PROBLEM: Lynn C of the Hungry Little Caterpillar, asks about the massive amount of conflicting advice. For example: Drink water, but don’t do it from plastic bottles, or these types of plastic cups, and not out of the tap because it could have drugs in it. You don’t need water because it doesn’t do anything for you. Caffeine is good, caffeine is bad. It boggles the mind. For every study I read, there are at least 3 that confirm and 4 that conflict. Hard to know what to think.

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SOLUTION: With access to information from the internet, newsprint, journals, magazines and more, studies are conducted for multiple reasons and used to provide sound bites for the most current trend/discovery.  As mothers who received a multitude of advice before baby was born, we politely nod our heads, listen and do what is best for our family. I take that same approach when it comes to advice and studies in the field of health and fitness.

Dear Lynn,

I agree!  There is a ton of conflicting advice swirling around us.   Of course, by answering your question, I am contributing to multitudes of conflicting advice, but you asked!

For every one study on a position there are two or three more that refute or take the study to a whole new level.  When weighing the validity of a study, I look at the qualifications of the administrators, the number of test subjects, and the hypothesis. What is the study trying to prove? Who is the study affecting?

The biggest challenge facing health and fitness results in studies is that we are all unique. An athlete may respond to a stimulant such as caffeine quite differently from a person who jogs or exercises for basic health benefits. Genetics play a large role in how the body responds to sugar or metabolizes fat, carbohydrates and proteins.   Emotions and feelings tied to different foods, exercises, activities and memories of our upbringing all contribute to the nuances of how one person is going to perceive and live their lifestyle.

The number of studies and advice available is mind boggling.

My advice is to decide what works best for your family.  Consider the source, the participant’s tested and the philosophy behind the study.  Does your body respond to an X ingredient that was in the study?  How is it going to affect your daily living?  Is there strong evidence that the hazards are life threatening?

Ultimately, you make the decision that you believe is best for your family.  Just as we receive a  ton of advice about raising children (and boy, are their conflicting views on this), we, the parent’s are ultimately responsible for choosing the best method that fits our family.

As for the water questions,  all I know is that the human body is 70% water, so drink up girl!  Plastic this/tap that, I don’t know, but most of us are walking around dehydrated!

Your Fellow Workout Mom,

Cindy

P & S, One Problem & Solution, designed to deal with your questions about being a mom, balancing life, establishing priorities and everything health, fitness or nutrition related. Drop a question here or send them to c.a.posey (at) hotmail (dot) com. I look forward to helping you find the answers to those nagging questions!

PROBLEM: Feener, from MommyVents, asks, “My middle–How do I get rid of my mommy tummy?”

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SOLUTION: Getting rid of Mommy Tummy requires a three prong approach–mental focus, proper exercise technique of the core, and improving nutrition.

Dear Feener,

You’re echoing the number one concern moms express after pregnancy. Our tummy is evidence of our baby’s 10 month home. The stress of pregnancy stretched the skin and muscles to unknown limits. Factors out of your control will be a genetic skin properties and possible side affects from C-section surgeries. Patience and time will be your friend in restrengthening and flattening the midsection.

By following a three prong approach to battling mommy tummy, you will be well on your way to seeing an improved midsection and stronger muscles. Your body will respond positively to mental focus, proper exercise technique, and improved nutrition.

1. Mental Focus

The neural-muscular connection should not be underestimated. You can mentally connect with your tummy muscles anytime and anywhere. Breastfeeding, sitting in the car, talking on the phone, and laying in bed are a few of the many things you can be doing while developing a mental connection. There are two things you want to focus on when tightening the mid-section, mentally:

Visualize lengthening your torso and pulling your stomach in toward the center of the body.

By envisioning a lengthened torso, you improve your posture which develops a stronger core, supporting the rest of your body against nature’s gravitational pull. You’ll also feel better as you stand taller and strengthen your lower back with proper posture.

By squeezing your abdominal muscles in toward the center of the body, you redefine the proper placement for your muscles. Your muscles will repair themselves back to a more firm and tighter connection to the center of the body.

How do you mentally focus on the midsection?

Be aware of your posture and suck in your stomach throughout the day. When you are standing around or sitting, take a few moments to squeeze in and stand tall. Similar to the Kegel Exercises, no one will even know what you are doing. The simple intake and hold of your muscles can be repeated in a 1 second interval, 5 seconds, or 10 seconds. Build upon your ability to hold for longer intervals. Work on repetition. Practice makes perfect.

