Back In The Saddle Again

I had lunch with my niece Jenn the other day. She was gingerly walking up stairs commenting on how sore her legs and glutes were from some killer new workout she tried a few days earlier.

I chuckled to myself. Been there done that — a million times over. I’ve been at it a long time. Thirty years of trying the latest exercise fad or the newest nutrition craze.

I’ve read articles and bought books, charted food intake, counted calories and screwed around with protein, carb and fat ratios until I was blue in the face. I’ve taken a crazy amount of supplements and then none at all (when I couldn’t afford them any longer) and never noticed any difference. My hero was not Bob Harper but Rachel McLish. You might want to google her.

So I went home to write for Fit Bottomed at Any Age Week — to pass on all my wisdom — and something just didn’t ring true. I kept writing and editing and just couldn’t get it right. I never did turn it in. Why? Because no matter how much I tried to convince myself, I knew it was a bunch of crap.

I wasn’t doing what I was writing about. I had become content with aging.

What happened to the girl who felt strong? Where is that girl who felt good in her own body? The one who felt lucky to GET to go work out?

She had fallen for the schtick. She had drunk the Kool-Aid. Your metabolism slows down — uh, right —  probably cause you are sitting on the couch more. You are losing muscle — um, you mean restorative yoga and dog walking aren’t big muscle-building activities? You naturally gain weight in your mid-section as you age — huh, red wine is not one of the food groups? Did they change that?

WHAT? I hung my head in defeat. I know better.

So I did what I have always done best. Pulled myself up by my bootstraps and stopped whining about it. Refreshed myself on what a beginner workout would look like, cleaned up my diet and got started. Three days of cardio and three weight workouts a week. Easy peasy. The inches flew off, and the strength slowly came back.

I officially turned the big 5-0 this year, and I feel pretty darn good about myself. And this past summer at the lake, I’ll tell ya what, the cut may be a bit more modest, but I can still rock that bikini!

This Fit Bottomed Woman Girl is back! —Karen