This is the week!

The first of my DVDs arrived yesterday but I'm waiting for the other one as that is the one with the "complete workout":  Physique 57.  It's a workout DVD put together by the  gym by that name to which Kelly Ripa attributes her well-toned physique!  Of course I know I'm not going to be a Kelly Ripa look alike no matter how hard I work, but she's an example of a thin woman whose well-toned muscles are very attractive.  I haven't figured out how to post pictures yet.  I'm new to this blogging thing...which is why my site looks about as empty as Mother Hubbards cupboard compared to others I've seen.  If I DID know how to post pictures I would post one of Madonna as the "non example" of what I am after.  She has developed her muscles to the point of "grotesque" IMO.

I did a bit of searching through some other blogs today and found several that are written by other Feisty Fifty-somethings (and beyond).  I suspect this is going to end up being a "time sink" for me...and I have to be careful that I don't spend more time blogging about my exercise efforts than actually doing the exercise.

April 3, 2011 Body business

At the risk of sounding shallow and vain I will admit (since this is a place of "truth" for me) I am not happy with my body.  I manage my weight (at 5'4" I weigh 115 lbs) however I've found that after age 50, "thin" alone does not necessarily make for an attractive body.  Friends who struggle with weight "chide" me for my efforts to find a way to "build a better body"...I think because they see me as someone  who is not having to fight the pounds that are characteristic of adding another decade of life onto one's frame so I should be content.  That is not it at all for me.  I am the poster child for those articles that talk about how a person loses muscle mass with age...yes some of us add pounds of fat...but we also lose muscle mass in some cruel double edged sword of nature.  Those of us who are thin see that muscle loss very quickly ...and without a layer of fat tissue, the skin on one's arms and legs start to look like stretched out pantyhose.  I can still wear a pair of jeans pretty well but I dread the tank top and shorts season as much as my friends who are weight conscious. Women who carry "saddlebags" of fat and envy those of us who are "thin", don't understand that at some point, a "smaller butt" is really NOT the goal.  The butt is muscle...and an attractive butt is a well toned/built set of muscles.  I guess my "question"...or maybe just my "quest" is whether at "my age" I can still build muscle that gives me more youthful looking arms, legs, and yes, booty!

I'm not a "grouper" (no not the fish)...I don't really enjoy hauling myself to the gym where I sweat it out with a large group of women while some sweet young thing shouts "you can do it" at me.  [The visual here would be...what would Maxine say in that situation?!!]

So....today I researched and ordered 2 exercise DVDS.  The reviewers whose feedback I read (I love that "review" feature often included on the on-line stores sites) included women  who are no stranger to exercise and they found the routines challenging but effective. I could not find anyone in the "over 50" age demographic whose opinion I could read though.  I am determined to work with these materials and report whether those of us in the 50+ group (assuming I am representative) can realize enough positive change to make the effort worthwhile.

April 3, 2011...getting started...

I spent the day surfing the internet for inspiration...and information...about how to "stay lovely" in the physical sense.  Many of the exercise suggestions for the 50+ demographic were not so focused on how to address the major issues of what happens even to those of us who ARE consciously taking care of our bodies and are generally "fit".  Most of what I found assumed that a woman past 50 needed to start with quarter-mile walks and if using weights, start with no more than 3 lbs--accompanied by the strong caution to check with one's doctor before beginning an exercise program!  I walk 4-5 miles regularly, can dance to a band's music for hours and have had my intervals of spending time doing weights at the gym with no problem.  However, I am also aware that the last decade has brought about physical changes that are different than a younger woman's goals of just needing to "tone up" or "lose a few pounds".

While this blog started out as a concept of  "body", I am clearly aware that much of what it takes to "stay lovely" has to do with mind and heart and spirit as well....ever moreso as the years tick on.

I don't know where this blog will go...or if anyone will read it...or if will be just a journal in which I put my thoughts out in front of me so I can see them from another angle.  It will be "the walk of the yogi"...in which awareness is more important than the destination.