Community Corner
Staying Fit as a Single Mom
Manassas resident gives tips on staying fit despite her fast-paced life.
Manassas native Heather Ledoux is a working single mom, but despite her busy schedule she still finds time to stay fit.
Raising four boys alone isn’t easy; finding time to take the kids to and from school, helping them with their homework in the evenings and ensuring dinner is on the table every night is a feat all by itself. But add working two jobs in the mix and that’s more than a handful.
So how does she find time to stay active and fit in the midst of her crazy schedule?
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“I workout before work in the morning,” she said. “If you don’t get it done in the morning, chances of getting back to it later in the day are slim to none. “
Ledoux works out at Planet Fitness gym on Sudley Road Tuesday through Fridays on the weeks that her boys are with their dad. She does 30 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of weights.
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On the days that the boys are with her, which is every other week, it's a much more complicated story.
“I do Jillian Michaels or P90X videos at home,” she said. “They’re usually 30 to 40 minutes of weight training and cardio combined.”
She would rather do a little something than nothing, she said.
She doesn’t always have the time for a specific workout. There are some days it just doesn’t pan out, she said reluctantly. Especially being a single mom, she never really sits down anyway with all the running around she has to do.
Still, Ledoux and her kids always find something active to build into their busy regimen.
“We play kickball, soccer, and football, go to the playground or anything we can find to do,” Ledoux said.
Her 10-year-old son joined a running club. “I’m going to do the race with him in May,” she said enthusiastically.
Last week she took her boys to the Freedom Center where she bought an all-day family pack for $20. This allowed them to use the entire facility.
The kids “went down the water slide all day and they were exhausted,” she laughed.
“Being an active participant with your kid encourages them,” she said. “We believe in an active lifestyle in general. Even if I don’t work out, it’s not like we just sit around. It’s a conscious effort.”
Ledoux firmly believes in making exercise a life habit during whatever stage of life one might be in and encourages others to take on this same attitude.
Check out the video for an interview with Ledoux to learn more about how she finds time to stay fit in her fast-paced, busy life.
