13 Fast, Effective Workouts for Busy Parents

by Kaitlyn KirbyJanuary 17, 2022

If you had to choose between working harder or working smarter, which would you pick? If you’re a busy, tired, hardly-sleeping parent, we’re betting smarter. There’s good news for you! “Research from my NeuroFit lab shows that short five-minute movement breaks help you stay focused and remember more,” says Dr. Jennifer Heisz, author of Move The Body, Heal The Mind. This means that even though mom-brain is very, very real, little bursts of exercise will help lift that fog. What’s more, Dr. Heisz adds, “During the first 10 minutes of movement there is an increase in oxygenated blood flow to the brain, especially to the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which governs our working memory, mental flexibility, and self-control.”

Whether it’s five minutes or thirty, giving yourself easy ways to keep active will have lasting benefits way beyond simply burning calories. We’ve tested a variety of short, simplified workouts geared at busy parents, all of them at or around just 15 minutes long. Read on to get moving.

The NeuroFix Workout

We love this one because although it is high-intensity, it requires no equipment or devices. Do it several times and you'll have a 15-minute (or so) routine you can take anywhere.

Jumping Jacks for 30 seconds

Mountain Climbers for 30 seconds

Skaters for 30 seconds

High Knees for 30 seconds

Repeat

Where to find it: Pre-order Move the Body, Heal the Mind here.

Mom on the Go

Mom on the Go offers seven, short, thematic yoga practices designed to energize your body. Follow the 28-day program for postpartum recovery including pelvic and core exercises, or just pop in and do a reinvigoration yoga session.

Where to Find It: Mom on the Go

The 15-Minute HIIT Metabolism Booster

This quick 15-minute workout uses your body weight to boost your muscles and your metabolism—no gym equipment required!

Where to Find It: Fitness Blender

The Tabata Cardio Workout Plan

This fat-blasting workout plan is as effective as most longer workout sessions and combines two proven fat-loss techniques— metabolic strength and Tabata training. You'll work every muscle in your body (especially your abs!) in a fraction of the time!

Where to Find It: Shape

15-Minute Bounce-Back Dance Cardio Workout

This high-energy step-by-step dance routine will make you forget you're actually working out!

Where to Find It: YouTube

15-Minute Jump Rope Workout

This jump rope routine only has five moves, but is sure to get your heart racing!

Where to Find It: Real Simple

The No-Equipment Necessary Plan

Take it back to basics with this 15-minute beginner workout— with no equipment necessary!

Where to Find It: YouTube

Sculpting Kettle Bell Workout

Just two kettlebells and 15 minutes are all you need to get in this body-sculpting workout.

Where to Find It: Women's Health

The 15-Minute Runner Workout

This quick runner workout focuses on tightening and toning your body with moves like jump squats and mountain climbers.

Where to Find It: Women's Health

Low Impact Cardio Workout

This low-impact cardio workout is a great way to exercise your whole body without worrying about any injuries!

Where to Find It: YouTube

At-Home Barre Workout

Can't make it out to a barre class? This 15-minute routine you can do right from your own living room!

Where to Find It: Greatist

Bonus Fitness Hacks

Need a few more fitness hacks to work into your routine? Try these, from lifting your baby to sprinting the stairs!

Where to Find Them: Tinybeans

—Kaitlyn Kirby

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Study Shows Number of Times a Person Gives Birth May Affect Aging

by Jennifer SwartvagherDecember 8, 2020

Do you feel like you’ve aged overnight since having children? That feeling may not be just in your head. A new study led by Penn State researchers found that the number of times a person gives birth may also affect the body’s aging process.

Researchers examined several different measures that represent how a person’s body is aging and found that people who had few births or many seemed to have aged quicker than those who had given birth three or four times. However, these effects were found only after a person had gone through menopause.

“Our findings suggest that pregnancy and birth may contribute to the changing and dysregulation of several different physiological systems that may affect aging once a person is post-menopause,” said Talia Shirazi, a doctoral candidate in biological anthropology at Penn State. “This is consistent with the metabolic, immunological, and endocrinological changes that occur in the body during pregnancy and lactation, as well as the various disease risks that are associated with pregnancy and reproductive investment more generally.”

