05/11/2025
Moms – How you feel about yourself matters!
I will use one of the closest examples I have…my mom.
{Little Jeremy and his Mom}
My mom was/is a great mom. She gave us hugs, food, security, someone to talk to. My parents made the choice to have my mom say home and raise us kids. It’s not an easy choice. With most of your validation coming through how you perform in the repetitive world of a home it can be very draining. It was nice knowing there was always someone there.
The Mom of my childhood only had one main drawback…
She was depressed and unhappy with herself. With all her attention and time poured out and invested in her 4 kids what she needed to be happy and healthy took a 3rd row back seat. Like the kind that faced backwards in the olde station wagons where you can taste the exhaust leak. I think this is common whether mom is home or trying to do both home and work outside the home.
I worried about her.
Even as a kid I worried about my mom. The older I grew the more I had a more anxious feeling. Like mom is not doing well and we can’t afford to have her collapse since so much depends on her.
She had injured a cartilage disk in her neck and couldn’t play as actively with us as much as she and us kids would have liked. She never seemed to have time to exercise. Her eating was an after-thought and matched her growing and active kids. She was overweight. All this gave her less confidence, energy, and joy.
{Mom of my childhood and mom now}
I wanted mom to be happier but as a kid you don’t understand what’s going on. She wasn’t a can’t get out of bed depressed but there was a low level of depression for many years.
As I started to learn about exercise and nutrition I tried to help my mom see that she could feel better. I remember when she started exercising. She could not do even 1 push-up from her knees. Fear of hurting her neck more kept her away from exercising in anyway besides walking. We started slow and worked on doing things right (and carefully).
She began to get stronger. She began investigating nutrition and weight loss. I actually learned a lot of strategies 2nd hand from her journey that we use in our program to help others. She lost weight and built strength.
My mom has maintained her weight within 10 pounds for nearly 20 years now! (it was around 2006). I appreciate the work she puts into this as it makes me much more peaceful and less worried. As we get older we don’t worry about our parents for our survival since we have been raised to take care of ourselves. But, I see people worry about their parents survival. “how much longer do I have them?” “Will they be ok?”
My mom is turning 70 this year. She is healthier and 10x or 20x stronger now than when I was growing up. She picks up my daughters and swings them around for hugs! I brag about my mom. And her health gives me so much peace of mind.
{mom brag video of her doing push-ups…isn’t this amazing?}
https://youtu.be/ljxrLQMFTyw?si=6d2cv0-WyLLFYEST
For proof I videoed her doing push-ups for a minute. From her Toes! She did 25 push-ups without stopping and 32 (I think) in the minute!
This is amazing as she couldn’t do even one from her knees when she was about to turn 50!!!
For you moms out there I have a couple things I want you to know:
• How you are feeling effects your kids WAY more than you know.
• As a kid I could have given up some time with her so she could exercise and feel better.
• When you feel better it passes on to your kids. A happier healthier mom 23 hours a day is better than a struggling mom 24 hours a day. (1 hour for exercise ;o)
• You can start where you are and can be a stronger healthier grandma than you were a mother. (or be a stronger mom than you are now!)
• If your kids and your family is taking everything you have…hang in there…we need you!
Thank you Mom for the gift you give me by being healthy and strong. Seeing you with my kids active and healthy is a gift for us all. You are showing a pathway for us all to follow. The work you have put in is worth it for them too!
On this Mother’s Day I want to say…
I love you mommy.
From your 44 year old “little boy",
Jeremy “tall trainer”
P.S. for those reading this…my wife is an amazing role model for our girls too and maybe I’ll share more about her next year!
P.P.S. If you want to get stronger healthier and feel better and are worried or intimidated about exercise…helping women like my mom has been the reason I started Tall Trainer. Email back or call and let’s talk about how this could work for you! (585)260-4235.
