be with my husband. Not just work, run, eat, sleep, work, run, eat, sleep.

Which is what I think most Americans would do if we were all getting the recommended daily amount of exercise. I think they recently raised it to an hour of aerobic exercise for maximum benefit, and you’re supposed to do it most days of the week. So, most days of the week, you’d be working eight hours, exercising at least one, then for your mental health, many doctors recommend finding time alone to meditate, then there’s the stretching you’re supposed to do everyday, then the weight lifting/strength training you’re supposed to do two to three days a week. Oh, yeah, then there’s the cooking (healthy meals, of course!), then the cleaning, laundry, taking care of the family, etc., etc. I’m not really susprised that most adults feel there aren’t enough hours in the day - with all the crap we’re supposed to be doing to keep healthy, plus trying to keep a job (or run a business), plus take care of our families, and maintain our santiy, there just aren’t enough hours.

Good Lord, I’m stressed now. I need to go to bed. :smiley:

#10

Plenty of time to work out. Ballys are open late and some of them are open 24 hours. Bulk season I workout right after work. I head right from work to the gym because if I go home, I will stay home. After it, I come home and take an hour or so nap.
When I am “in season”, I will get up at 6am and do cardio for about 30 mins, go to work, come back and do a regular workout. I’ll admit, I do workout too much, 6 days on 1 day off. My energy level is always non existant, but I force myself to go. I feel guilty now if I don’t workout.

#11

I used to go the the gym before work, but have fallen out of the habit. Nowadays, I go after work Mon, Wed and Fri.

I work 8ish to 6ish. Out of bed by 0630 and at work before 0830 (I take ages to get ready since I usually cook a decent breakfast). I’m out of work and in the gym by 1840, finished and showered by 1940, on the train and home by 2020, unpacked and dinner cooked by 2100, and in bed by 2200.

I’m not lacking in energy per se, but I don’t have a lot of free time during the week.

#12

I joined a 24 hour gym, but I’ve yet to go at any off hour. It’s just nice to know I can.

I go to the gym at least 3 times a week on my lunch break. I usually spend about an hour there doing cardio and weght training.

When I’m really in my workout groove, I’ll aslo come home and either go for a walk/bike ride/jog and then do another hour of strength training, either crunches, etc. on a workout ball or more weight lifting with dumbells or the weight bench in the garage. Once it starts raining here, I’ll do my after-work cardio on the treadmill in there as well.

Some days it is hard. I’m with you, by the time I get home (5:30 - 6 PM most nights) I’ve got to quickly make dinner for the hubby and kids, clean up the mess, clean up the house a bit, make sure the kids are doing or have done their homework and chores, pay bills, and a zillion other things.

But, it makes me feel good. I like feeling healthy, I want to try and stay in shape. It gives me some time to forget things and just focus on the workout.

#13

I have a treadmill and weights at home. I used to work out before work, but I got tired of having to go to bed so early, so now I usually come home from work, have dinner, do what I need to do around the house for an hour and a half or so and then start my workout.

#14

I workout at least four times a week, fourty five minutes to an hour and a half each time. I run two miles and then work on the upper torso for the duration of the workout. We’ve got an elliptical trainer, pilates machine, and weight machine at home (hand-me downs), and that really helps in keeping exercise a part of the schedule. I had a gym membership at 24 Hour Fitness, but I couldn’t bring myself to go after week two.

Energy is definitely a problem, even with the equipment at home, but I force myself to do it anyway; It’s too important not to with my family history.

I’m a full time student, but I do the 9-5 thing, or longer, depending on the day of the week.

#15

I exercise at night, around nine or so. It helps me get to bed at a reasonable time.

#16

There is always time. It just sepends on how much you really want to work out.

I have 3 jobs. I’m up at 4:15 am for 1 job that takes about an hour every day. Then off to my real job from 6:00am to 4:00. Then 3 days a week I have about 2 hours of another job. I live between 2 small towns. I am the main operator of 1 water supply system and part time at the other.

So 2 days a week I get up at 4:15 and work until I get home about 4:30pm and 3 days a week I don’t get done until 6:30 or 7.

At 7:45 pm no matter how tired i may be I work out for about an hour then go for a run of maybe 5 miles. I have a home gym. (Crossbow) Saturdays I take off and Sunday night I play roller hockey for about 3 hours.

I’m 35 and have a very understanding GF but I almost never watch tv or sit still for very long. 1 of my rules is not to get too comfortable before I work out.

Energy really isn’t a problem if you get enough sleep and eat right. One of the most important things you can do for your health is get between 7 & 8 hours of sleep. Eating 6 small meals a day instead of 3 large ones will increase your energy level or at least help you avoid lulls.

#17

If it’s really that important to you, you’ll work out before work.

Here’s my schedule:

wakey: 6:00
Leave house: 6:15
Arrive at work: 7:00
Leave work: 3:30 (we have flex time. just put in your 8.5)
arrive home: 4:15 (so I’m gone for 10 hours, like you)
work out starts at 4:30.
I’m usually making dinner at 6:30.
I’m reading/watching TV/studying chess at 8:00
I’m in bed at 10:00.

You just got to make it part of your routine. For several months, I’ve been very regular about working out and I’ve had much more energy to do it when I get home.

If I worked 8-4:30 or 9-5:30, I’d work out before work.

I also live about .5 mile from my gym, so I can run to the gym after work, but I usually ride my bicycle.

#18

I’m lucky in that I have a gym about a mile away from work, so I go there in the morning. My office actually used to be in the very same complex as the gym before the company moved us to the present location.

Morning works best for me. It avoids the problem of missing workouts due to being too tired after work, or to having to work late. I’ve been going there nearly every day recently–weights M/W/F and cardio Tu/Th. The way I figure it is that I’ve got to take a shower in the morning anyway, so why not work out first? It’s helped my consistency of working out tremendously. I’m starting to lift heavy–well, heavy for me at least–and am starting to get strong again.

To the OP, if your gym rents out permanent lockers, get one. You can take a week’s worth of clothes to change into after working out, and that makes things really seamless and easy when it comes to getting ready to leave home in the morning. No clothes to sort out, because you already did that.

#19

I use the gym here at the office. It’s pretty sparse, but all I need is a treadmill and a tv and I’m set. I try to workout 2-3x a week. I also bring my ab roller and keep it at my desk, that way I can take breaks and do some ab work without leaving my cube.

#20

I work out 4-5 times/week, at home.

I work out from about 10pm to 10.45pm.

When I travel on biz, 99% of the hotels have ‘ok’ equipment. I use free weights at home, but understand I am stuck with machines on the road. I plan ahead and do heavy stuff at home, and focus on reps when on the road.

We have a great gym at work. I fill in the blanks here by hitting the gym after work, for about 20-30 mins. I like to do dips, cable crossovers and a few other things (like triceps) at work, 'cause the machines are so good.

At home, the wife and kids are in bed by 10. I go into my finished basement, turn on the tube and workout.