[My 2020 is crazy #1] How I encourage/force my mom workout with me…

Probably you don’t have the same pressure as I did when I knew my mom was in bad health condition earlier this year and I was far far away from her. How bad was it? She couldn't even walk because her back and legs were in pain all day long. She went to the hospital, and the doctors did not know what exactly happened. All our family was scared to death. Fortunately, she started her treatment at last and felt better and better. Now she can walk properly but with her feet feeling numb.

When I came back from the UK, and I noticed myself had gained some weights and fat around my face and body. That’s when I decide to start my workout right away and of course, encourage my mom and my auntie (she lives next door from us) to do it with me. We started off walking around the park at night (my auntie and I walk 10k steps a day, and as long as my mom is walking, it’s perfect). After a week or so, I saw an ad about a local gym for women had a huge discount on joining them that month. So I immediately signed up for the three of us.

We have joined the gym + walking 10k steps for almost two months, and we’ve seen the change in our body and our mood as well.

My mom, especially, has changed from refusing to walk with us to ‘I-will-make-my-time-to-go-to-the-gym-and-walk-with-you’ mindset.

This is how I did it:

1. Accompany her. (this is a five-star important thing to do in the beginning) In my case, I need to shred some fat, so naturally, I motivate her to do the same thing as I do. Also, the night walk is one of the most important activities for the three of us because we can chat and get more connected than before. Create a healthy family time rather than just having meals together.
2. Forget about the mother-daughter relationship. (optional, but super useful for my mom and I) I think people from Asian countries can relate to this one because of the family dynamics are usually different from western countries: kids do not/ forbidden to challenge their parents. This is not about breaking the family relationship, of course. For me, it is more about encouraging/ forcing her to stick to goals and don't hesitate to restrict her to eat unhealthy food. My mom is ok with me restricting her and myself to stay away from sweets and refined carbs, but still, sometimes she felt annoyed when I've gone too far. That’s when the next point comes in.
3. Lecture her or keep reminding her how the family needs her to be healthy ( it really depends on the family dynamics). I personally will fight back when my mom started to feel annoyed and being angry. For example, I will always remind her of ‘how we felt when seeing her not being able to walk earlier this year and she has the responsibility of her own health, but not others’ these kinds of words.
4. Encourage her (always do this when she has some improvements). When we go shopping, I will always point at beautiful clothes and tell her, ‘you know what? you can buy those beautiful clothes and shoes within a few months if you stick to the routine!’ Just say something that will make her laugh and feel motivated all the time.
5. Bombard her with healthy hacks and nutritional tips. This is what my auntie and I do now and then. Here I would like to recommend a website called Healthline. All the articles are well written, and there are many useful tips and scientific explanation on health-related issues.

5 things I am still doing every single day to keep my mom regain her health, and we all see the progress she is doing right now. Doing together is always more useful than saying or telling others to do something that you won't do. 2020 is a great year to start thinking about our health. The good immune system keeps us away from the evil virus.