Move It!

I saw one of my former students the other day and she had lost a bunch of weight. I asked her what she did to achieve this amazing feet... her reply, "I got my lazy butt off the couch." Talk about blunt! But it was a bit of a wake up call.


The first thing most people look at when trying to achieve a healthier lifestyle or lose weight is diet... the food going in their mouth. However, there are many more things one can do to achieve her goals.


Exercise is incredibly important to one's healthy living goals. I know I don't have to list all of the reasons why we should exercise... we're all intelligent adults, we know them... the problem is why we don't exercise. So let's address some of the biggest excuses:

• I cannot afford to join a gym. - According to the smartest man I have ever met, my Daddy, as long as you have a pair of shoes and a safe location, the world is your gym. If you really like nature, go walking where there are trees... there are parks around. Since my Dad grew up in the Bronx, so he had the amazing invention of sidewalks... very useful. Is it raining? Walk in place before going to work while watching the morning news... you may feel a little nutty, but the only people that will see you are your family members and they are already aware of the level of your insanity.

• Exercise is boring. - Don't exercise... just move more. Even small steps can help... park further away from your destination, take the stairs everywhere, take multiple trips to and from your car when unloading it instead of trying to carry thirty bags at one time. Every little bit of extra movement is a good thing.

• Who has the time to exercise? - As a teacher, I know I spend a lot of time sitting down researching information, planning my lessons, grading papers, attempting to use the new on-line grade book, the list goes on. At least we don't have any more "Butt Workshops" at RHS thanks to our fearless leader. You know what I'm talking about... those workshops where the only thing you learn is how long it takes to get a sore bottom sitting on a wooden seat. Not to sound like a cheesy motivational speaker... but You're Worth It! Its important to take time for yourself, even if its only twenty minutes a day for stress relieving exercise. We make time for everything else in our life... now its time to take time for ourselves.

Feel free to leave comments on how you "Move More" so we can steal your ideas :)