Insanity

   Around Easter, quite a few years ago, my husband and I got engaged. I looked down at myself and decided that I needed to lose some weight--fast. In my search, I stumbled on the Insanity program. It looked like an effective means to lose, so I started.

I lost alright. But it was a beast. I mean, killer. I didn't finish the full sixty days, but I did it fairly consistently until not far off of our wedding day.

Now, back then, I worked out, but I never changed my eating habits. I still drank soda, ate a ton of processed sugar, and vegetables were unidentifiable oddness that took up an unreasonable amount of the grocery store--space that would be better spent on Oreos and Hot and Spicy Potato chips. These days, I'm losing slowly but surely, even without consistent exercise, just by cutting out the crap. But I'm ready to move it along!

Fast-forward. I'm considerably larger than I was back then(as in, a good fifty pounds bigger--EEK!), and my gym visits have been somewhat sporadic, related to kids' illness, general busyness, that sort of thing. Today was one of those days where it was going to be difficult to carve out enough time to drive over there, workout, and get back in time. Then, I remembered.

Insanity.

(The name is so, so apt.)

Excited, I threw on some ok-to-sweat-to-death-in clothes, cleared a good space in the living room, and put the Fit Test video on. Madelyn wandered over and sat on the couch, Lilah not far behind.

"What'cha doin', Mommy?" she asked me.

"Mommy's tired of being fat, honey," I informed her. "I'm going to exercise! Eating right has helped, but Mommy wants to get fit and healthy again." She didn't look noticeably convinced. In her sweet little drawl, she said,

"Oookkkaayyyy." I nodded, taking that as encouragement, and hit play. By the middle of the warm up, I was ready to collapse into a puddle in the floor. Both girls stared. Then, Madelyn hopped down off the couch.

"'Mon, Lilah! Exer'ise with Mommy!" And, the next thing I knew, Mads was jogging in place, jumping, and giggling her way through the various exercises.

At one point, I paused, doing all I could to draw breath. I swiped a forearm across my sweaty head, shoving back unruly hair. I dropped my hands to my hips and sucked in air as best I could.

Beside me, Madelyn used a palm to push back her--still in place--hair, put her little hands on narrow hips, and let out a breath in one big gush. "Whooooooo!" she said, mimicking my panting. Then she laughed, little rotten thing! If she were any older, I'd think she was making fun of me!!....I'm still not totally convinced she wasn't!

I dropped down for plank obliques. Madelyn laid face down on the floor, cheek pressing up against the cool hardwood and watched me. Lilah laid on her back, then scooted underneath me, so that her nose was an inch from mine. She clapped and laughed and thought my struggle was so funny--what new game was Mom playing with her, here in the floor? (I didn't have the heart to tell her that Mommy wasn't playing--she was dying.)

When the workout finally finished, a mere million years after it began, I laid on the floor myself for a few minutes. When I almost had my breath back, I sat up.

"Well, girls," I told them, "I think that deserves a high-five." Both of the kids obliged. "Let's hit the showers!" Madelyn nodded.

"Hit shower, Mommy!" And we were done.

For today.

Tomorrow, be watching, here we come! I've got cheerleaders/helpers, now!