Reality Fitness

This morning I've been to my first pilates class in over 2 weeks - blimey that hurt! It's amazing how quickly you lose that flexibility in such a short space of time. I do love pilates and have a great teacher and it helps with so many of my ailments it's untrue.

So, no health kick is complete without a bit of a fitness plan. Over the years my ideas of fitness have changed. When I was a kid I remember my mum working out to a Jane Fonda-esque lp (for the kids out there, it was like a really big black cd!). My first venture into exercise was walking across our living room on my bum cheeks!

In my late teens/early twenties I was a complete gym addict, spending 5 or 6 days a week there and not letting a chocolate past my lips. I was skinny (though I didn't think so at the time), extremely fit but not exactly happy.

Then came along heart surgery, then kids, then more heart surgery and the pounding it at the gym days (and being a size 10) were over. In between I've worked out at home through dvds and the wii, but never found that balance.

I think what I've realised recently is that fitness doesn't have to be about this:

I didn't look like that when I was 20, a size 10 and working out 6 days a week! It ain't gonna happen now I'm nearly 40. I'm also not allowed to do anything high impact or weights so sculpting muscles like that would be a bit of a struggle!

Doing a bit of a google search this morning I came across these 'plus sized' (ahem, I think most of us would say 'normal sized' but we'll go with it for now) fitness models. How fabulous do they look? I reckon with a bit of work I could look like one of them and I wouldn't need to be living at the gym to do it.

So, my fitness plan consists of pilates twice a week (so therapeutic,  can't recommend it enough) and the gym doing low impact cardio 2 or 3 times a week.

Oh, and lots of muddy walks with this little madam:

Who could refuse that face begging for a walk eh?!

Plan for a six pack? No. But a realistic goal? I think maybe it is yes! :-)