Confessions of a Former Fat Lady

Diet/health tip #1: 

We ladies want a flat stomach. We think we can solve this by doing crunches or sit ups. That's called "spot reducing." If spot reducing worked everyone who chewed gum would have skinny faces.  

This is what I've noticed. The more weight I lose, the flatter my stomach gets. The more weight I gain, the more my tummy sticks out.  I don't want what my Uncle Harold has, a "dicky doo belly." His tummy sticks out more than his dickie do. Come on Ladies. If you want a flat stomach, you will need to lose a few pounds. Let's work on it together. 

By the way, keep doing crunches. In my next blog, I will explain why.

See you next week. Thanks for stopping by.

Diet/health tip #2: My prof at Portland State said, "If you strengthen your core, you will never hurt your back. She also made it clear that the core controls almost every movement in your body. Most athletes will agree. Here is a parody I wrote about the core, to the tune of "All About the Bass."

Because you know I’m all about the core, bout the core, no elbow,

I’m all about that core, bout that core, no elbow, no elbow.

I’m all about that core, bout that core.

Yeah, it’s pretty clear, I ain’t no size two,

But I do crunches, like I’m supposed to

Cuz I want to be healthy

And not have back pain

And all the right strength

In all the right places.

Okay, I flunked poetry, but you get the idea. The core is important. If you want to keep it simple, do one-minute of "planks" every day. They work about 90% of the body.

To do a "plank," get on the floor in a push-up position. Bend your arms, and support your body with your forearms. The only thing touching the floor are your toes and forearms. (Look on Google for a picture.) Hold as long as possible. Sounds easy, right?

When I first started, I could only hold for six seconds. My goal is still one minute, twice-a-day. I should be able to do that in four or five years, but I will keep working on it.

See you next week. Thanks for stopping by.