Pregnancy and breastfeeding use a large amount of the body’s energy and can affect many of its systems, including immune function, metabolism, and blood pressure, among others. Additionally, people who have given birth are more likely to die from diabetes, kidney disease and hypertension, among other conditions, than those who have not.

The researchers were curious about how the body balances these “costs of reproduction” and whether it affects how the body ages.

“We think there’s something going on, some sort of trade-off, between aging and reproduction,” Shirazi said. “This makes sense from an evolutionary biology point of view, because if you’re spending energy in pregnancy and breastfeeding, you probably don’t have as much energy to allocate towards things like physiological maintenance and defense.”

For the study, the researchers used data on 4418 participants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Data included information about reproductive health including the number of live births and whether they had gone through menopause or not. They measured biological aging in several ways based on nine biomarkers designed to assess metabolic health, kidney and liver function, anemia and red blood cell disorders, immune function and inflammation.

“We wanted to look at measures that would help capture the age and functioning of the body’s major organ systems, instead of looking at aging at the cellular level,” said Waylon Hastings, postdoctoral researcher at Penn State. “When we think about pregnancy, we don’t think about changes to individual cells but instead about how the immune system or metabolism changes, for example.”

The researchers found a “U-shaped relationship” between the number of live births and accelerated biological aging. Those reporting zero or few live births, or reporting many live births, had markers of quicker biological aging than those who reported three or four live births. This was true even when controlling for chronological age, lifestyle and other health related and demographic factors.

Shirazi said that because the data was taken at one point in time, it’s not currently possible to know what caused these associations. But she said one possible explanation for the findings recently published in Scientific Reports is the presence, or lack, of ovarian hormones in post-menopausal people.

“Previous research has found that generally, ovarian hormones are protective against some cellular level processes that might accelerate aging,” Shirazi said. “So it’s possible that in pre-menopausal women the effect of hormones are buffering the potential negative effect of pregnancy and reproduction on biological age acceleration. And then perhaps when the hormones are gone, the effects can show themselves.”

Hastings said the study also suggests that additional research can be done to understand the processes that may be involved in the connection between aging and having children, as well as how these processes work over time.

“This transition into menopause, and female reproductive health in general, is very much under researched and not as well understood as it should be at this time,” Hastings said. “So if we can see that there are these changes in aging as a function of reproduction and menopause, and we don’t have a great explanation for why, then that’s a sign we should investigate this more.”

—Jennifer Swartvagher

Featured photo: Camylla Battani on Unsplash

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Mindful Eating & 3 Ways to Cut Out Sugar

By Maria Sofia

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

April 21, 2020

Photo: Jeff Siepman on Unsplash

Growing up in an Italian household I was taught to eat everything on my plate at a very young age. My mom made homemade meals everyday. In fact, all meals were always eaten at the table with my entire family, it was our family bonding time. My mom didn’t believe in restrictions; however, the only thing we were not able to eat was sugar. Sugar was a staple product in our pantry however it was only used for special occasions.

I never believed in cutting sugar or food completely out of my diet. I enjoy food too much to enforce restrictions. In fact, the more I feel restricted the more I rebel and its the same when it comes to food.

As a health coach, the first thing I teach my clients is to create a healthy lifestyle. That’s right, I said a lifestyle, not diet. I think what we need to do is stop telling ourselves that we are “going on a diet” but rather help ourselves understand the importance of creating a long last healthy relationship with food.

Secondly, I work with clients to understand how stress affects them. We are all affected by stress differently. I realized after all my hardships that I am an emotional eater and when under extreme amounts of stress, I seek comfort in food. Once I became aware that I was actually doing this I was able to change and develop tools to cope.

If you are an emotional eater, then you need to go within yourself and take time to become aware of and understand your triggers, only then you can learn how to control them. Once you do, you will be able to still enjoy your favorite treats in moderation. If you don’t feel you can do this on your own, work with a certified health coach could make a world of a difference.

