If you were to tell me that at the beginning of lockdown we would come out of quarantine committed to every day fitness and a healthy lifestyle, I would have snickered with a donut in my mouth. But alas, here we are, 72 consecutive days and counting. So if you’re with us today and looking for much-needed motivation, out of the box ideas, and how to make it easy for the whole family to do it at home, stay with us:

Start With Why.

I ordered this book shortly after listening to Simon’s Ted Talk, and wow, will it change your life. It is written more with a professional purpose driver, but gives you tools that will parlay into all areas of your life and how you view it.

It hadn’t occurred to me until reading this that one of my biggest issues with getting into a consistent health mindset all circled back to the why of it. I have been a lot of different sizes stemming from my time on television, being pregnant with Grey, dropping weight rapidly whilst breastfeeding, then slowly gaining it back (and then some), dealing with hormones and birth control and the like. I was never mad at my body, mostly because it birthed a human, nourished both of us, and kept us safe and healthy. But I also didn’t see fitting into clothes, or looking a certain way in the mirror as motivation. Then people around us, beloved family members and young friends were starting to get sick. Also being in the midst of a global pandemic, I had an aha moment of suddenly wanting to do everything in my control to be healthy for myself and my family. It wasn’t about being able to eat extra sweets and then sweat them out, it was about breathing life into my body again. Once you nail down your personal why, it opens the door for change.

Not your friend’s exercise of choice. Yours.

Here’s another road block I let stand in my way for too long. I couldn’t find an exercise to carry me to the 21 day mark. Truth be told, I kind of hated exercising, and it seemed like all of my friends loved it. They are avid runners (no thank you ?), weight lifters (send help!), and masters of the elliptical machine at the gym (?). I tried them all and absolutely none of them were for me. I had knee surgery last fall and felt worried to try something new, but one day sheltering at home, Jon put on a Youtube video of a low impact cardio fitness workout that changed my life.

At 35 years old, I liked exercise for the very first time. I found it, dare I say, enjoyable. For the past 72 days (yes, we’re counting, mostly because we’re still in shock it has been this long) mentioned in the intro, we have done these workouts each and every morning. They are doable, motivating, and results-producing. We started with the free youtube videos (highly, highly recommend), then upgraded to their annual membership to gain access to the community and a wealth of more exciting, challenging exercises. It doesn’t have to be Body Project. It could be Zumba. Maybe a local moms group that meets for fitness classes at the park. Whatever gets you going and keeps you there!

Do it anyway.

There will always be an excuse not to. It’s just the way it is. Not enough time, not enough energy, too many chores to do, doesn’t fit into the work schedule, kids at home. That all comes from a lack mentality. At the beginning, I felt guilty for taking time away from my people. Now it is a non-negotiable every morning. And it has been such a blessing for all of us! When your cup is full, you can pour out love and patience for everyone else. Plus, once you make fitness a habit, everyone will slowly get on board with your new routine. Mom tip: buy a mini yoga mat (see below) or light set of weights for your kiddo and encourage them to try the workout with you. Or, have them bring a few books or a game and play safely within eyesight. We’ve let Grey know that he is more than welcome to exercise with us, but he can also use the time to play solo in his room. This has really helped us foster independence; plus he sees mom and dad making their health a priority which models great choices from a young age!

Toolkit.

Last year, Jon gifted this Apple Watch to me. Once I found my why, and my workout of choice, it became a gamechanger. It tracks your steps, your workouts, your heart rate, reminds you to breathe when necessary, and more than all of that – it ignites a fire inside of you. You can link yours to friends and family for some friendly competition, or just use it to track your progress. I know it is a splurge, but I wouldn’t recommend it if I didn’t genuinely believe it will have a major impact for you. And don’t buy the apple bands – you can find much cheaper (and cooler) options on amazon – like this one (my sporty band), this “fancy” option, and this one I snagged for Jon.

You don’t have to completely revamp your workout drawer (you’ll see below for my real life affirmation of that), but if you’re able to spring for a couple of new pieces, I promise it will help get you excited to use them. I’m waiting on the next Adidas site-wide sale so I can snag these beautiful blue tights (high waisted!) and since I haven’t bought workout sneakers in years – these look pretty good to me, or maybe these? Jon just surprised me with this wild pair last week and I wouldn’t have grabbed them for myself but am so thankful he did!

Here is the yoga mat I use, and we purchased this one for Grey. He loves having his own and being part of the team!

In our workout arsenal, we also have these resistance bands, a few sit-up balls, and some light hand weights from Target.

If you're reading this right now and feel like you're ready to make a change and need a fitness motivator, I'm your gal. Send me a message and I am happy to be your cheerleader along the way. I believe in you. Really!  

And if you made it this far to view my sweat band and compression socks in all their glory, you are a NixonPack VIP and we are so very grateful to have you here with us! You are AMAZING.