I danced from the age of three until 18, then stated teaching dance. NEVER worked out. HATED it. I believed weightlifting to be big men in gyms, not for women. No, definitely not women! I thought I dance and always will, that will provide all of the exercise I need!
Then I met a wonderful man, along came marriage, then came the baby carriage…and that left me carrying an extra 40 pounds on a 5’2″ frame…I weighed as much as my HUSBAND, 174 pounds, that was mortifying! Yes, I enjoyed every second of my pregnancy…and ate and ate and ate…thought it would magically melt away I guess. WELL, it DID NOT. By the way, now I was a stay-at-home Mom and a dancer no more!
Then one day, I was sitting on the couch feeding my son. I liked the couch it was comfortable, didn’t venture far from it! I was flipping through the channels and on FitTV, I saw a WOMAN, her name was Cathe. She was lifting weights, but she looked healthy, not bulky, and I thought wait. That is what I want to look like! I proceeded to watch the rest of the workout…and saw that he was using a very managable weight and then she went right to a “dancey” aerobic routine…”Step, Jump and Pump.” I thought NOW THIS I CAN DO. And the next time it was on, I did. Could I move the next day, not that I can remember! But I stuck with it and I have been hooked on Cathe’s workouts ever since.
I lost all of the baby weight. I remember hitting 125 pounds six months later and thinking I did this by eating right and working
out! Amazing. Yes it took six months, and there were times I thought I just don’t know if I can keep on…but I did!
I gave birth to my daughters in 2004 and 2007 respectively and was back to my “fighting weight” in six weeks thanks to sticking to my regular Cathe workouts while pregnant, just modifying as I got further along. The pregnancies were much easier and I felt great the entire nine months!
I feel empowered now! I take the incentive to make things happen. This past year, I went back to teaching dance and started a fitness “Boot Camp” at the dance studio. In fact, I just celebrated one year of Boot Camp, and we are still going strong. I just got hired to do fitness camps for our local high school’s Majorette and Flag Corps. I can’t believe that I am now getting paid to do something that I genuinely enjoy! I get to teach many different ages that fitness is very attainable and everyone can workout and be healthy. Is it easy? NO. Is there a shortcut? NO. If you stick with it and tough it out will you see results? YES! I did and if I did, anyone CAN!
It isn’t about what size jeans I wear or how much I weigh. I am now confident in myself. I can do things that I never thought I could or would do. I am so much more than I ever was before I started exercising. I can proudly say that I am a STRONG WOMAN in every sense of the meaning!