The key is portion control, not restriction or elimination. It’s about eating foods that nourish your body—which in fact will help you crave less sugar. A craving towards sugar is your body telling you its missing something maybe you are lacking certain vitamins. From an emotional standpoint, we are searching for a quick fix, but often after we have it, we end up feeling guilty or not well.

Today I look at my meals in a mindful way, I called it mindful eating. Each person’s body is unique, we all react differently to foods and so our lifestyle should focus on eating foods that give us energy rather than take it away. Having excessive” amounts of sugar can cause negative effects on our bodies such as Type 2 diabetes, obesity, hypertension, cholesterol, allergies, tooth decay, and cardiovascular disease.

This is why it’s important to understand how sugar reacts in our bodies and become aware and mindful of eating foods that nourish and provide us energy in healthy ways.

Understanding the difference between simple and complex carbohydrates’ can go a long way in mindful eating. For instance, simple carbohydrates are digested and absorbed quickly and they provide a quick burst of energy followed by a crash.

Complex carbohydrates, on the other hand, are sugars that take the body longer to breakdown and are packed with vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Some examples of complex carbohydrates are millet, quinoa, brown rice, and veggies. These are great because they do not spike your blood sugar levels quite so drastically as simple carbohydrates and help provide you the energy to sustain throughout the day.

Here are 3 quick tips for eating sugar in a healthier way:

1. Eat more fruits and vegetables containing natural sugar throughout the day this will help control your sugar cravings. Fruits that are naturally lower in sugar are raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, kiwi, grapefruit, watermelon, oranges, peaches, and cantaloupe.

2. Switch soda for filtered water—get a little crazy, add raspberries, lemon or any fruit if you desire this will help you boost your metabolism. Tip: Try drinking a cup of lemon water on an empty stomach in the morning help flush toxins and boost your metabolism.

3. Switch from processed sugar to natural sugars and use organic honey, organic maple syrup brown sugar or coconut sugar. If this change is too drastic, I recommend cutting down first, so if you use usually use two sugars then move to use only one at first to slowly ween yourself away from it. And you should stay away from any artificial sweeteners.

If you want a fun and easy way to explain sugar to your children considering purchasing my book called “Mommy, Can I Eat This?” I wrote it to help parents and children understand the importance of watching your daily intake of sugar.

Maria Sofia

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

Maria Sofia’s life mission—inspired by her personal struggles with weight loss —is to educate parents and teachers on the importance of teaching nutrition to young children. Maria is a certified Health, Life and Trauma Coach. She is currently working toward her PhD in holistic health and lives in Toronto.

Awesome Mother’s Day Ideas That Aren’t Elbow Macaroni Crafts

By Jennifer Landis

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

May 10, 2019

Photo: Brett Sayles via Pexels

Mother’s Day is coming up on Sunday, May 12th, 2019, which means you’re running out of time to get or make an excellent gift for the woman who gave you life.

Now, with two little ones, I don’t usually expect much for Mother’s Day. My hubby will often pick me up some flowers and something I mentioned wanting but would never buy for myself, and my oldest daughter will make me something out of construction paper and elbow macaroni, but that’s about it. Don’t get me wrong — I’m not complaining about it. I treasure every elbow macaroni craft, but sometimes you end up hoping for something a little more … well, awesome.

With that in mind, as Mother’s Day gets closer, here are some fantastic ideas to make your holiday rock a little bit harder.

Mommy and Me Yoga

Whether you’re an experienced yogi or a newbie, a mommy and me yoga class can be a blast. These beginners’ yoga classes can be a great way to stretch out, relax and spend time with your little ones. You may even find that you’ve got a talent for yoga, which might give you a way to relax even on your most stressful days.

Yoga helps to increase flexibility and improve your metabolism and can also help you lose weight. You don’t have to be active or naturally flexible to try out yoga, either. If you keep at it, the strength and flexibility will develop. As the late, great Carrie Fisher put it, “be afraid but do it anyway.” The confidence will come later.