2. Proper Exercise Technique of the Core

Far more important to the Core Muscle Group (inner and outer layer of the abdominis, obliques, and lower back muscles) is proper form in any exercise meant to strengthen them. Which exercises and how many are performed is actually less important than the way in which you perform them.

In order to flatten the tummy, you must maintain the same mental focus discussed above when performing the exercises of your choice. The muscles will naturally bunch out rather than in during a move, so you need to concentrate on proper breathing and centering of the muscles.

Which Exercises?

When deciding on which exercises to perform, think of the various aspects of your midsection/Core. For layman’s terms, think upper, center and lower stomach, sides, and lower back. Mix up exercises to hit the different areas of your Core. Review the workout below as an example.

Complete exercises that help elongate your abdominis (the muscle extends from just under your sternum to the pelvic bone). Yoga and pilates are excellent resources for finding simple, but highly effective exercises. Traditional crunches and sit ups are good too, but they require your attention when performing. It’s easier to slip into bunching the muscles.

Don’t forget to stretch.

How many repetitions?

Quality is more important than Quantity when it comes to performing abdominal exercises.

Depending on your level of strength prior to pregnancy and recovery, the number of repetitions will vary. They may also vary based on the strength of the different components of your Core. Be patient and listen to your body. The Core will build strength quickly. We use it everyday and in a variety of ways. Consistency is essential. Keep working and stay focused on building upon what you previously accomplished.

How often?

Bodyweight exercises for the Core can be completed everyday if you desire. Improvements will be seen on a 3 a week schedule as well. Your expectations will be the determining factor in how often you want to work the midsection. If you’re training for an event, then daily will be necessary. If you’re eager to speed along the process a daily regiment will be called for. If you’re looking more for health benefits and a slow and steady recovery, then a 3 to 5 day routine will be sufficient.

Simple Exercises to Develop a Flat Tummy

Upper Abs: Lay on back with knees bent. Lay arms at your side and attempt to touch your heels, bringing shoulders off the ground with a neutral neck. Complete 15 times.

Basic Crunch: Bring legs up 90 degree angle. Lift shoulders/neck up toward a point in the sky directly above the center of your stomach. Remember stomach moves down toward earth!

Lower Abs: Stretch out on the floor. Lift legs up about 6 inches, Scissor legs out to side and back together again. Keep the stomach down.

Full Core: Plank–Lay down facing the floor. Evenly distribute weight on forearms and toes. Maintain a straight line(plank) from shoulders to heels. Start with a 20 second hold and build to 1 minute holds.

Obliques: Oblique Plank–Lean on side forearm and distribute weight evenly from shoulder to knee. As strength develops, hold body in a line from forearm to foot.

Lower Back: Supermans-Lay on tummy, extend arms and legs up to the sky.

3. Improved Nutrition

How your body stores fat will be an important element of recovery. I’m not saying that your nutrition has to be perfect, but the results will be more pronounced as your body drops in fat composition. Strive for a healthy 21%-26% body fat composition and you can achieve a flat tummy. For moms that were athletes or in a competitive venue, then the expectations will be to return to body fat composition numbers necessary for your level of competition which means more restrictions on food intake.

The most effective strategy to burning fat will require improving nutritional choices, engaging in cardiovascular exercise (3 to 5 days a week, 30 minutes), and strength training (at least 2 times a week).

Feener, you’re not alone. Let me know how it goes. I know we have lots of moms here that have found what exercises and approaches work for them and what doesn’t. Please share.

Your Fellow Workout Mom,

Cindy

P & S, One Problem & Solution, designed to deal with your questions about being a mom, balancing life, establishing priorities and everything health, fitness or nutrition related. Drop a question here or send them to c.a.posey (at) hotmail (dot) com. I look forward to helping you find the answers to those nagging questions!

Developed around the 10 Babysteps for Mom’s Fitness Journey, I incorporated objectives, checklists, and questions for self-reflection.

The first section is devoted to the educational aspect of your journey.

Tools are provided to simplify and track your progress.

The last section is devoted to significant accomplishments and results of your Journey in memory book format.

