10 Things I Want My Daughter to Know About Working Out

Lola has been getting more and more active lately and she's learning about doing active things that you LOVE to do!

we were featured in ALL YOU Magazine this June

She loves running on our treadmill.

She runs races, she runs with me for fun and does "brick" workouts (bike to run) with a smile

She even loves to come to BOOTCAMP with me

I enjoy the conversations we have about health and how to make good choices when it comes to nutrition, especially the importance of breakfast! I am by no means a food nazi and she gets to have stuff like pizza, eating out, chips and the occasional order of onion rings from our local corner store that she loves. I emphasize choosing foods that FUEL our bodies in good ways and a healthy balance of "treats" now and again. She is the self proclaimed "BACON THIEF" (she will steal i toff your plate and eat it!)

When I finally gave up fad diets and silly things to lose weight--and I finally embraced a healthy lifestyle and had a WHY bigger than wearing a smaller size--that's when things really changed for ME. Being a healthy role model for my daughter and showing her how our bodies can be strong and do amazing things was always my #1 priority. Not skinny jeans. Not a size label. It has never been about appearance for me...and this has rubbed off on my daughter as she grows.

She participated in her first race at just 18 months old. She has always ever known me as active & healthy.

Lola recently started tumbling and she is SO passionate about it!

She asked me the other day about her muscles and being strong enough to do handstands. And flips. And backhand springs. That is what I was striving to teach her all along. I am so proud to hear her talk about the THINGS her body can do and not it's shape or size. I beam with pride when I see her choosing a healthy option because she wants to be healthy.

Last year I found this article and saved it in my bookmarks. As I revisit these thoughts today, I found it very appropriate to share with YOU. From Wellfesto:

Mid-way through a recent group exercise class, the teacher lost me.  She didn’t lose me because of some complicated step sequence or insanely long set of burpees; I mentally checked out because of a few words she kept saying over and over.  “Come on!  Get that body ready for your winter beach vacation!  Think about how you want to look at those holiday parties!  PICTURE HOW YOU’LL LOOK IN THAT DRESS!”

“THAT DRESS?”  My brain couldn’t focus on an image of some random dress hanging in my closet.  All I could think about was my three-year-old daughter hearing and trying to process those words.

My daughter’s little brain is making sense of the world every single second, taking in verbal and non-verbal cues about how things work and what things mean.  And when it comes to exercise, I want her to grow up seeing it as a joy, and not a utility…as a gift, and not a chore…as an opportunity, not an obligation.  I want her to do it for the love of it, not to fit into a dress.  I want her to grow up knowing that…

1. Strength equals self-sufficiency.  Being strong – particularly as a woman – is empowering.  It will feel good someday to be able to carry your own luggage down the stairs if the airport escalator is broken, and it will be important to have a solid shot at outrunning a stranger should you meet one a dark alley.
2. Fitness opens doors.  Being healthy and fit can help you see the world differently.  The planet looks different from a bike or a pair of skis than it does from a car or an airplane.  Out in the elements you have the time and space to notice details and meet people and remember smells and bugs and mud and rain and the feeling of warm sunshine on your face.  And those are the moments that make up your life.
3. The bike is the new golf course.  Being fit may help you get a seat at the table.  Networking is no longer restricted to the golf course, and the stronger you are – and the more people you can hang with on the road and trail – the more people you’ll meet.
4. Exercise is a lifestyle, not an event.  Being an active person isn’t about taking a class three times a week at the gym.  It’s about things like biking to the grocery store and parking your car in the back of the lot and walking instead of taking a cab and catching up with friends on a hiking trail instead of a bar stool.
5. Health begets health.  Healthy behavior inspires healthy behavior.  Exercise.  Healthy eating.  Solid sleep.  Positive relationships.  These things are all related.
6. Endorphins help you cope.  A good sweat session can clear the slate.  You will have days when nothing seems to go right…when you’re dizzy with frustration or crying in despair.  A workout can often turn things around.
7. Working out signals hard-working.  The discipline required to work out on a regular basis signals success.  Someone recently told me they are way more likely to hire marathon runners and mountain climbers because of the level of commitment that goes into those pursuits.
8. If you feel beautiful, you look beautiful.  Looking beautiful starts on the inside.  And being fit and strong feels beautiful.
9. Nature rules.  And if you’re able to hike/run/bike/swim/ski/snowshoe, you can see more of it.
10. Little eyes are always watching.  We learn from each other.  You may have a daughter—or a niece or a neighbor or a friend – one day.  And that little girl will be watching and listening to everything she you say and do.  What messages do you want her to hear?

I’ll never talk to my daughter about fitting into THAT DRESS.  But I will talk to her about what it sounds like to hear pine needles crunching under my feet and what it feels like to cross a finish line and how special it is to see the world on foot.  I will talk to her about hard work and self sufficiency.  I will teach her the joy of working out by showing her I love it.  And I’ll leave the rest up to her.