You’re flipping through a magazine and see a photo of an extremely sculpted body. Or you’re scrolling through Instagram and your favorite workout ‘grammer seems to spend tons of time workout. We’ve all been there- trying to juggle our schedules, attempting to stay fit and healthy and still feeling discouraged because there aren’t enough hours in the day.

Today’s podcast features guest Lauren Manganiello, registered dietitian and personal trainer. Samara and Lauren chat all about fitness tips for busy professionals, both women and moms.

Fitness Tips for Busy Professionals

Lauren Manganiello tells us all about how she became a personal trainer and a dietitian. Something interesting is that she says in her personal training course, there was a only 1 chapter on nutrition and they were told that trainers should stick to giving basic nutrition advice about, such as going over MyPlate. Very interesting!

Exercise Amounts & Benefits

Lauren recommends being active for 30 minutes each day. She says that being active could just mean taking a walk in central park. In addition to the physical benefits of exercise, she loves the mental benefits- and that she sleeps better when she stays active.

Workout Smarter, Not Harder

If you are very short on time but want to get a lot of bang for you buck then Lauren recommends doing circuit training. Circuit training is where you rotate between different types of exercises.

Nutrition vs. Exercise

There is always a huge debate over which is more important, nutrition or exercise. They are both actually equally important in feeling our best!

Gym vs. Home Workouts

When it comes between choosing the gym vs. working out at home, Lauren recommends choosing the environment wherever you’re most comfortable. She personally prefers the gym because she enjoys the atmosphere. However, someone else may not thrive in that environment.

Advice for Sedentary Women

Moving our bodies is incredible important for overall health, energy levels and just feeling our best.  If you’re completely sedentary, such as sitting at a desk all day, then the idea of starting any type of physical activity can seem overwhelming. Lauren recommends starting small.

She also recommends thinking about finding an accountability partner, or someone with whom you can exercise or take a class.

Don’t go all in, just start small. Your body needs time to adapt to activity. If you’re just going for walks then that’s a great first step!

We also have to celebrate small successes. We always have a big goal at the end and we tend to focus on that, but we should really focus on the small goals in between there. If you went from being completely inactive to going for a walk 1-2 times last week, that’s a huge win.

Workout Gear

Lauren have 2 favorites when it comes to workout gear.

#1- Comfortable Workout Clothes

Lauren stresses the importance of wearing items to workout that make you feel comfortable. She also thinks its great to wear things that make you feel confident.

#2 – Resistance Bands

She thinks they are great because they don’t take up much room, and you can take them pretty much everywhere. You can also get a great workout in when you’re short on time,

Lauren’s Favorite Things to Do When She’s Short on Time

Lauren uses the weekend to plan ahead a little bit. One of the main things she does is she cooks food on the weekend and then freezes things to have during the week. This way if things don’t go according to plan, she doesn’t waste food and can also grab things to take to the office with her.

If her workouts don’t go according to plan then she will just do some sort of activity at home. She also considers the mental aspect of exercise. For example, if she has had a stressful day then she will pull out her yoga mat and light a candle, and then do some yoga or light stretching. Not only is this great body movement, but it is also helping her wind down so that she will sleep better.

Lauren also reminds us that a little bit of preparation goes a long way. She keeps her gym bag with her in the office so that she has some workout gear on hand in case a client cancels or some free time pops up in her schedule.

Last Piece of Advice

Don’t view exercise and wellness as all-or-nothing. Maybe you planned a gym workout at lunch and then your schedule changed. Doing something simple at home or going on a walk is a great alternative in times like these!

Listen Here

About Lauren

Lauren Manganiello, MS, RDN, CDN, CPT is a registered dietitian/nutritionist & fitness professional in NYC. She is an Adjunct Professor at CUNY Queens College and owner of Lauren Manganiello Nutrition & Fitness. Through individualized coaching, Lauren’s aim is to help others live a healthy, balanced life. Follow her on instagram @manganiello_rd or visit her website, laurenmanganiello.com, for a free email challenge, Five Days to Feeling Confident and Comfortable in Your Body.

Website: laurenmanganiello.com

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/manganiello.rd/

Instagram Handle: @manganiello_rd

Twitter Handle: @manganiello_rd