The Book is FREE when you sign up to receive my newly created Motivator Newsletter. The important part of your journey is to never feel alone. I am dedicated to motivate and support you in achieving your goals. The newsletter format allows you to focus on the tips of the week through your email as you work and get through the days. I want to help you stay focused on why you decided to live a healthier lifestyle.

Your name and email address will not be sold or made public in anyway. You will be free to unsubscribe at any time if you feel that I am not living up to my promise to provide you support and encouragement in your journey. I hope that will not be the case.

Sign Up Now to get your copy of Mom’s First Year Journal and start receiving your Motivator Newsletters!

Table of contents for Toddler Steps

1. Toddler Steps for Mom’s Fitness Journey
2. Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
3. Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
4. Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
5. Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
6. Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
7. Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up!

How my son handles new experiences is enlightening. His reactions to new challenges are through frustration and “I can’t do it. Do it for me, mommy” outbursts. He tries two times and drops the item that he is holding or starts to whine. I’ll coax him back into action and say, “That’s okay, buddy. It’s a new thing. You’re going to have to keep working at it until you figure it out. I know you can do it.” My words don’t provide him comfort. He wants me to do it for him. As I ponder this new behavior from my son, I realize that I’m not that different from him when it comes to facing new challenges and experiences. I either “get it” or I “move on” from a difficult task. For many of us, our fitness journey is quite a new challenge. It requires thought, practice and perseverance. How do you overcome your desire to quit? We must heed our words to our toddlers: “That’s okay, buddy. You can do it!” Here are a few questions to ask yourself when you feel like giving up:

• Check out the Before Pictures. Where are you now?
• What did you do this week, day, or yesterday to lead a healthier life?
• What small goal can you accomplish to reward yourself for a healthy moment?
• Say to yourself, “I am worthy,” or “I love being healthy,” ten times. Mean it and continue on with your day.
• Would I tell my son or daughter that they can give up because….?”
• Look at yourself in the mirror and find a part of your body you are proud of (yes, you have something to be proud of)!

Finally, take a moment to review the BabySteps for Mom’s Fitness Journey. The BabySteps are a big picture, mental, and physical guide of your commitment to a lifelong Fitness Journey. You are able to make the changes. They will be small at first, but they will grow and become a part of you. Don’t give up because of the Holidays. Don’t give up because you feel down. Don’t give up because you have no time. Don’t give up. There are no excuses to not take care of yourself. You deserve to be kind to YOU.

Now, Go Workout MOM!!!

This concludes the Toddler Step Series. The series is designed to reflect on our decisions and actions to achieve a lifetime Fitness Journey. Our toddlers face the same challenges we face in their life journey. We, as mothers, guide them with life experiences. Our same words can be applied to ourselves, but we don’t stop to think about the connection of their life development with our own struggles in health and fitness. We are very much like our toddlers!

Table of contents for Toddler Steps

1. Toddler Steps for Mom’s Fitness Journey
2. Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
3. Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
4. Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
5. Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
6. Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
7. Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up!

A toddler for the most part thinks in the present. Everything has to be done now. One of my often used phrases behind the word, no, is “You must be patient, son.” In our fast paced, easy access to information and knowledge, we slip into the desire to have things “now.” The health and fitness industry is full of “get fit quick” programs and “lose the weight in 5, 10, or 15 day diets.” How do we gage progress? What is practical for the busy mom to expect?

Join me in my first Podcast, as I discuss what “Patience in Progress” means:

Main Points to remember:

• Changes in fitness levels take approximately 6 to 8 weeks.
• Changes in muscular development take approximately 6-8 weeks.
• Habits take at least 30 days to form. Therefore, dietary changes that can be sustained for a lifetime will require habit changes.
• Setbacks are not the end-all-be-all reality!
• Be Patient with yourself as you are with your child.

Fitness tool to track progress:

Fitness Journey Progress Report

What experiences with your children or yourself have you faced in developing your Patience?

Table of contents for Toddler Steps

1. Toddler Steps for Mom’s Fitness Journey
2. Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
3. Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
4. Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
5. Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
6. Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
7. Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up!

“Mommy, I want to play video games. I want to watch television. I don’t want to take a nap. I want a lollipop. I want hot dogs (it’s breakfast time). I want to stay home (I’m already running late for an appointment). I want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (asked at every meal)!”

