Health and fitness can be a top priority for you, but, when it comes to execution, you find yourself struggling to even get dressed for the gym. Truth be told, getting an efficient workout isn’t as difficult as you would think. Here are 5 tips to help you squeeze a workout into your busy lifestyle:

Pencil it in. Mark your workout into your calendar as if you had an important meeting with your boss. Your workout cannot be postponed nor cancelled! As more activities come into your week, make sure you work around your schedule giving you ample time for warm up before the workout and shower, a snack, and rest after.

Workout in the morning. If schedule permits, workout first thing in the morning. In other words, get it over with so that you don’t have to think about it all throughout the day when deadlines loom and traffic makes you cranky.

Just move. So you really don’t have the time to head to the gym today? Don’t fret. Just make a conscious effort to burn more calories all throughout the day. Walk to lunch instead of taking the car during the break. Use the stairs instead of the elevator – yes, even if you’re heading up! Take your dog for a 15-minute walk around the village after dinner.

Go for HIIT. High Intensity Interval Training or HIIT are short bursts of workouts that give you a more effective burn in a short amount of time vs. a long cardio workout. Choose HIIT workouts on hectic days when you only have 30 to 45 minutes to spare in the gym.

Make the time. It’s so easy to come up with an excuse not to workout from “I’m tired” to “I have too much work!” The list is endless. But, people who want to get fit, make no excuse. If you’re a young mom, you can workout while the kids are asleep. If you’re an executive, you can wake up an hour earlier to lift weights at the gym. If you really want to get fit, you won’t just FIND the time, you’ll MAKE the time.