Being Fit Begins You

Being Fit Begins You

Ready? I dread vacations. I always enjoy them once I'm there, but it’s the preparations that deter me from smiling for the days leading up to them. The planning stages. Don’t forget to put the mail on hold. Call the vet to schedule the boarding of Fluffy (that really IS his name but not what we call him). Stop the newspaper delivery. All laundry must first be done before packing begins. Dreadful. Then, I have to fly. In the SKY. Ugh.

The path to being healthier feels the same way. Meal planning, grocery list, grocery shopping. Join (and pay for) the gym or start the planning of workouts. I don’t know what half of those exercises are that I find on lists of suggestions. Even the diagrams are confusing to me. Does my knee go forward or stay under my shoulder? How far down should I crouch? WHERE does my arm go? So let’s not bother with the latest diet trend or exercise machine. Let’s use our heads. Make a list of your favorite foods including fruits and vegetables. A long list. Now cross off anything that won’t make you healthier than what you are right now. By now, there’s a few million of us that know what’s healthy for our bodies and what’s not, without the help of a magazine article. Then serve your vegetable portions larger and the other items (proteins and carb items) as smaller portions. Another way? Keep eating what you already eat, but put only half of what you would normally eat on your plate. And eat no later than 7pm. That’s a hard one for me, too. Make sure you have something in the kitchen to reach for instead of food after 7pm. A deck of cards, a journal, the needle and thread for those five shirts sitting in the laundry room, nail polish remover and polish, a sketching pad and pencils. Even that smartphone or iPad. (Cheetos would leave orange grease on your device, afterall.)

Exercise. Ick. Unless you are in the habit of it. If you are in the habit of it, it’s no longer ick. I swear. I’m not very good at working out at home. The laundry is always calling out my name or the thirty thousand other odd jobs awaiting my attention, so I’m very easily distracted. But how much time do we spend in front of the TV? Especially at night. Pajamas on? Perfect. When the commercials come on, pick an exercise. Any exercise. Your choice…first thing that comes to mind. And do it until the commercial ends. If you feel embarrassed doing it in front of family, make them do it with you. Take turns picking out the exercise for each commercial. Going for broke? Do the exercises during the SHOW instead of the commercials. Either way, make sure you’re going to be sore within the next 48 hours. Then you’ll know it’s worth it. You can make those things in the mirror that you don't like disappear. Make this a continued pattern. Not a chore for a week or two. You might even surprise yourself and turn off the TV some nights and get your music going. Don’t worry about how many repetitions for each exercise. Repeat the exercise until the commercial (or song) ends.

I’m not worried about how much you weigh. It’s about feeling better. Feeling better physically. Feeling better about daily choices. Feeling better about what you had for dinner. Feeling better about walking away from the bakery in the grocery store. Doing those little things that give you an emotional moment that says, how proud am I?! Over and over again. Begin You. Because if you’re too busy thinking about those things that you see in the mirror that you don’t like, you’re taking away from the thoughts that you could be having, such as I wonder what’s on TV tonight?  

~~ Katherine

(No, I'm not a health specialist. You know the drill. I have to suggest you talk to your doctor before starting any health regimen. Smile.) To view my webpage and a link for my book on Amazon.com, click: http://www.backtobeingawoman.com/