Stop, Drop and Get in Shape

The easiest thing to do is tell yourself you�ll start working out tomorrow. Break through the barriers and change your life today

By Dana Carman
CTW Features

When Amy Barnes looked in the mirror four and a half years ago, what she saw bore no resemblance to the person she�d thought she�d be. After two children, a divorce and an abusive relationship that left her with no job and resulted in her kids being removed from her custody, Barnes, 35, weighed 490 pounds. She�d tried every diet out there, she says, and nothing worked. Finally, she had an epiphany: She would change her life � all of it.

While counseling worked on her insides, Barnes took care of the outside. She set short-term, weekly goals, such as eating breakfast every day, drinking more water and exercising a set amount of days per week. She lost 100 pounds in six months in her living room doing exercise tapes. After that, she joined a gym, started using the elliptical trainer and lifting weights. She got her personal training certification so she could properly learn the right weight-lifting techniques and, after following this regimen, plus a healthier diet, for a year, she lost her second hundred pounds. She added group classes and lost another hundred. Another six months and 35 more pounds were shed.

Today she weighs 155 pounds and went from 52 percent body fat to 13.9 percent strictly through exercise and healthy living (and she did not go on a diet, at all). She�s now the general manager of a gym in northern Virginia, does personal training (90 percent of her clientele are morbidly obese or have obesity-related diseases) and at press time was training for her first body-building competition. �If I can do it,� she says, �anyone can do it.�

So why aren�t we? Obesity and its related issues are still a huge problem in the United States. We all know the benefits of exercise � longer life, more energy, less disease, not to mention a stronger, fitter body � and yet so many would rather try the latest version of whatever diet pill than throw on a pair of sneakers and take a walk. What gives?

Meaghan B. Murphy, the features director, fitness, for SELF magazine, says that �people can�t envision the results. They can�t imagine themselves thinner. They can�t imagine themselves with more energy. It seems so far removed.�

Which is why both experts recommend short-term, small, measurable goals. Commit to 15 minutes, three times a week. Set up something that�s realistic for you. If you make it too aggressive, you�ll quit.� Murphy notes that while we�re a busy society, �Find 20 minutes in any day,� she says. �Think about what you have time for. You probably watched American Idol last night.� As the director of the SELF challenge, a three-month get fit program, Murphy sees how camaraderie can also breed results so find a friend, colleague or join an online community to help inspire you to not back out of workouts.

You don�t have to do things you hate. If you�re not a runner, don�t run. Find activities you feel comfortable in and connect with. Also, in order to be fit, you don�t necessarily have to spend a lot of money. �You don�t need a gym membership,� Murphy says. �I�m in a hotel room and can do a full body workout.� A pair of shoes will take you for a walk outside, for example. There are many workout exam

The key thing is to do something. �There�s just no excuses,� Murphy says. �Be good to yourself.�

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