If I Were A Rich Girl...



Off to my first run!



I wish I could be lazier, but I just don’t have it in the budget.  There’s a myth out there that being active and leading a healthy lifestyle is too expensive to do.  And sometimes I catch myself falling into that mind-set as well like when I need to buy yet another pair of shoes, or feel that I NEED the latest cool fitness gadget.  And I do acknowledge that, of course, there is a certain amount of spending that is required on basic equipment, but, trust me folks, my family is definitely NOT rollin’ in the dough (quite the opposite!) and we manage to stay pretty darn healthy and active; and we find ways to do fun things!



Our little snow bunny! 
She's almost better than me already!
(Though, that's not sayin' much!)



For example, this past week we went on a ski vacation!  Isn’t that what rich people do?  Rich people and us, when we get free ski tickets!  Here’s how we did it:  In the fall, we went to a ski movie for $15/ticket, got to see a cool movie, won free ski goggles, and got 2 free ski tickets to Eagle Point Ski Resort in Beaver, UT (usually $45).  Plus, we entered a drawing and won five more free tickets!  We found a reasonable hotel to stay in for a few nights and crammed our own skis and board – which are old but work just fine (plus we never have to worry about them getting stolen!) – and our own pantry staples into our small, crappy Jeep (but we do love you Jeepie – please keep running!) to drive 4 hours to a resort that, while not top-of-the-field, was just fine – in fact, great – for our whole family to enjoy.



All smiles after a fun day on the slopes.
Worn-out and ready to hit the ... pool!



No, it wasn’t the celebrity-type ski vacation that involves flying to Aspen, staying in a 4-star hotel with room service and spa treatments and springing for heli-skiing lessons.  Ours was a budget-friendly, awesome adventure that we enjoyed immensely. 

I’m always wishing I could buy more fitness equipment.  Over the years, we've slowly added to our home fitness arsenal, but I always want more, more. more!  (Just for the record: although I like "things," I am of the mindset that you only need your own body weight and a maybe couple pairs of dumbbells to get a killer workout - I do it all the time!).  To save money on the ones we do have, I’ve just had to be patient and wait for sales or lucky opportunities.  I scored an awesome barely-used True treadmill when someone needed to sell it cheaply because they were moving.  They even threw in a really nice set of  dumbbells with it for free!  Our bikes and elliptical machine were given to us for free by family members who weren’t using them.  We waited for deals on a heavy bag and a Bosu and over the years have managed to put together a pretty good home-gym!  That has saved us from spending money on a gym membership.  I’m a personal trainer who feels like I’m in the best shape of my life yet I haven’t worked out in a gym in over two years!  (That’ll be a blog post for the near future).  We buy season passes to the community pool and to Red Rock Canyon and definitely get our money’s worth out of those because we go to both places so often.



Z didn't get to ski this year but LOVED the warm
indoor pool and hot tub.



So, yes, you do have to spend some money on living a healthy, active lifestyle, but I think a person spends more on lazy luxury pursuits such as eating out often, sedentary entertainment (movies, video games, etc), seldom-used gadgets that promise quick fixes and the like.

And I’m not knocking the good life – trust me, I’m lazy whenever I can be! – but I’m of the opinion that I’ve got the better life with my healthy, happy and fun family!

Fake It Till you Make It

I’m feel I’m still a newbie when it comes to blogging and facebooking, but I am starting to  see that a somewhat distorted view of people can come across in these social media formats.  I get the feeling some people think that all I ever focus on is my workouts or my fitness status and that I think other people are losers if they aren’t as focused as I am on all that stuff.  Or I feel that others might feel sorry for me that I don’t realize there’s more to life than exercise and eating right. 



Yet another outing to Red Rock to discover new caves.
This was, of course, after a 6-mile run.
Sooooo routine.  Yawn.