This is why moms say NO fifty times a day. We filter our toddlers’ wants versus needs. I tried the philosophy of not using no and that worked for the most part until my son turned three and he discovered the word “want.” Now, I feel like I am saying, “No,” every ten minutes or less. I try redirection and other options, but when I say, “You do not need that right now,” a blank, uncomprehending stare looks at me, followed quickly by, “Why not?” Then I’m scrambling for an explanation that completely boggles the mind of a three year old. Most of the time, I resort to “No, because I said so and I know what’s best for you.”

As a toddler, he understands only what he desires and what makes him feel good. As an adult, we understand the difference between want and need, but we often revert to our basic instinct to cater to our wants because it feels good over our needs. How often do you police yourself when you’re faced with your wants. It’s tough to tell yourself no. I struggle with my own wants throughout the day, everyday. I started looking at my own wants in the same light as my toddler. I have not been telling myself, “NO!” Over the course of the next few days, ask yourself these questions:

1. Does my body need (this food)?
2. When have I last said “No” to (this want: tv, purchase, Drive Thru, food, etc)?
3. Would I say “no” to my child because it’s a want over a need?

You may fill in the blanks for any situation. When you’re faced with a want, think of an alternative that satisfies a need or delays your desire. By delaying your wants, you increase your chances of walking away from an “immediate gratification” circumstance. You will think through the idea rather than giving in to a whim.

A word of caution: This does not mean that you ignore your need for personal time and pleasure. Just as we must provide our children with playtime and enjoyment, you must take care of yourself through quiet time and hobbies. Moderation is important!

Do your wants win over your needs?

Table of contents for Toddler Steps

1. Toddler Steps for Mom’s Fitness Journey
2. Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
3. Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
4. Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
5. Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
6. Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
7. Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up!

Sound familiar?

• My toddler stayed up 20 minutes past his bedtime. He’s happy one minute and crying the next.
• My toddler had to wait 15 minutes later before getting lunch. He whined the whole trip in the car before we had a chance to pull over and grab a quick lunch.
• My little one missed nap time. The whole afternoon has been fraught with tantrums and fussing.

Consistency helps maintain a happy toddler as well as parent. When their routine misses a beat, we find ourselves dealing with the repercussions. It is natural that we need routines in our lives. A toddler doesn’t understand why or how to deal with the inconsistencies we sometimes throw at them. As adults, we’ve learned how to deal with changes, but our bodies still crave a sense of consistency and routine. Do you recognize your signals when you missed your routines? Are you slightly more grumpy, edgy, or moody? Most of us shrug off the things we need to do to keep our sanity. Just as we are aware of our children’s trigger points for consistency and routine, we need to care for our own.

Think of the following trigger points for yourself. Do you remember when you listened to your body and how much better you felt when you remained consistent? With a few small steps, being aware of your trigger points will help bring sanity to your lifestyle:

1. Sleep: Are you getting enough? Are you going to bed at a decent hour? Are you waking up at a consistent time?
2. Meal Planning: Are you maintaining regular “refueling” meals and snacks for yourself. I know you’re taking care of the little ones, but how about yourself?
3. Quiet Time: Do you have five minute break times scheduled throughout the day to devote to complete silence. Stop, breathe, and catch yourself before you go into overdrive. This may sound like an impossible task, but try to work in one session a day and build up to three. You’ll be amazed by the energy boost those 10 minutes will bring to the rest of the day.
4. Pre-Planning: Do you know what you want to accomplish tomorrow? Go through your list the night before and don’t panic. Try to focus on the “must dos” and keep those to a minimum. Tackle your other lists as extra credit!
5. Workout: You body needs the movement. What you do to workout isn’t as important as actually getting your blood flowing and your muscles active. Incorporate time somewhere in to your days. You’ll start feeling better physically and mentally.

Our children’s natural tendencies demonstrate what we manage to hide in ourselves. Consistency and Routine are essential for their happiness as well as ours. It makes perfect sense that our routines for ourselves have just as much influence on our family. What routines do you know are essential to maintaining your sanity? Are you staying consistent?

Table of contents for Toddler Steps

1. Toddler Steps for Mom’s Fitness Journey
2. Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
3. Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
4. Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
5. Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
6. Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
7. Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up!

