Great Arms and Legs - Plus, Baby Girl is Comin'!

We are in the final week before our baby girl is born; in fact, once this blog goes up she might already be with us.  This is a fact that I am both super excited for, and yet, a little stressed about.  I’m excited because I know that from the moment she is placed on my belly I will love her completely, thinking (knowing) that she is the most wonderful being ever.  And I can’t wait to see my husband holding our little baby girl, with love in his eyes, knowing he is totally going to be wrapped around her little tiny finger.  With big sister, I see them playing for years to come, as big sis teaches her how to do her hair and look cute while still being tough, strong, a great athlete and a seriously smart cookie.  As for our son, the awesome, super, little ninja that he is, I just hope and pray every day that they are close and that he always knows that we love and support him. 

But on the stress side, there’s just so much to do and to get done!  And how will having a baby girl affect our lives?  At work this week one of our instructors said to me “you seem stressed”.  My response was   “well, yeah, I am.  There is so much I want to happen and I only have a week left to get it all done”.  But here’s the thing with stress: it can be both good and detrimental.  It’s not good to be a wound-up ball of stress; however, if you care about something, and want to get something done, you’ve got to want it so much that you do get a little stressed about it, because that is what is going to push you to do more, strive to achieve, and get results. 

So for now, I’m going to keep plowing forward and taking what’s good, to great; because soon, very soon, it will be time to relax and focus on our family while celebrating our new, wonderful, and beautiful baby girl.

This week is Arm Week!  (With the added bonus of working your core and legs as well!)

 
Squat with Shoulder Press
This is one of my favorite exercises to end a class with (and yes, I still do this one, even now, very prego).

Begin with feet wide for a squat position with weights in your relaxed arms.  Pull your belly in to support your lower back, open your chest up, and relax your shoulders.  As always, maintain this position throughout the exercise.  Now it’s time to work our muscles!  Remember, as you squat down to keep your toes over your ankles to support your knees (do not let your knees come forward past your toes or buckle in).  As you squat down, curl your weights up under your chin; at the bottom of your squat, press the weights up over head.  Return to your starting position.  That’s it!  Do 3-5 rounds of 10-20 reps.

 

For more information on Janell and her classes, visit: www.kempofitnesskc.com

Plus, stay tuned to www.bewellwithjanell.com to see how she is getting back into shape after having her baby girl!

Nourish Your Relationship -- Spend Time Together

“Love is Everything”  ~ Janell Bartlett

Oh how I love love.  I believe in love above all else.  I am lucky enough to be completely and totally, utterly in love with my husband, and the beautiful thing is that I know he feels exactly the same way.  But as much as we both love each other, it still is not always easy to maintain such a happy relationship.  All relationships take time, effort, and nourishment…especially those that you hold most dear.

As you know, we have a beautiful baby boy who just turned one (amazing how time flies!).  In addition to that, we opened our own business this year (Kempo Fitness), I am in school for dietetics, and then there are all my life projects (fitness videos, this blog, and creating the “Move Your Feet Week” program to name a few).  Our life is crazy!  But the thing is, in this day and age everyone’s life is crazy.  We have so many things to fill our time with, and we are all pulled in so many directions, sometimes it’s hard to really set aside time to feed your relationships.

Today, my husband and I spent the entire day together…it was amazing, but it was a choice.  This afternoon my husband wanted to go for a run, something I really was not in the mood to do, but I did because I wanted to spend more time with him.  I chose us.  The run, it was okay, but being with him…that was wonderful.  And he was so happy and grateful that I came along. 

When we got home, our little guy decided he wanted to go for a ride in his wagon.  Since I love going for walks, being outside, and enjoying nature, another walk for the day was good.  My husband on the other hand would rate going on a walk as one of his least favorite things to do.   But today he came along because he wanted to spend more time together; he chose us.  For him, the walk was okay, but being with me and with our son….that was wonderful.  And I was so happy and grateful that he came along.

In both instances, we chose each other.  We chose to do something that we weren’t super excited about so that we could support one another, spend time together, and nourish our relationship.

In addition, it is important to actually share with your loved one how much it means to you that they chose to nurture your relationship. 

You want to say things such as:

“It really means a lot to me that you ________”

“I really enjoy spending time with you”

“I really appreciate you”

“Thank you for coming along”

 Just telling your loved one how much they mean to you and how much you appreciate them (their help, their time…etc) will go miles and miles toward maintaining a happy relationship.  Case in point, my husband was just reading this blog and his immediate response was “just hearing how much you appreciate me motivates me to do even more”.  Important caveat though: you must be genuine and actually speak from your heart when you tell your spouse how wonderful they are.

To maintain (or grow) a happy and wonderful relationship it’s often these little choices that will feed and strengthen the connection the most.  Yes, some of the big things are nice every now and then (big date, big trip, big gift), but it’s all the little choices to chose each other, to be with each other and show that you love each other, that provide the daily fuel for love, happiness, and a successful relationship.

So the next time your loved one would like you to join along with them, will you chose the craziness of life…or each other?