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As a teacher, my kiddos think it's completely ridic that I live a (fairly) normal life outside the classroom. I swear, they think that I live in this little classroom and never leave. God forbid they see me at wal-mart doing something normal (like buying DVDs) or maybe something not so normal (like buying 4 gallons of almond milk). But I share stuff about my real life with them and they share stuff with me. You know, we get each other. Kind of. Some kiddos read my blog. Some kiddos are fans on my facebook page. Some kiddos follow the blog instagram. All of which, I feel like, are amazeballs. So it's not all that unusual for students to ask me for fitness/health/life advice. And I'll give it. Anything to help them out. I had one student in particular come ask me for advice about last week. She is struggling with her weight and her doctor has told her that her current weight is having a pretty negative effect on her health. So she came to me for some guidance and I gave her a starting point, not really knowing if she would really take my advice to heart. This week, everyday after school, I have seen this girl working her ASS off at the school. She doesn't have access to a gym, so she's made our school her personal gymnasium. She's been using our hallways to run sprints with sets of squats at the end of each sprint. Yesterday, I caught her doing jumping squats, push ups, and handstand holds. Sweating her ass off. Breathing so hard. And keeping on. When she sees me, she pauses--just briefly enough--to say "hey, Miss H!" and keep moving. TOTES RIDIC. I am so incredibly proud of her. Of course, I can't just tell her to her face, because she's a high school girl and she's way too cool for that, but I know for a fact she reads this stuff I write. And I know there are plenty of other people who have decided to make a lifestyle change and read this stuff, too. So if you're pushing yourself to be better, this is for you. Dear you, You're pretty much a badass and I am so proud of you. I know starting anything new can be way scary and suck--real bad. But you're doing it. It's hard. It sucks to be out of breath, feel like your lungs are on fire, be tired, and have your mind screaming at you to stop. It sucks to change your diet and be tempted by all those awesome tasting, terrible for your health things. I know. I've been there. But you're making this happen. You're taking care of yourself. Because you're the only you that you've got. Your mind is going to quit on you a thousand times before your body will. So show your mind who's boss. People are going to criticize you. They're going to tempt you. They're going to underestimate you. They're weak. You aren't. You don't make excuses because excuses don't make shit happen. And you are determined to make shit happen. From a former fat girl, you can do this shit. You are bigger and better than this challenge. And you're going to be better for it. Keep it up. Keep moving, watch those clothing sizes drop and watch the numbers on your weights go up. You got this. Love, Ace
I get that they aren't the best photos, but I make changes. You can, too. Left: LSU v. Arkansas game-mid beer pong. circa 2007 Right: Hurricane Isaac, August 2012.
