How to Partner Faith & Fitness This New Year as a New Mom

When I found out I was pregnant with our first daughter, I had a lot of moms warn me about the changes I would experience after having a baby.

"You won't have time for yourself."

"It's okay if the house is a mess, laundry isn't done, and dirty dishes are piled in the sink."

"You won't be able to work out/run as much as you used to."

These are a couple of the responses I heard. Although there is some truth to these statements, I wondered if these things were defaults to motherhood or choices.

Could I still find time for personal hobbies and interests, keep a decently clean home, and train and work out while being a new mom? And if so, how?

The simple answer: yes. But how you accomplish these goals will look different depending on the season of life you're in.

So many of us live our lives in reactive mode. We make decisions based on our reaction to external circumstances rather than taking authority of the situation and being proactive.

Example: Before having a baby you loved sewing.

But baby requires your full attention and depends on you for survival.

So while attending to baby's needs, your reactive response is that you don't have time so you can't sew anymore.

Rather than strategically planning to sew, you respond "in the moment." The issue with "in the moment" responses is they always demand urgent tasks to take priority rather than make time for important tasks.

A proactive response to wanting to sew might look like scheduling to sew during the baby's nap time, after the baby goes to bed, or even 20 minutes before the baby wakes up.

The biggest key to proactive responses is SCHEDULING them. "Fail to plan, is a plan to fail."

If we're honest, we hate when our house is a mess, want to be fit and healthier, and desire to do things we enjoy. We wish we could accomplish these goals. Yet, if we're honest, our habits are "in the moment" responses. Although we want change, we don't do it because of how we're used to living.

It almost seems easier to keep living the way we are. Keep defaulting to the new mom norms. Keep letting life determine how we act instead of choosing it ourselves.

My friend, although these "norms" may seem easier. They are not.

How stressed are you when you come home to a messy house?

How horrible do you feel and hate the way you look?

How often do you say "must be nice" when you see someone doing a hobby or interest you long to do?

Please do not enter 2026 with a reactive mentality. Pray for a proactive one!

For me this looks like:

• Waking up at 5, 5:30 or 6 am to either get a good run in, record a podcast episode, read, write, or get some work done.

• Having my Jesus time while Bryleigh and I eat breakfast.

• Using nap time to write and get productive work done on the computer.

• Cleaning the dishes before cooking the next meal.

• Scheduling one day a week to focus on laundry, mop floors, and deep cleaning the bathrooms (usually Sunday afternoons).

• Picking up Bryleigh's toys before we leave the house or go to bed.

• Vacuuming/cleaning the kitchen and living room in the evenings before/after dinner.

These small activities usually only take a few minutes to accomplish but make a huge difference overall.

Now if you're wanting to build better habits around your fitness in 2026, here are 5 steps I encourage you to do:

1. Find a type of workout you enjoy & can realistically do consistently

   - Pickleball

   - Running

   - Lifting weights

   - Cycling

What can you do with what you have?

Idea: Look up YouTube videos for workouts

1. Set goals within that type of workout

   - Run a 5K in Summer 2026

   - Participate in Hyrox Summer 2026

   - Enter a pickleball tournament 2 times a month

The key is setting an amount and time limit.

3. Invite God into your fitness journey

   - Play worship music while working out

   - Pray for Him to help you stay committed to your goals and disciplined

   - Pray for Him to show you when you can make time for these activities

4. Schedule a time to workout based on your schedule

   - Before baby wakes up (this has worked best for me).

   - Before/during lunch/after work

The key is finding creative ways and talking with your spouse on your goals and how you as a family can accomplish them. Maybe your spouse can watch the baby while you workout, or you bring the baby along with you. Whatever it looks like, the important thing is FINDING WAYS to accomplish your goal.

5. Adapt when necessary

Not every workout will end perfectly. Some will be cut short, be interrupted multiple times, or moved to another day. It's not about keeping a perfect schedule. It's about working with what you got, being flexible, and finding creative ways to fit it in.

6. Find other moms on social media to follow as inspiration (especially Christian moms)

This has been a game changer for me. They help show me how to balance motherhood and fitness, how to invite God in the mix, inspire me to keep going when I don't want to, and give me ideas to try to stay consistent.

If you'd like help this new year pursuing your fitness goals as a new mom, then comment "FITNESS" for more info!