Altitude Trampoline Park

My journey in health and fitness has been a tumultuous one, I would say.  It started when I was very young, going to dance class, then swimming, then basketball, then volleyball, and even track when I was in high school.  I often felt exhausted racing from one activity to the next, and when I got to college it helped to be able to focus on just volleyball.  But I distinctly remember telling my strength and conditioning coach that I couldn’t wait to be done because I was planning on never working out, ever again.  At that time though, I thought my body would just keep up its physical appearance and inner vitality on its own.  Ah, to be young with the metabolism of a 22-year-old again.  But for the first few years after college, I did exactly what I had predicted.  I continued to eat whatever I wanted, and I never exercised.  I didn’t want to go to the gym if someone wasn’t telling me to.

Fast forward five years, and I have the hindsight (and the hips of a woman who has birthed two babies) to know better.  My path to becoming a “fit mom” didn’t happen overnight, in fact it took me a full two years after having Cora to really make it a priority.  But now I see that a healthy lifestyle isn’t something that just happens to you, it’s something you have to work at.  For my girls, and for myself, I want to stay in shape for five reasons.

 1. I want to lead by example.

If I preach the benefits of eating broccoli to my girls, but I never touch it myself, I can guarantee my recommendation is going to fall on deaf ears.  The same goes for working out.  If I tell them constantly to go for a walk, but then I am a couch potato, the disconnect will be obvious to them.

2. I want to be the fun mom forever.

I don’t want to get winded walking up the stairs.  I want to be able to get on my hands and knees and roll around in the grass with them.  And I want to be able to do this now, and when I’m 50.  And, a LONG time from now, I would love to be able to play with my grandchildren the way my mom is able to play with Cora and Issa.  If I don’t start by taking care of myself right now though, my health will deteriorate faster than Cora can say, “Come play with me, Mom!”

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3. I want my daughters to know they can do anything.

It makes me so happy to see the current trend of #strongisthenewskinny.  I love that lifting weights and being able to do a push-up is no longer considered too masculine for a girl.  Being toned and tough is a sign of a strong woman, and a strong woman knows she can conquer any mountain, be it a literal one that she’s hiking or a corporate one that she’s dominating in the board room.

4. I want to live a balanced life.

A few weeks ago I posted a video of moms working out with their kids in the same room, and I got a few comments that they should be paying attention to their children instead of exercising.  “You should wait until they’re asleep,” they said.  While I understand that mentality and of course I would never put my children in harm’s way just for a sweat session, I also believe that it’s good for my girls to see their mom does something else besides cater to their every whim.  Working out makes me a happier, more balanced mom, and that is what’s best for everyone.

Altitude Trampoline Park

5. I want to be right there with them.

In the same vein, if my girls are having a blast at a place like Altitude Trampoline Park in Huebner Oaks, I want to be able to jump in and join them.  Sitting on the sidelines is no way to live your life, but it’s especially a no-go for me as a mom.  Do I sometimes want to just sit on the bench and watch them from afar? Yes, but inevitably I always feel the tug that I should dive in, fling myself into the foam pit with them, and have a blast right alongside their smiling little faces.  We did just that the other day at Altitude and Cora was laughing and sweating just as much as I was.  We loved the wall-to-wall trampolines, and she even wanted to join in the dodgeball game that was taking place.  We might not be quite ready for that yet, but I’m going to continue to take care of myself so someday, when’s she big enough, I can be right by her side.

If you want to live the fit life with your little ones as well, or just have an excuse to let them burn off energy in an air-conditioned, AMAZING facility, you have to enter to win a FREE Hour Pass for a family of four (or TWO free hours for a party of two) below! Good luck!

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XO,

A

P.S. This post was sponsored by Altitude Trampoline Park.  Don’t worry though, all opinions are my own!