I am participating in Women in The Scriptures Five Things For Friday Blog Hop!
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I have been trying to lose weight because, it’s “in” and trendy. Also, because I am overweight and want to ride a horse without hurting it. So, I started to really turn things around in September. I am sharing this with you so you can learn from my obvious brilliance.
First, I started walking. It took me about an hour to walk about a mile.
Then, I got pregnant.
Wow! I am on my way, right?
Actually, since September 20, I have lost 25 pounds. I don’t know if I’ll lose any more. I know there are 17 trillion books out there on how to lose weight, but you don’t need to have any of those. Just take my advice. You only need three things.
- A Personal Chef
- A Personal Trainer
- A Part-time Nanny (for when you are with your personal trainer!)
That’s it! I guarantee if you have these three things you will lose weight and it will be fun and fabulous.
Oh, since that takes way too much money, and time, I just do the 80′s version of Callanetics–with my kids in the room with me (no need for a nanny now!) and there is laughter involved. Heavily involved. Bordering on raucous. Mostly because they are watching me, but the 80′s videotape and “relaxing” music is a riot. A peaceful, deeply moving one, though. So, in a way, Callan Pinckney is my personal trainer, and she has traveled from back in time to do it. How nice of her.
For food, I just make my kids make me salads or I look at personal chef menus and think, “Oh, I could make that and it would be so much cheaper,” and then buy all the ingredients and just end up eating them plain. Sure, I am missing a little ambience, texture, and flair, but these are the kinds of things to which we non-super-wealthy overweight people must sometimes resort.
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A Dolphin Tale is a movie I would recommend to most people, except for ones who don’t like dolphins or little boys or feeling good.
(When I was younger, I had visions of being a female Jacques Cousteau. I loved the ocean, although I was terrified of swimming in one, considering that I can’t swim really–so that kind of put a damper on my dreams of being a famous marine biologist. I thought perhaps having a pet dolphin might be a good workaround for the not being able to swim thing, and also being terrified thing, because it would protect me from evil sea creatures. So far, that particular goal hasn’t materialized).
There is no obligatory romance, homeschoolers are portrayed positively, Winter is great at playing herself, no swear words and the kids are cute. The dialogue is witty. It moves quickly. The difference Winter makes to people is really touching, but not overdone.
Morgan Freeman is delightful, and Ashley Judd is a sassy mom who really cares about her son. The only thing that is slightly problematic is that Sawyer misleads his mother into thinking he was going to summer school while really visiting the dolphin he rescued. It’s resolved nicely, though, and it’s always something the family could talk about afterward.
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I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the weird “fitness inspiration” photos that I have seen around Pinterest, and I think it’s not a good idea. I also think it’s kind of spooky. Why are grown women, some older than even I am, pinning up pictures of half-naked women half their age (or even their same age), who look like body builders or…something…and writing things like “I want that body!” or whatever.
Guess what? You probably won’t get that body, because all of us are different, and quite frankly, I don’t enjoy looking at a bunch of cool recipes and cute birthday party ideas and pretty scenery and ponies and then get: FITNESS PORNOGRAPHY. Right there. Oops, kids. Sorry, mommy doesn’t want that body and you really shouldn’t have seen that. Yikes! You know what body mommy would like?
A Beautiful, Lovely Woman
Yes! Beautiful, real, and radiant. And still some round pillowy parts so babies and grandbabies can cuddle and be comfortable and cozy.
And, do you know what I use for “fitness inspiration”? Not some picture of some movie star or random person in their underwear who spends every waking hour working out and obsessing over calories and being stressed. Nope. This is my inspiration:
You Can Do It, Mom!
She and my other children are why I want to be healthy. Oh, and for my husband, too. But, mostly, I want to be able to do fun stuff with these guys, and ride horses with them when they are old. Basically, I want my kids and I to grow old together. That’s enough inspiration for me. But, hey, I am not looking to be sexy, I want to be healthy.
