Getting into shape can be daunting at the best of times, but when you’re a busy mum running around after young kids, living a healthy lifestyle can seem nearly impossible.
Celebrity trainer Michelle Bridges, however, has some foolproof tips for changing everyday habits to become happier and healthier.
Speaking exclusively to Now To Love, the mother-of-one spills on balancing parenting with work, how to get your kids eat their greens and the reality show she looks back on with the fondest memories.
Michelle is a doting mother to six-year-old Axel, whom she shares with her ex Steve Willis.
(Image: Instagram)For Michelle, who’s a doting mother to six-year-old Axel, a productive day always starts the night before.
“The most important thing for me is to get to bed early. Often I’ll put my son to be and put myself to bed pretty much straight after that,” she says.
“I get up at least 45 minutes earlier than [Axel] and I’ll do whatever I need to do for myself. Sometimes that’s just a bit of meditation, yoga or sometimes I just get a whole bunch of s–t done!
“Even if you get up just 15 minutes earlier in the morning, you’d be surprised what you can get done. I get him up and off to school and then I try my best to get my work out done straight after I’ve dropped him to school.”
For Michelle, ticking off exercise and work during school time is imperative so she can be as focused on Axel as possible once he’s home.
“This is the way I chose to do it. I squeeze everything in between those school hours,” she says.
“I want to be a hands-on mum, I’ve always wanted that for myself. I didn’t have a child at the age of 45 to not be hands on and I’m not making any judgement on anybody else because everyone is different.”
“The most important thing for me is to get to bed early.”
(Image: Instagram)Michelle’s advice to other mothers struggling to make time for themselves is to always plan ahead.
“It’s all about scheduling, it really is! It’s so you have those habits, those routines. Because that is what gets you successful and what it is that you want. It won’t happen unless you schedule it in,” she says, adding that pre-made snacks are the way to go.
“Whether it be a handful of nuts and seeds or a boiled egg or sliced apple. Just something you can have in the car on the go,” she says.
“And let’s face it, we’re creatures of habit. We tend to cook the same stuff. But the key is having your favourite meals and your go-to recipes with a shopping list that matches that so that you’re not going through the drive through.”
“It’s all about scheduling, it really is!”
(Image: Instagram)While it might be easy to make healthier changes in your own life, Michelle has an ingenious hack for getting kids to get their veggie intake in each day.
“When it’s screen time, it’s green time. So [Axel] has to sit down with a bowl of spinach, I’m not joking, like the leafed spinach you can eat easily, cucumber sticks and avocado slices.
“And if it’s not getting eaten while he’s playing video games, I have the power of the internet. I turn the whole house off.”
Michelle manages to juggle motherhood with her successful 12 Week Body Transformation program.
(Image: Instagram)To most Aussies, Michelle is best known as being one of the inspiring trainers on The Biggest Loser, which was hugely successful during its 11-season run.
And it’s a role she looks back on fondly.
“Oh my god I loved that show!” she laughs. “I had the best time on there and I made the most amazing friendships and lasting friendships with producers and hair and makeup artists and the other trainers. We’re all like a big family.”
“What we did on the show was incredible and made some major changes to people’s lives that are still lasting a decade later. I feel very blessed that I was part of it.”
But when asked if she’d give the gruelling SAS Australia course a crack, Michelle says she wants to give all her focus to her son and her 12 Week Body Transformation program.
“My number one biggest priority is my son and my business because that’s my family as far as making people feel successful. Those two things for me are very fulfilling.
“There’s nothing really that could take me away from those two things right now. They’re very important to me and I love what I do. I’m the luckiest girl in town.”
The next round of Michelle Bridges’ 12WBT program kicks off on Monday May 2. Head to 12wbt.com to join.
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