I had a chance to put some of my steps technique into practice yesterday as I jetted off on a last minute jaunt to New York City. I’m going to be interviewed on the Katie Couric show today and it’s due to air tomorrow (Thursday) on ABC. To say I’m excited, is an understatement. Thrilled, terrified, hopping up and down with adrenal glands working mega overtime, that’s just the half of it. But I have to tell you a little secret. One of the most exciting things so far was arriving at the airport yesterday. The show sent a driver to pick me up at the airport. And as I descended the escalator to baggage claim there he was: a very nice, well-dressed man holding up a sign with my name on it. It may seem like a little thing, but to me it really wasn’t. I have been flying for over 25 years, and I have always wondered whether one of those well-dressed guys at the airport would hold a sign up with MY name on it. Yesterday it happened. I, well I “arrived”.
I wonder sometimes about the life that led me to this point. I wonder about the hard work and the sacrifices I have made. I wonder about the many, many sacrifices my parents and my husband have made. I wonder at the support of my dear friends and the multitudes of blessings I have received, and I guess my feelings all boil down to one thing. I feel grateful–deeply and humbly grateful for this moment. As my dear friend Kate advised, I’m breathing deeply and joyfully. And I’m trying to savor every dang moment of this victory.
I don’t know how the taping will go. I’m praying that it will go well. But whatever happens, I’m grateful for this little moment. For Rocky who drove me to the fancy hotel next to the studio and for that tiny little sign with my name on it.
Love,
Jeanette DePatie
AKA The Fat Chick
P.S. The episode is due to air on ABC tomorrow. So tune in and see how I did.
Well it seems I have the jump on the competition when it comes to holiday travel. I’m flying out to New York City tomorrow for some super secret fabulousness. I’ll tell you all about it as soon as I possibly can. But as I frantically stuff things into a suitcase, I thought I’d give you just a few MORE ideas about how to rack up more steps on your pedometer–HOLIDAY STYLE!
1. The Airport or Train Station: Is a great place to walk. After you’ve spend endless hours snaking through lines, stripping nearly naked for security and dragging a metric ton of luggage on and off the shuttle bus, you may have some anxiety to walk off. And given the delays so typical during this season, you will probably have a lot of time to kill. So why not spend some time getting extra exercise trotting around the terminal? You’ll have plenty of time to sit very still, nay crammed like a sardine when you get on the plane! One thing I’ve started to do to ease this process is to always wear exercise clothes while I’m traveling. If you want to walk down the jetway in 4-inch heels then I say get down with your bad self. But I travel in a nice pair of athletic pants, a sweat wicking top, a sports bra, an athletic jacket and tennis shoes. This way, I’m ready to bust a move whenever the urge strikes. And given all the other ways travel is uncomfortable, I figure I can at least get around wearing comfortable clothes.
2. The Grocery Store: Thanksgiving is the mother of all grocery shopping holidays. Unfortunately, everybody in the known universe seems to go there at the same time. Why not do yourself a favor and stock up on groceries this week? You might not have time to formalize your list, so grab a cart and go up and down all the aisles. (Just be careful not to pick up too many impulse items!) Grocery stores have gotten bigger and bigger. So carefully carting down all the aisles can really add up to quite a distance. Don’t forget to park further from the door for extra steps. And for heaven’s sake, be polite and walk the ten extra steps to return the cart to the rack. I’m talking to you. Yes, you! I can see you trying to cantilever that cart up to the light pole to save yourself 15 extra steps of walking. I can see your cart rolling loose across the parking lot and terrorizing little old ladies and shiny cars and their new paint jobs. Seriously. Return your cart! (Rant ends.)
