I’m giving you permission to get healthy over on the Kinsa blog! Read the full article here and find out why I think as moms you need permission to focus on you!
As moms we often put ourselves last when it comes to keeping our family healthy. It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day routine of making breakfast, rushing to school/work, then dinner and bed time. Who has time to stop and say, am I getting enough exercise? How are my iron levels? Have I eaten enough green things today? (No. You probably haven’t!)
It’s hard work to feel like you’re keeping everyone healthy and happy. Well I’m here to let you know: you’re off the hook. You don’t have to carry the weight of world on your shoulders any more. You can ease up on the anti-bacterial. Let one, or two, meals go without vegetables. You can even sleep in every once in a while!
I’m giving you the permission of a complete stranger because ultimately I want someone to give me permission to ease up. I’m so hard on myself if I don’t have everything running on a perfect schedule, or if my daughter doesn’t eat a vegetable for a week. (Side note: why do they hate veggies so much?)
Mentally and physically I find that I’m bombarded with everyday worries about my family, and it’s affecting my health. I don’t eat well. I’m a terrible sleeper. My exercise equates to getting up for more cookies during a commercial break. So consequently, I’m overweight, have low energy and am exhausted all the time. And yet I bend over backwards to make sure my daughter is getting enough exercise and eating good foods. I’m always encouraging my husband to go on hikes because it’s good for him and I know he loves it. But for me, I’m content to worry about everyone else, and push my own health needs aside.
Sound familiar? I wish I knew why I did this to myself. Society’s pressure to be perfect? Maybe. I am admittedly not a perfect mom, so that can’t be it. Perhaps I just want my daughter to have every opportunity in life to succeed, and the things I CAN control are what I focus on, like food and exercise. If I can’t be healthy, at least she can. When you stop and think about it like that, it doesn’t sound very healthy at all.
So I decided to embark on a new challenge over the next few months. With my 15th wedding anniversary looming a short distance away, I am making an effort to get off the couch and get moving. I’m challenging myself to explore new workout routines, new diet programs/cleanses, anything that will light a spark in me that I so desperately need to get healthy. My goal is to lose 15 pounds by my 15th wedding anniversary in May.
Mentally, the goal is to find creative and unique exercises that make me interested, even excited, about exercising. Because let’s be honest, running on the treadmill or doing the same stationary bike over and over again at the gym can be less than motivating. But taking a sword-fighting class where I learn a skill and sweat? Yes please! Or a Crossfit class that’s completely themed around the world of Harry Potter? How cool! See? I’m already getting excited!
There are so many more exercises I want to try and the #MIH15by15 has given me the motivation I need to do it. So I encourage any mom or dad who’s struggling with the daily doldrums and feeling lost in their health goals to pick a crazy, unusual, interesting workout that will force you out of your comfort zone and ignite a passion to get healthy. Your kids will follow by example and then take some of the stress off of your plate. Circle of life! After all, how can we be the caretaker for our kids’ health if we aren’t willing to go there ourselves?
I’d love to hear what’s holding you back from trying a new exercise or pushing yourself to get healthy. Share your stories with me here on the Kinsa blog or at motherhoodinhollywood.com.
