do you?

I don't know about you, but when it's midwinter and I'm gearing up to head to a tropical beach (after wearing 67 layers of thermal undergarments and a top layer of yak hair) I try and "tighten" up a little.

I like to head to the gym with a little extra fervor, eat mostly vegetables (with perhaps a little lasagna midweek), and I use a famous person's air-brushed, works-out-with-a-trainer-every-day photo. This month it's Jewel. She looks fantastic, and lives on a ranch where she rides horses and plays football with her neighbors. She's svelte. She's also not scrawny to the point of scariness, which makes me happy.

There's far too much of that Skinny Like A Scarecrow Actor thing going around, which is in direct conflict with the obesity epidemic in America.

I'm devoted to not becoming someone with Type 2 Diabetes, but I have found it tricky to be the "active svelte girl," too. As I enter my *gasp* mid-thirties, I have discovered that 4-5 miles a day is the trick. Whether it's walking the dog extra far, or going to the gym for 30 mins, I must do something at least 5-6 days a week or I don't feel as great. And isn't that the whole point? Feeling great, and feeling like you fit in your body?

Yep. That is the point.

In Shape Magazine - Jewel