3. At Home: Okay, let’s be honest. We are all frantically cleaning our houses right now, trying to convince our mother-in-law that their son did not marry a pathetic, housekeeping-challenged, slug. It’s pathetic. Around this time of year, I tend to wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat murmuring things like, “Behind the fridge. What if she looks behind the fridge?!” I could tell you to just chill out. But this is an awesome time for getting in extra steps. Put on some cleaning music. (Acid Death Metal works well for this, and has the added bonus of being extremely annoying to any obnoxious neighbors.) Clip on a pedometer, grab a broom and get to it! One technique you can use to get in extra steps is to put things away precisely where they belong on the first trip. Typically, I pile all the stuff that needs to get put away at the bottom of the stairs or perhaps in a large cardboard box that I will ultimately drag into the garage and try to forget. But if you take each thing and put it away, not only will you have the satisfaction of someday being able to find that thing again, you will also get in some extra steps. Plus you get the privilege of standing at the door, looking at your domain, and reciting that line from Poltergeist, “This house is clean!”
So that’s three extra sneaky ways to get some extra exercise in and add to your step count this Thanksgiving. And maybe, just maybe, the walking will relieve enough stress to keep you from being homicidal by Black Friday.
Love,
The Fat Chick
P.S. Don’t forget to join my mailing list to get all the latest super secret announcements and of course to get FREE STUFF! Just opt in RIGHT HERE!
During the elebenty hours I spent at O’Hare Airport today, I did have the fortune to run into at least one thing that weighs more than me.
As you can see from the plaque (that also serves as a unique format for a “selfie”) this is an F4F-3 Wildcat. This single seat, fighter flew during WWII and was later used primarily for training missions. It also served as blog fodder and consolation prize for having spent nearly 2 lifetimes at the airport today.
And here’s the specs:
Length: 28 ft. 9 in.
Height: 9 ft. 2 in.
Wingspan 38 ft.
Weight Empty: 5342 lbs.
Gross Weight with Fuel/Ammo 7002 lbs.
Max Weight: 8,152 lbs.
Conclusion: This WWII fighter plane weighs more (and has been at the airport slightly longer) than me.
Love,
The Fat Chick
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Okay, first you gotta watch the video. Grab a cup of coffee and click the arrow. It will only take a minute.
Wow, how cool is that? We’ve all had the experience of standing in the bloody baggage claim area after a long flight, watching that little belt go around, straining hopelessly to catch a glimpse of our long lost underwear. But not this girl. Oh no. She just put on some tunes and rocked out!
When was the last time you did something like that? I think maybe it has been years and years for me. I used to regularly engage in PAI (Public Acts of I-don’t-care-what-you-think). When I was a kid, I was an endless source of humiliation for my poor sister. I wore crazy hats. I was kicked out of grocery stores. My cousin regularly reminds me of how we used to ride around town in her convertible with the top down and me singing opera at the top of my lungs.
What happened?
Is it just because I’m older? Have I grown wary and frightened? Or is it because I got bigger? Were I to dance around at the airport like that today, would people around mostly ignore me or smile gently like they do at the girl in the video? Or would they hurl insults at me and call me names like they did a few months back at the restaurant?
But I often wonder if this is one of the most insidious repercussions for those of us who have been bullied. How many insults can we endure before we shut down? How many of us have had our bright, bright lights muted under bushel baskets for years and years because we have been traumatized, battered, and bruised by very public opinions about our bodies? I continue to wonder about the squandering of those most precious resources. Resources we desperately need in our society like energy, inspiration, spontaneity, creativity, courage and joy. Can our world afford to throw these precious gifts away in order to sell more diet pills and gain more research funding for take home bulimia kits? I don’t think it can.
So my friends, let’s see if we can’t find a way to get our collective mojo back. I think exploring our inner child is a good start. And so is collecting for radically awesome events like A Fatty Affair. And joining fantastic groups like The Size Diversity Task Force can’t hurt either. After being part of the SDTF, inspired me to shoot this video on a busy weekday at my local thrift store. I’m committed to doing whatever it takes. Because hiding our light under a bushel basket doesn’t just diminish us personally, it deprives the world of our fantastic, glorious, gorgeous light, which is a crime against humanity. So let’s see if we can’t find even more ways to pull those bushel baskets off and dance like nobody’s watching.
fatchicksings.com 