Mother’s Day Weekend Camping

Who says you only have to celebrate Mother’s Day on a Sunday? Make it an entire weekend by heading out for a family camping trip. It doesn’t matter how old your kids are — you can enjoy a weekend camping trip. Just make sure you have a couple of comfort items like blankets or stuffed animals so your kids will be comfortable — and stock up on snacks and other supplies. You don’t want to be roughing it with young children. Wait until they get a little bit older for those wilderness excursions.

My parents took me camping as a kid and, honestly, they’re some of my best memories — even if we were sleeping on a beach in a sandy tent and got so sunburned we looked like little lobsters. We never went on a Mother’s Day camping trip, but it’s a great way to spend the holiday weekend.

Make Some Crafts Together

While I adore the elbow macaroni creations that I get from my daughter every year, it might be fun to make a craft together. Make splatter-paint canvases by throwing paint on a canvas. I can guarantee that kids of every age will love this one — kids adore making a mess! Just make sure you do it outside, because you will get paint everywhere.

This year, I think me and my oldest daughter are going to make handpainted flower pots. Terra cotta pots are perfect for painting, and once they’re dry, you can plant anything you want in them. Both beautiful and functional.

DIY Pizza Party

Who doesn’t love pizza? Instead of ordering in, why not get the kids involved and make your own pizzas? If you’re handy in the kitchen, you can easily make your own pizza dough. But if you’re not, store bought is fine.

Set up the pizza dough and let your kids build their own with their favorite toppings. You can even create a pizza bar with all the toppings, sauces and cheeses you want. Then, once they’re decked out, throw them in the oven and you’ve got a tasty dinner that you all worked together to make. What better way to spend Mother’s Day?

If you’re worried about counting those carbs, don’t fret — you can make a low-carb pizza crust with a riced cauliflower.

Play in the Dirt

Kids love digging in the dirt, so why not get your hands dirty and plant a garden? You can plant flowers to decorate your yard, or maybe vegetables, depending on what’s in season in your area.

If you don’t have a yard that you can dig up to create a garden — either because of HOA rules or just because you don’t have a yard at all — set up some raised planting beds and go to town. Your kids will love to have you playing in the dirt with them, and depending on what you plant, you might have some fresh vegetables or fruits to enjoy a few months down the road.

Whatever You Do, Enjoy Your Day

Now, I’m not saying you have to do all of these things for Mother’s Day — or any of them. This list is just to give you a few ideas to help your Mother’s Day be a little more awesome this year.

Jennifer Landis

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

Jennifer Landis is a mom, wife, freelance writer, and blogger. She enjoys long naps on the couch, sneaking spoonfuls of peanut butter when her kid's not looking, and binge watching Doctor Who while her kid's asleep. She really does like her kid, though, she promises. Find her on Twitter @JenniferELandis.

Study Finds Kids Have the Energy of Endurance Athletes as Parents Say “No Duh”

by Shahrzad WarkentinJanuary 23, 2019

There some studies that are truly eye-opening and thought-provoking. This is not one of them. New research shows that kids’ energy levels are greater than those of endurance athletes—now tell us something we didn’t know!

A recent study by the Université Clermont Auvergne in France found that kids have greater energy levels than professional endurance athletes. The research also found that kids’ recovery time is also higher, which explains why they can seem exhausted one second and ready to sprint a marathon a moment later.

photo: iStock

Let’s take this all with a grain of salt, too: the study involved 12 kids ages nine to 11, as well as 12 untrained men and 13 male endurance athletes who were national-level triathlon competitors or long-distance runners and cyclists—so, a pretty small sample size. All three groups each performed aerobic and anaerobic exercises while the researchers measured output. During the anaerobic test, the untrained adult’s power output fell by 51.8 percent and athletes by 41.8 percent. But those kids? Their output only decreased by 35.2 percent.

“We found the children used more of their aerobic metabolism and were therefore less tired during the high-intensity physical activities,” said Sebastien Ratel, Associate Professor in Exercise Physiology. “They also recovered very quickly – even faster than the well-trained adult endurance athletes – as demonstrated by their faster heart-rate recovery and ability to remove blood lactate. This may explain why children seem to have the ability to play and play and play, long after adults have become tired.”

