Worth It: The Inspirational Guest Post

Worth It

Think back to two months ago: January 1, 2010. This was it. It would be different this time -- the start of a new decade and the start of a new you. The fitness goals were set, the determination was there, focus was rock solid. You jumped into your new fitness routine and perfect nutrition with gusto.

Fast forward to now. Slow (or no) results. Snow, snow, and more snow. The oatmeal is not hitting the spot anymore and there seem to be more reasons why you need to do drive-bys of the neighborhood Dairy Queen. The goals and focus have given way to boredom and burn out. What is the point, anyway?

That’s a good question: What IS the point? Why should you stick with this? Well, I’ll tell you the point:

You are worth it.

I was putting my kids in the minivan the other day and laughing with them while getting them buckled in. My daughter asked, “Why are you in such a good mood, Mom?” Before I could say anything she answered her own question, “Oh, you worked out, that’s why.” Nice.

After years of extensive research and experimentation, these are my tried and true formulas:

Workout + Eating Well =

Happy Mom

No Workout + Eating Crappy =

“You’d Better Do What I Say NOW ‘Cause I Just Might Bite Your Head Off” Mom

Being a mom is synonymous with giving. You are giving to the kids. Giving to the PTA. Giving to your husband. Giving to the neighborhood. Giving to work. Giving to your dog. Giving to everyone. You must give back to yourself. It’s that simple.

Regular exercise and awesome nutrition are healthy, productive ways to give back to yourself. Sure, you could sit in front of the glow late night TV, finishing off the half-gallon of ice cream and coin it as “Mom time”. However, this is undermining what you really want – time to feel like yourself again, and the energy to meet the demands that are being thrown at you from every direction.

Your kids are worth it.

Our kids are watching our every move. If we are taking the time to care for ourselves through healthy, smart food choices so will our kids. If we are carving out some time to exercise every day, so will our kids. Perhaps not immediately, but someday they will fall back on our example of health.

As a child, I would wake up early to watch The Electric Company on our old, black and white television that could only change channels if I turned the knob with my teeth. I would watch my mother silently sneak out the back door every morning to meet her running group. I also watched her eat a huge salad every day for lunch as I downed my PB&J.

I became and adult and found myself heavy and miserable. When I was ready to commit to make changes in my life, guess who looked to for guidance? Mom. Her example had always been there, I had just chosen not to follow it for quite some time. The healthy habits that were instilled in me as a child got plucked off the shelf and finally put to good use.

Your future is worth it.

I have a client who is 75 yearsold. Mrs. J has never, I’m talking, never exercised or stepped into a gym in her life. Ever. She complains about having to exercise and I finally asked if she hated this so much, why did she call me? At first she said she called me because she liked my teeth (the channel changing as a kid must not have done much damage). But then, she went on to admit she has been stubborn and stupid (her words) about fitness and knows she has no choice. She has 13 grandchildren. She is tired of being left behind and passively observing the action from the perspective of her La-Z-Boy recliner.

It is never too late. Whether you’ve had no children, one child or five. Whether you are a former college athlete or were a dedicated band geek. Whether you are 35 or 75. None of this matters. We are doing this for our life 40 years from now. We want and deserve a high quality of life now and then.

Our bodies don’t like being inactive. Our bodies don’t like eating lousy food. Our bodies let us know that by rebelling in not-so-kind ways:

Heart disease.

Osteoporosis.

High blood pressure.

Cancer.

Diabetes.

Sleep apnea.

Abdominal hernias.

Varicose veins.

Gout.

Gall bladder disease.

Respiratory problems.

Liver malfunction.

We are not just exercising and eating clean to fit into our skinny jeans, gals. Weight loss is a very welcome side effect, but we are also doing this for our overall and long term health. We don’t want to be left behind and just observe life. Now is the time to live it.

Your future is worth it.

Your kids are worth it.

You are worth it.

-- Mandi Reading is a certified personal trainer and a certified nutrition consultant. She works part-time training clients, then spends the rest of her day (and some nights) chasing after her three rascals. Check out her blog Trainer Momma at www.trainermomma.com for daily fitness and nutrition tips for mothers and their families.