Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Reshaping my writer's bottom line and celebrity eating

One thing I have learnt over the past few weeks is how hard you have to work at keeping fit. If you want to get fit, you have to SWEAT.  If you want to keep being fit, you have to SWEAT. Yes, you can eat treats but you always have to balance things. For various celebrities to proclaim that their favourite indulgences are a variety of fried foods (as reported in The Times) is unhelpful in the extreme. They may eat them in public but in private? It reminds me of how someone once said the Astors ate -- huge  multi-course banquets on the weekends when they entertained, tea and snippets of toast when dining alone. It is not a new trick but a rather old one.
The bottom line is that for many actresses their body is literally their fortune. They have a greater need to look well. But maintaining a myth that they do not have to work at it is far from helpful. To look that good, they have to work. They have to put on the slap, wear the right clothes and exercise plus watch their diet. They are human beings rather than androids. They also have to worry that someone else is coming along or that they will fall out of fashion...And they don't want to seem neurotic as eating disorders are bad news.
Know you are going to eat a lot? Plan for it.  Increase your exercise before and after. Cut back at other meals. But above all enjoy and live in that moment. You deserve it if you plan for it. And indulgences make life much sweeter.
But to pretend that you are blessed with a better metabolism than other people is wrong. Admitting that they work damn hard and take pride in their accomplishment but are not afraid to splurge is much better.
It is a bit like pretending that as a writer, you never have to revise or that every book comes easy. Some do. Some don't. But hard work does pay off. And people should celebrate their achievements more.
For me, I have to force myself to make time to workout. I know the dvds will make me sweat and will work on getting me fit. If I do a 40/50 minute and end up marinated, I know I can eat more than a lettuce leaf. If I worked out for  4 hours a day which some celebrities do when getting ready for a part, I could eat much more. But really, life is too short!
 It is a simple equation about calories in and calories expended. And it is HARD for everyone.

1 comment:

Donna Alward said...

I enjoyed every bite of the treats I had on the weekend. And then yesterday did running club, 2 dog walks and 40 min sculpt as penance. In order to undo the damage, I'm going to have to do that ALL week.

And yes, I'm asking myself if that damned choc chip cheeseball was worth it. Sigh.

THe important thing for me is to take these things as a blip and not let them have more power than they should, you know? Over and done and now I need to keep moving forward.