My parents are moving to Kansas...that's a whole other story in itself, but they have packed up their Maryland home as of last week. My father went ahead and drove the u-haul loaded with all their belongings while my mother is staying with us in our home until her job transfer at the end of March. Good times.
I love my mother, but I've never had a parent as a live-in. The occasional weekend here or there was always enough for me; not to mention that my children act like little war demons whenever a grandparent is present. We're on day number 4, and so far all is well. I don't dare say this aloud, but it has been really nice having her here this week. I've been making delicious healthy dinners (sushi, roasted chicken, an assortment of salads, a couple thai dishes) and I actually have an adult that will sit down and relish in the meal with me. God love my husband, but he's not exactly one with an adventurous palette.
One evening after the dinner was finished, the kitchen was cleaned and the children were fast asleep, I decided to ask my mom if she wanted to exercise. My mother is a tiny woman. She's all of 120lbs and a whopping 5 ft 1 inch tall. She is however not a healthy person. She is long time smoker, eats very poorly, and doesn't exercise at all. I chose to break her in with the tried and true Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. Oh was this fun!
The JM Shred is only 20 minutes long. 3 circuits of 3 minutes strength, 2 minutes cardio and 1 minute Ab work. Then it finishes with about 2 minutes of stretching. She really worked hard. Her form was "so so" but I was able to help guide her and I did the workout with her so she didn't feel so awkward. I showed her how to do the exercises, I cheered her on and I pushed her when she started to say, "THIS IS TOO HARD!". By the end, she was panting, sweating and laughing her head off! She was really happy she made it through!
Those 20 minutes will kick your butt! I had my mom start her first time without any hand weights. I'm glad I did because for the next two days she's been moaning and groaning about being sore. We'll hit it again today and I'll have her add 2lb weights in each hand.
I'm very proud of her for doing it. I figure, she's going to be staying with me for about 8 weeks...why not help her get on track with her diet and exercise. I want my mom to take care of herself and I'm hoping that this will make her feel good and get her on a path to a healthy lifestyle!
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