I finished reading Screamfree Parenting: The Revolutionary Approach to Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool a few days ago. I was very impressed by his discussion about offering children consequences to their actions. By giving them choices, they are “in control” of their consequences for the actions they commit. The concept sounds obvious, but if you’ve been battling a 2 year old or 3 year old, it quickly flees your senses. My toddlers have a great knack of creating situations in which I’ve not thought about what consequences they should face. For example, nap time turned into a power struggle when Asher was about 2 1/2. At first, I would place them in their room for about 30 minutes and they would play. Then they would get whiny. I started putting them to bed in separate rooms, but then they would run around to the other room. Now, if they want to remain in the same room, I say that they must keep their heads on their pillows. If they move their head from the pillow, then I will separate them into different rooms. I must also remain in the hallway to enforce the consequences of their actions. Nap time results in about 15 to 20 minutes instead of the hour to two hour struggles I was having with them earlier in the year. Have you thought about the consequences of your actions for yourself? I tend to not dwell on myself and don’t think about the full consequences of my diet and fitness routines. I’ve recently made a greater effort to really think about the consequences of my own actions. For each activity or item I am presented with, I try to formulate the consequence of each direction I choose for my actions. Here are some areas we can really work on to remember that our actions have consequences:

1. Grocery Shopping is my first line of defense: When I purchase products to fill our pantry and refrigerator, my choices help set the stage for my later actions. The consequence of less healthier food options in the pantry is one in which I will indulge. If my pantry is filled with healthier snacks and less fattening, sugary foods, then I’m less likely to give in to weak moments.
2. Drive past the Drive-Thrus: I have had a terrible weakness in stopping at drive Thurs during errands or busy days. When stopping at a drive-thru, the consequences of my actions usually result in a high calorie, high fat snack or meal. Actions I take to curb this tendency is to bring a mix of healthy snacks and fruits from home and keep on driving. I always have healthy snacks for my children. It doesn’t take me a minute more to pack the same for myself before leaving home. It takes me ten or fifteen minutes out of the way by entering a drive Thur and another hour or two to physically work off the unwanted calories and fat. Plus I’ve saved $5.00 to $8.00 by not pulling into that drive-thru.
3. Preventative health measures saves money: Vitamins, regular check ups, and healthy food choices help diminish the possible expenses of sickness. Sickness takes its toll on the whole family, especially when mom is sick. I know that I can’t prevent unforeseen illness, but I do have control over my body’s ability to defend itself from some sickness. When I take my vitamins, I suffer less from common colds and infections. My body is better capable of fighting back. Our body is our machine and with proper care it will operate at a higher capacity just as a car will work for years without major problems when provided with oil changes, fuel, and tire maintenance on a preventative maintenance plan.
4. How we eat affects our children. Children develop their eating habits based on how they are raised. Yes, they can change, but a great majority of our influence on their diet will affect them for many, many years after they leave the home. By providing healthy meals and developing an understanding of how food works, our children are given an education with real life examples on how food choices affect their bodies.
5. Our body benefits from exercise. Research continually proves the importance of exercise for our body. We are no longer a society in which the majority of people survive by doing strenuous work. Our body is healthier (less doctor visits and complications) when we strive to incorporate fitness into our lifestyle.
6. One Setback doesn’t mean the end of the Journey: The whole purpose of this series is to build upon and enforce the habits of living a healthy life. Poor decisions made yesterday or today do not mean that my future decisions and actions are doomed to failure. I am in control of committing actions that will result in positive consequences today and tomorrow. You are also in control of your actions to overcome any setbacks and reap the benefits of positive consequences.

Our fitness journey for a lifetime is filled with ups and downs. Our actions have consequences that may be fleeting or permanent. The great thing about exercise and diet is that we are making decisions on a daily basis that can be changed in a matter of seconds. What makes this challenging is that we are also faced daily with options that can result in negative consequences often. Over time, it feels as if our actions doom us to a permanent life of poor decisions in diet and exercise. It’s time to reset your thinking and look at your decisions on a daily basis as you would deal with your child. Talk your way through each decision. Ask yourself what the consequence will be for the food or activity you choose to do. Let your conscious help guide you in making decisions that result in the consequences you want! You might want to run that extra hour on the treadmill to enjoy that doughnut. When you think about your actions, and face the consequences, you are in control of the results. Ultimately, you make yourself accountable as you want your children to be accountable to their actions.

Table of contents for Toddler Steps

1. Toddler Steps for Mom’s Fitness Journey
2. Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
3. Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
4. Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
5. Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
6. Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
7. Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up!

