If you have never heard the phrase “shake what your mama gave you” you probably were born when dinosaurs were walking earth. Shake what your mama gave you means to shake your booty in the urban dictionary. It could simply mean to be proud of your lumps, bumps, big chest or whichever body part you were genetically blessed and born with. This song came on the other day and I thought to myself….hmm I really do not like ANYTHING my mama gave to me! The only boobs I ever had was strictly because I was on the thick side, I had skinny legs, and thin hair. Not to mention our “family history”. Heck, the Drs would have to go pull out the old timey scroll when he came to write down everything I was predetermined to have. Heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, fibromyalgia, chronic stress, endometriosis, alzheimers, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, depression, alcoholism, anxiety and obesity.
I am 26years young and here to tell you that just because something is in your family history DOES NOT mean you have to throw your hands up and accept the terms. It simply means you have to be aware of the situation and work a little harder. For example: My mom was already pregnant, on high BP and cholesterol medication at 26. Looking back at videos and pictures, she looked older than she really was. If you stop and take a look at what lifestyle your parents live, you will see why family history keeps repeating itself. People hate change but it is needed to break the nasty “family history cycle of doom” at first it was hard to go to family gatherings when I started this healthy fit lifestyle. They thought it was the weirdest thing that I couldn’t eat biscuit & gravy with fried okra and wash it down with whole milk. Oh and don’t forget mawmaws homemade black berry cobbler for dessert. Don’t get me wrong, typing those foods just reminded me how good it used to taste haha. My family buys blue plate mayo in the industrial size containers, puts sugar and butter in EVERYTHING and drinks sweet tea like it’s going out of style. The term non-fat means life is not worth living to them. Put together being prone to heart disease and diabetes mixed with the eating habits of my ancestors equals….tada heart disease and diabetes.
Most family members do not make it past late 60’s; some have died in their late 30’s from heart attacks (that were skinny as a rail). When I decided to start taking care of myself and eating clean I became younger looking and healthier. My cholesterol was 158, Triglycerides was 55, HDL 53 and LDL was 94 last year. Pretty dang good. Remember, according to family history and my gene pool, I should be on high bp and cholesterol medication by now. I believe that exercise and diet CAN re-write your DNA. Studies have shown that after a 20 minute workout your genes turned on differently than if you were to be sedentary. What can impact our genes? dietary choices, lifestyle factors, environmental exposures and even our thoughts and feelings. Genetic research actually shows the habits you inherit from your family are more important than the genes you inherit. Changing lifestyle, changes our genes. A combination of improved nutrition, moderate exercise, stress management techniques, and increased social support caused the expression of over 500 genes to be changed in only three months!!!!!
It turns out every fork full of healthy food, every step in the weight room and even every positive emotion are optimizing your gene expression — turning up the good genes and turning down the bad ones!
Hmm maybe that’s why Trainers run 12 weeks transformation packages J
