About

Hello, my name is Suzanne. Welcome to my blog, Fit Minded Mom!!

I am a married, 30 something mom of two kiddos. One girl, one boy. They will always come first and be #1 of my list of loves but I have a few other loves in life as well!!

Exercise

I fell in love with fitness about 10 years ago when I decided to hire a personal trainer to help me get in tip top shape for my wedding. While I had a love/hate relationship with him, I quickly fell in love with the way exercise made me feel. Add to that the extra benefit of having a toned body and I was hooked!! I exercised through both of my pregnancies and I continue to do so today. I won’t always say I want to workout but I CAN say, I have never regretted doing it!!

Food

Oh yeah…I LOVE food!!! Pizza, burgers, cookies, cake, gummy candies, french fries. It’s a good thing I also love Greek yogurt, sweet potatoes, an array of veggies, a good variety of fruits and all those other healthy foods, too!! For me, it is a balancing act!! I don’t believe in eliminating any particular food or food group from my diet(no allergies or intolerance, thank goodness) but I do believe in moderation. I try to follow the 80/20 rule, where 80% of my diet is healthy and the other 20% is filled with treats. It doesn’t always workout this way, but it is what I aim for!!

Books

I should have grown up to be a librarian because reading takes me to my happy place!! I have my own little library of books at home and now with an e-reader, I can pretty much “escape” whenever I choose. Of course, that would only be at night(I have kids, remember…) or on the weekends when my husband is home. I don’t know that I have any particular favorite authors but I have to credit Judy Blume for fueling my addiction at an early age. I mostly love fiction, just not the sappy romance stuff. By that I mean, skip the Harlequin-esque type of books, please!

Travel

This is more of a bucket list item!! I love going on vacation and exploring new places but sadly, I haven’t had the chance to see as many as I would like. Of the places I HAVE been, some of my faves include: Nassau Bahamas, Las Vegas(I got married there), San Francisco, New Orleans, and Destin, Florida. San Antonio and Austin Texas are included in my faves, too. See…told you I haven’t been to many places.

Just a few reasons I choose to continue on this journey of health and fitness:

Why Fitness is Important to Me

• Sadly, I don’t come from family that screams health. Many of my family members have passed at very early ages, or at least sooner than they should have. I know genetics play a large part in this but if I can prolong my life by exercising and eating healthy why WOULDN’T I do it?!

• I also want to be a good example for my two children. Obesity is a big problem in our country, not just in adults but children as well. I want to lead by example so that they have the best chance possible of leading a long, healthy life.

• Working out and eating healthy makes me FEEL GOOD!! We have all eaten that meal where we wondered WHY we didn’t put the fork down sooner. You feel awful. Tired, lethargic and cranky…sometimes for days. I still sometimes let myself go there and I always regret it immediately. It really is no fun to overeat….ever!! I am also worrier and carry a lot of stress. A good heart-pounding workout helps to relieve a lot of that for me. I know my family is very thankful…ha!

• I like to look good! I will admit it, I work out and eat right for all the above reasons but I LOVE looking good. Who doesn’t?! I want to feel comfortable in fitted dress or a bikini at the pool. I despise that feeling of going to a pool/beach/wherever and not feeling comfortable in my own skin. It shouldn’t be the number one reason for working out but I won’t lie, sometimes it is. And I am okay with that! If a little vanity helps me to maintain a healthy heart, more power to me!!