Monday Mix-up - New Year's Resolution to get the perfect body? What is perfection, anyway?

And in the blink of an eye, it's the new year! It amazes me how so much time and effort is put into just 2 days that fly by so fast they seem to blur. I feel like all I've done for the last week is cook, clean, entertain, cook some more, then clean some more, then entertain some more and in between all of that do a lot more cleaning and cooking! Amazing how you take your domestic help for granted until they take leave;)

So here we are already on the 6th January and we're still feeling a little shell-shocked that it's all over bar the shouting. We're not quite sure whether we're still allowed to take it a little easy or if we should just be diving right back in and picking up where we left off. Some people are entitled to more time off and rest because they have kids who are still on holiday. Mind you, REST is not really the word there, is it;)

I think it's largely accepted by the professional world, however, that the 6th January is when most business open their doors again. We were both up early this morning: GLM for her first full day of work since Christmas Eve, and me for my first day of not having to play housewife (because our domestic is back from holiday... yippee!!) and finally managing to sit at my computer and getting some work done.

We'll hit the gym tonight and I just know that our days of having a wonderfully quiet and empty gym are over! No more having our pick of cardio machines and free weights. Yup, it's January, and with January comes a mass rush towards all manner of exercise venues. Everyone is now in pursuit of the "body beautiful". It'll probably be chaos for about a month or two and then things will calm down as the new year's resolutionists start to find excuses for why it's better NOT to gym today;)

I don't know why people set such unrealistic goals for themselves. We have such a warped idea of what makes a perfect body. We look at cover models on magazines, and actors in movies, to set our standards to. You DO know that ALL cover models are airbrushed to within an inch of their lives, right? No-one can ever look THAT faultless in real life. It's just not possible. I have had many photo shoots where I have sat and watched them make me look beautiful AFTER the shoot. No amount of makeup and lighting will achieve what photoshop can, with a photo. And, when it comes to actors, it's literally incredible what they can do with makeup and lighting these days. They can make a 25 year old look 80 with ease. Anything that CAN'T be done with makeup can be achieved with a body double. I guarantee that, if you were to knock on Brad Pitt's door on an average day, he'd be far from perfect. You might be forgiven for not recognising him at all...

No question, she looks incredible in Iron Man!

What I'm saying is, putting a picture of Gwyneth Paltrow or Brad Pitt on your fridge on New Year's day and saying, "This is going to be me in 3 months time," is just plain silly. It's an unrealistic goal and you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Look, I'm not saying it's not possible to do. But, not within 3 months and without absolute dedication and commitment, it's not going to happen. Body builders do it BUT, they put their bodies through an enormous amount of stress and it takes YEARS to work towards that kind of muscle structure; years and single-minded focus. They do it because they love it more than anything else.


If it's worth it to you to give up everything and everyone that you love, to put your body under huge strain (that it isn't accustomed to), and deprive yourself for several months then go for it.

The other option is that you forget about building yourself a body like Gwyneth Paltrow and set yourself smaller goals. Focus on making TODAY a day to be healthier. You can even go smaller and say you'll make sure lunch is healthy today, if that is going to be more within your reach. If you really think about it, 3 months without going to a single social function with your friends is not easy. If you go, you are likely going to be tempted by those chips or that glass of wine on offer. If you don't go, you are going to be missing out on precious moments with people you love, all for what? A perfect body? Have we really become THAT shallow that it counts more than precious memories?

I CAN tell you that, if you should reach that goal, and get the body you are so obsessed with, you will then have to spend the rest of your life trying to maintain it. That means you will have to stay away from those chips and that glass of wine forever. It doesn't end when you reach the end of those 3 months. I have seen people do the USN challenge and look amazing at the end of it, like a whole new person! But I have watched them struggle to swallow down their salt-free and sauce-free brown rice and plain chicken breasts day after day and week after week. When they finally reach their goal, the first thing they do is go out on a drinking, partying binge to show off their new body. Within 2 weeks, they have picked up 2kgs of body fat and by week 3, the chiseled muscles they were sporting are hidden under body fat and water retention. By that stage, they think they just aren't meant to have a good body, they can't face the thought of depriving themselves again and so they accept it and get back to their lives.