To anyone out there that thinks that, I say, “Ha!  Spend a day with me and you’ll see why I named my blog “The Lazy Personal Trainer.”  I have intended to use the blog to document the ups and downs of the fitness side of my life.  And while I have talked about many of my inconsistencies and failures at trying to live a healthy lifestyle, I find that I do tend to focus on events that make me come across as more successful, more dedicated, and just more awesome than I really am.  I mean, I’d much rather post how fantastic I felt that I was able to take my planned workout in the garage out to do an improvised sidewalk workout of burpees, pushups and curb plyo jumping so that R could ride her scooter in the Cul-de-sac (true story from today!) than how lazy I often am in the morning by forcing the girls to eat bananas in bed and watch a DVD – just so I can get a few more minutes of sleep after having stayed up too late…again – until they are begging me to toast them a waffle (sadly, another true story from today...and yesterday).

K’s facebooking about our fun family adventures makes us come across as the funnest, coolest family out there.  And while I acknowledge we are a pretty darn amazing unit, you might not be so impressed if you knew how much we annoy each other on a daily (hourly) basis or how the laundry/household clutter builds up in between our fantastic excursions.



Another all-too-common scene around the house.
Hey - they're clean.  Just gotta fold 'em.



But I’m starting to see this modern social networking stuff as a powerful form of positive self-talk.  I find that if I frequently share the positive things that I am doing, it feeds the fire to do even more cool things so that I can keep the impression alive – to myself and others – that I am way more on top of things than I really am.  Although a few people have good-naturedly expressed their annoyance at K’s frequent posts about his workouts (telling him to chill out a bit and take a nap every now and then) even more folks have expressed how our family activities have motivated them to do more fun and active things within their own families!

So, although I will still inject plenty of doses of reality by copping to my lazy bone, I’m gonna keep trying to convince myself and others that my life is one fantastic ride.  Because it often is!

This is where the relevance of one of my favorite quotes lately comes in – and it applies to any aspect of our lives:  “Act the way you’d like to be and soon you’ll be the way you act.”  –Leonard Cohen

And maybe the popular phrase, “Fake it till you make it,” can also be applied!

Doggonit, People Like Me



"I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and
doggonit, people like me."
- Stuart Smalley



I’ve been tapping into the power of mantras lately.  Ever since I got a boost from a quote I had posted at the right place at the right time, (see previous post “Do It Anyway”) I’ve been reminded how powerful a few phrases - or even just a few words - can be.

So I’ve issued the challenge to my family to choose the inspirational quote or mantra that will help them keep steadily moving toward their health goals.  I told them to print it out, post it somewhere prominent and recite it verbally at least once daily this month.  (Hence the Stuart Smalley reference – as goofy as that guy was, he was on to something!)



Just a small part of my vision board.  There's more
on the other wall above the toilet paper roll.



I’ve had a hard time choosing my current favorite because there are so many that inspire me.  In fact, I have what mizfitonline (a blog I’ve been enjoying lately) refers to as a “vision board”.  It’s a collection of pictures and quotes and phrases that I find motivating and inspirational that I’ve posted somewhere where I will see them often.  Yep, as some of you know, for me that’s the bathroom.  By the toilet.  I’ve been doing it for years and I have to say I’ve really found it helpful many times.



So I’ve narrowed it down to the two that are most meaningful to me right now:  “Do It Anyway” and “It’s about progress, not perfection.”



My daily mantras on the mirror, along with K's inspirational quote.
Plus my monthly exercise log!
Pretty soon I won't be able to see myself.



However, I can’t help but add a few more that have struck a chord in me lately:

“Act the way you’d like to be and soon you’ll be the way you act."  –Leonard Cohen

“Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing.  You have to make the mind run the body.  Never let the body tell the mind what to do.  The body will always give up.  It is always tired in the morning, noon, and night.  But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired.” – George S. Patton, U.S. Army General, 1912 Olympian

“Putting on your workout clothes burns half the calories.” - Trainermomma (another blog I’ve been enjoying).

"NO EXCUSES!"

I’m sure I’ll be sharing more as they inspire me… and I encourage everybody else to do the same!