We went to the hair salon, and Asher did not want to get his hair cut. Luckily, Robin is wonderful with children. Asher loves going into the shop, but as for today, he didn’t want to have anything to do with the scissors or clippers. He whimpered and cried the whole time. With big tears, deep gulps of air, and tightly closed eyes, the little guy sat in the chair. His world was upside down. Two minutes after the ordeal, he was happily skipping around the salon and playing with toys. Toddlers have this amazing ability to shift mental gears. Despite the tears and the drama, they reset themselves to something positive. As adults, we tend to dwell on the negatives of our experiences and emotions for far too long. We are very hard on our selves and we allow those negative vibes to penetrate our environment and lifestyle. Our attitude means everything to be successful in our fitness and life journey. How can you develop a consistently positive attitude?

• Bounce Back: You will experience setbacks. The setbacks may be in your control or due to unforeseen circumstances. A toddler shifts focus throughout the day so quickly. They don’t dwell on the past. Take your minute or two to recoup and reset your attitude to positive thoughts.
• Promise Yourself: Write or memorize two to three inspirational positive sayings about yourself. Repeat them to yourself at least twice a day. When you experience a moment of negativity, repeat them immediately. Here are a couple of examples that I tell myself often: “I never give up.” “I am worthy.” “I can do anything.” “I control my destiny.”
• Visualize the Results: Visualization is a technique repeated over and over again by the experts because it works! This is something you can do anytime your hands are busy, but you’re free to mentally wander. Take your first couple of minutes to focus on yourself. I know this is hard, but it is essential to your success. Rather than think of the things you did wrong today, yesterday, this year or over the years, visualize the accomplishments of your goals. Visualize the workouts, the smaller dress or pants sizes, the smaller meals or healthier choices.
• Act Now: Instead of thinking about what you haven’t done, act. Block out the negativity by focusing on an activity that positively affects you. Walk around the block. Put a DVD on for the children and do some exercises that focus on you. If you feel better by working on a hobby, then take whatever time you have available and completely immerse yourself in the activity. Toddlers do it all the time. Yes, they don’t have the weight of the world on their shoulders, but they do know how to have fun. Play with them and let the giggles and laughter replace your thoughts.

Children have a positive attitude on just about everything. They have their moments, but that is all they are–moments. They quickly revert back to the positive and happy outlook on life. We have trained ourselves to over analyize and criticize ourselves, especially in our body image. Our mind is our biggest tool to change the way in which we approach fitness and health. By removing the negative mindset, the journey becomes an inspiration and success because you believe in yourself. Your positive attitude means everything to your success!

What do you say or do to be more positive? Your positive messages will be a great inspiration for all of us.

Table of contents for Toddler Steps

1. Toddler Steps for Mom’s Fitness Journey
2. Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
3. Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
4. Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
5. Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
6. Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
7. Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up!

Our Fitness Journey began to reflect a mom’s busy life. I created tools to begin anew much like a baby is given experiences to achieve his milestones throughout the first year. The Babysteps established a process to change our life. The Starting Line assessed our medical, physical and nutritional status. Designing a Tailored Program allowed you to create a plan based on your fitness level and preferences.

With Toddler Steps, we face the challenges of maintaining the course of our individual journey’s. Similar to how a toddler’s personality shines with guidance as he steadily gets stronger and more self sufficient, you develop with guidance in your fitness and healthy habits. We teach our toddler’s how to handle their independence and function in their environment. The Toddler Steps Series serves to highlight the challenges you face as you establish a lifelong fitness journey.

• Toddler Step #1: Our Attitude Means Everything
• Toddler Step #2: Our Actions Have Consequences
• Toddler Step #3: Consistency and Routine Brings Sanity
• Toddler Step #4: Wants Versus Needs
• Toddler Step #5: Patience in Progress
• Toddler Step #6: Don’t Give Up

Our children serve as great inspiration in life’s lessons. As we teach them, they respond in unexpected ways. Each person is different, yet basic behavioral tendencies resonate among us. I’ve approached our fitness journey in such a way that you reflect on your thoughts, actions and reactions. Therefore, your journey directly reflects your challenges. These steps help you to continue toward a successful lifelong fitness journey. Over the next week, I will discuss each toddler step so that we can successfully continue on this wonderful fitness journey for a lifetime! See ya tomorrow! Have fun today and Go Workout Mom!!!