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Man-Cans are a great, fun idea, and I love it was a 14 year old boy who started the company. Way to go, young 14 year old whippersnapper! This would be fun for a Father’s Day Gift. With candle scents like Fresh Cut Grass, Bacon, Sawdust, Gun Powder and more, it’s just so creative! Plus, for every Man-Can made, the soup is donated to a local soup kitchen. How cool! So far, 17,000 cans of soup have been donated.
Great Father's Day Gift
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And this is just cute.
What A Shot!
Have a great weekend, everyone! And, thanks, Heather!
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The Pinterest gadget looks great on your site!
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
I remember watching my mom and her friends Jazzercise in the 80′s! What fun memories. I get more exercise laughing at my kids who are laughing at me. Seriously, I was exercising and the baby (4 months at the time) started laughing hysterically at me! It was funny and not funny at the same time.
How do you manage it?!! I wanted to write something about the “fitness pornography” on my blog really soon and you beat me to it- just as you beat me to writing something about all the clothing/modesty issues. You always say it so much better and much more concisely than I could. I’ll just have to direct people over here. ( : Totally agree with what you wrote by the way!
Thanks for the movie recommendation too.
Do you know of any workout videos that have people actually wearing…uh…CLOTHES? I used to attend a Jazzercise class with all my friends and neighbors in Utah but now I have nothing. I’m tired of all the bare skin and close-ups of people’s midriffs and buttocks. Barf. It’s also hard to find anything with good music to go along that doesn’t either make you laugh, or make you cringe and turn it off. I’m glad I had to quit my Jazzercise class because a lot of the music was NOT good and some of the moves I refused to do.
Good luck on your weight loss and exercise struggles! I agree that we need our kids’ support more than anything. ( :
I hear you, Holly, on the fitness videos. I don’t use them because a) I have sons and daughters who don’t need to see that, b) I don’t need to see that, and c) I haven’t found any that aren’t like that. I walk. And use light five lb. weights for any toning. I don’t do abs, though…I discovered the hard way that working out abs the normal way (crunches, ect) can actually damage your abdominal wall. So, since I need that for the rest of this life, I have sworn off crunches. Can’t say I’ve missed them.
I don’t really like videos, but Callanetics is the only thing that has ever worked for me, especially because I have an interesting back (really, really bad accident involving a semi-truck that ran me off the road once upon a time). Once I get into the swing of it, though, I can just do the exercises without the video. It’s just been awhile. There is a book, too, so you just teach yourself the exercises and do them.
I don’t really have any hard and fast “goals” for fitness…that always makes me feel pressured and like it’s a chore. And, I will find a reason NOT to do it if I feel like I am forcing myself to do it.
I just decided that my goal was to feel better, and I know I feel better after I do a little exercising. I also walk, too. I think Nicole’s idea is great, walking with some kind of muscle toning sounds awesome!
I wish I could get into walking/jogging, but I can’t figure out where to walk. I live in a pretty ugly town on a busy and loud street. I also have weird issues with feeling self conscious about every passerby looking at me when I just want to be alone to think for a bit. I think I’m waiting until I live in paradise before I start exercising again! Not gonna happen- so I just need to buck up and do it, loud cars, exhaust and random strangers or not. ( : It doesn’t help that I’d rather be doing aerobics to music. Maybe I should get creative and make up my own routines. Though, come to think of it, BYU TV at some point had a show where they did exercising. Maybe I can check out their website and see.
Holly, I don’t know where you live, but have you considered looking for a used treadmill in the classifieds? I got mine for $150, and it’s great. It’s not as fun as walking on a country lane, but I am able to listen to the scriptures, or watch conference talks, or listen to music and that makes the time go by faster. I also like that it measures my pace, because when I walk outside, I have a tendency to quit walking and start ambling, and I can even mosey at a snail’s pace. I also have a tendency to chit chat with the neighbors. Moseying at chit-chatting do not a good work out make.
I love your attitude about weight! It is so refreshing. I think too many women get caught up on how they look and not how they feel. It really doesnt matter what size you are as long as you feel and are healthy. I am so glad you linked up. I love your blog.