—Shahrzad Warkentin

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5 Simple Tips To Avoid the Hangries

by Leigh WeinbergAugust 1, 2016

The following is shared from one of our favorite moms, Amanda Carlisle of AFewShortcuts.com.

We are always on the go during the Summer. The one thing that happens more often than I would like to admit is someone gets hangry. Here are my go-to tips to avoid the hangries and keep the entire family full of energy and happy while you are out having fun this summer.

1. Meal Plan

I feel like we think about food all of the time, but as a mom of three, it helps a ton to have a meal plan. Just a simple idea about what we are eating for each meal. A simple meal plan helps me stay prepared and fight off the hangries when it comes to the entire family. It is like your secret battle plan for winning this whole Mom thing. Knowing is half the battle. Have you seen a pack of hangry kids during the summer? NOT a pretty thing.

2. Wholesome Snacks

When meal and snack time roll around reach for a snack that will help you stay fuller longer and help fuel your day with the energy you need without the hangry crash. Some great options are Jif® Peanut Butter, nuts, hummus dip and veggies, yogurt, and these new Jif ® Power Ups ™, Jif’s new line of chewy granola bars and creamy granola clusters.

Both Jif ® Power Ups ™ Granola Bars & Jif ® Power Ups ™ Creamy Clusters have absolutely no corn syrup and a balance of 5g of protein, 2g of fiber, good fats and most importantly, peanuts are #1 ingredient. Jif® Power Ups™ are wholesome, balanced snacks that will help keep kids energized throughout the day. The best part is I don’t need to feel guilty if I steal a pack or two.

3. Pack Snacks

I look like I am moving out every time we leave the house. Can any other moms relate?

Pack Snacks!!!

It is so important to pack snacks and have some great options with you when you are leaving the house for the day. After a day out shopping, at the park, at the pool, or just exploring your town the hangries are bound to happen. Have you ever tried to buckle in a hangry toddler into a car seat? They really should come with an extra warning label for that.

When you pack a snack bag and fill it with great options like these Jif® Power Ups™ Chewy Granola Bars you can keep the hungry monsters at bay and happy until their next meal. Mix it up and have more than one flavor or choice, so your kids feel like they are in charge of their snack destiny.

Bonus! It also helps avoid those unexpected drive-through trips, or run into the convenience store for food. Those add up quick. So not only are you avoiding the hangries, you are saving money too. Look at you winning at life!

4. Hydrate

I know we are talking about being hangry and not about hydration but the two go hand and hand. Staying properly hydrated can help your metabolism work at its best. In turn, it helps you know when you are truly hungry. Keep a bottle of water (or two) around just in case. It is a great idea to stay super hydrated during the summer anyway. It is hot out there!

5. Educate Yourself

You may not always have a meal plan or remember to pack snacks, so educate yourself on the options that are available to you. Be aware of filling, healthy choices in your area or that your local stores offer.

While you may not be prepared with a snack bag, you can avoid the hangries by being educated about the choices that are around you and making the right decisions. It is effortless to run into a grocery store and grab a box of Jif® Power Ups™ Granola Bars and some fruit to avoid those hangries.

What are your tips for avoiding the hangries? Leave them in the comments below

Jif® Power Ups™ sponsored These 5 Simple Tips to Avoid the Hangries. I avoided the hangries while writing it by snacking on some Jif® Power Ups™ Creamy Clusters. All opinions are 100% my own.

Amanda Carlisle is a mom of 3 who loves to direct others on life’s happy adventures through food, crafts, and family fun on her blog AFewShortcuts.com

ML Interest Tag: metabolism

13 Fast, Effective Workouts for Busy Parents

The NeuroFix Workout

Mom on the Go

The 15-Minute HIIT Metabolism Booster

The Tabata Cardio Workout Plan

15-Minute Bounce-Back Dance Cardio Workout

15-Minute Jump Rope Workout

The No-Equipment Necessary Plan

Sculpting Kettle Bell Workout

The 15-Minute Runner Workout

Low Impact Cardio Workout

At-Home Barre Workout

Bonus Fitness Hacks

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