Excerpt from the book “Get the Skinny on Your Success” by Amy Cady

My mom is a great example of committing to a healthy lifestyle. She turned seventy four this year. She lives on the East Coast and I live on the West Coast, so it’s a challenge to get together, but we do talk on the phone at least once a week: I take her with me on my walks! We catch up on our lives and on the family drama. (This, by the way, is a great way for some people to fit exercise into their schedule. When you walk, you can talk!)

It’s shocking to me that my mom is in her seventies, because she’s so young and vibrant. I am really blessed that she was such a positive role model for me in life, especially when it came to exercise. As far back as I can remember, she was in theater, typically in musicals, so she was always dancing and moving throughout the day. It made sense then that she enrolled me in dance class in children’s theater when I was young and where I continued to dance throughout high school. I loved and adored every minute of it, and it made me feel so good about myself.

My mom and I continue to share that special bond. She is retired now, but that has not stopped her from moving. She has a part-time job at Curves, so she is still working out and moving. She told me that she had a physical recently and the doctor praised her for her excellent blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and the fact that she is just as healthy as can be. It’s no coincidence that she has put exercise as a priority, along with other healthy habits, like eating well and getting rest.

This doesn’t mean that she’s superhuman. She has had a knee replacement and shoulder surgery for a rotator cuff tear, but her recovery time was quick, and within a matter of weeks she was back to her routine. Because she made exercise a lifestyle, she was strong, supple and bounced back quickly after her surgeries.

My point in sharing this personal story about my mom is that exercise has benefits no matter what stage of life you’re in. And it’s never too late to start to exercise and continue with it for a lifetime. Our bodies tend to stiffen as we get older, and if we don’t move we get tight and achy joints. One of my clients reported as to why she exercises: she wants to be healthy and stay mobile as she ages. She has elderly people in her life who did not exercise or stopped exercising, and because of that they are no longer very mobile. It really scares her.

I am forty nine now, and I definitely can relate to the tightness and stiffness in my body as I age. I am definitely not bouncing back after a workout like I did after dancing eight hours a day in my twenties. But I continue to take care of myself and have chosen to exercise as a way of life. It has served me well, and I still feel virile, agile, vibrant, flexible, and strong. I was told recently that I looked and presented myself as much younger than forty nine. I was flattered by that compliment, but more importantly, because I have adapted exercise as a way of life, I truly believe that I carry myself differently from those who don’t. Exercising helps me feel good about myself, and from that I exude confidence and security in daily activities. My demeanor is most definitely projected in a positive way — and you can feel this way too if you work out, feel worthy of feeling good and confident about yourself.

Take Action Steps

Here is how you can adapt exercising as a lifestyle today:

• Add fitness to your schedule just like an appointment or a meeting.
• Schedule it on your phone, computer, manual schedule, etc. Make it a habit, and add alerts for your fitness appointments.
• Respect yourself, prioritize it, internalize it, and visualize it.
• Don’t resist, just persist in putting it on your schedule.
• Make your health and well-being a top priority in your life.
• Make the commitment and never replace it with something else that comes along.
• Schedule your workout at a time that is more convenient for you, like before work or before your kids wake up.
• Don’t answer your phones, emails or texts during your workouts as that distracts or prevents you from actually doing the exercise.
• Get an accountability partner to workout with you and/or keep you on track
• Make it a habit to always get a workout in on your designated workout days.
• It will feel great and be a boost to your self-esteem to check it off your list.
• When you’ve checked it off your list, you will be more productive during the day because you committed and followed through.

It is never too late to start to make exercise a permanent part of your lifestyle.  Keep moving for a stronger body, for a longer, healthier life, for more productivity in your daily activities, and to fuel your confidence. You will love the positive results…

Amy Cady, MFA, PMA-CPT, is a best selling author, International speaker, Pilates master trainer, and owner of AC Training and Seminars. She works with people all over the world to implement exercise into their busy schedules as a means to empower them to be more productive in every aspect of their lives, thereby creating healthy, successful and vibrant people. Amy’s achievements include being named an Ambassador for Lululemon Athletica for her community involvement and commitment to health and fitness through Pilates, as well as developing the Pilates programs at various colleges and community centers locally.