There is no such thing as a perfect body as far as I'm concerned. Who measures perfection anyway? I can tell you that my idea of a perfect body is completely different to yours. Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. I look at GLM and she is PERFECT to me. For some reason, thankfully, I am perfect to her:) If others can see past the so-called "faults" that we see on our own bodies, why is it so hard for us?

It's not about that perfect body. It's about the body that is perfect for you. Imagine waking up one morning and not being able to see. Suddenly the concern you felt over losing that little bit of belly fat wouldn't be quite as important as the fact that you'd never see another sunrise or sunset again. We take our perfectly functioning bodies for granted until something refuses to function the way it should and then we lament our bad fortune.

If we could just learn to honour and appreciate the body we have now, life would be so much more rewarding. I know it's hard. I wake up some days and I just feel fat and ugly. We all do now and then. But try really hard to move past that and rather focus on the fact that, when you woke up, you had eyes to see, ears to hear, feet and legs to walk, a voice to speak with and hands and arms to feed yourself and hug your loved ones. All of these things provide you with the independence to live your life as YOU want to.

We only get this ONE body. Don't punish it by expecting unreal things from it. Your body needs EVERY macro and micro nutrient there is. Don't deprive it of fat because you think it'll make you fat. Don't avoid fruit because it's too high in sugar. Give your body REAL food. Don't buy processed, genetically modified "food" because you think it'll help you lose weight faster. It won't. It'll just make you sick faster. Don't feed it junk. That will also make it sick. It deserves to be treated with respect because it is a beautiful, perfectly functioning body and it never lets you down.

Here's what I do: I NEVER eat chips and sweets and I don't drink any softdrinks. I don't feel deprived. I just don't see them as real food and drink and I don't want to put them in my body. I can't eat wheat so eating cakes and desserts when we're out isn't an option for me. But I bake myself plenty of cakes at home and take them with me when I can. Most desserts and cakes have additives that I know would be really bad for my body so I don't feel deprived there either. I eat meat loaded with fat, I drink, and eat, full cream dairy on a daily basis. I also eat lots of fruit and veg on a daily basis but that's usually in my breakfast smoothie because it's just easier that way. I enjoy my food and I eat A LOT but it's always real food. I don't eat anything processed and packaged. I prefer to make my food from scratch so I know exactly what's in it. That's how I honour and respect my body and let it know that I appreciate the effort it goes to to keep me healthy and functioning normally.

Move your body, by all means. It loves to be active. If you want to exercise at a gym, that's great. But don't go if you are going to hate it. Don't try and punish your body into submission. It will reward you by straining a muscle, or burning out and, if you hate it, you WILL stop eventually. Instead take it out for a walk, with a friend, down a beautiful street lined with Jacaranda trees, or take it for a cycle on a mountain bike trail. Make a decision to train outdoors wherever possible. Start learning a new sport. Do the things you love and your body WILL reward you for it.

For example, yesterday, we went for a 22km mountain bike ride through the hills, valleys and little forests of Northern Farm, here in Jozi. It was BEAUTIFUL. With all the rain we've had, everything was green and lush. The smell of Eucalyptus trees and the chirps of birds followed us all the way. We didn't go with the intention of burning body fat, we went because we knew it would be fun, but we burnt 900 calories anyway, and in the most beautiful setting! It was FUN, it was food for our souls and our bodies thanked us for keeping them active.

As a personal trainer, I have learnt to train people in EVERY situation. I can train someone in a gym easily, but why do that when they have a perfectly beautiful garden to train in. Summer only lasts so long and we should enjoy every second of it outdoors. Exercise is going to be so much more beneficial if your body enjoys it. Imagine if you could burn fat without even trying to, while you're having fun?

Don't punish yourself for the last few weeks of indulgence by setting those unrealistic goals. It's going to happen every year so simply accept it and then, when it's over, get back to being healthy and active the rest of the year. Take it one day at a time and remember, in all things, to honour your body and to HAVE FUN!