vanormerview2backup: Daniel A.K.A. Captain America

Lift, heave, push! Daniel has a goal. His goal is to workout, and become as strong as Captain America -- by the end of summer. He has been drinking lots of water, eating pretty well, and working out a lot. He has been lifting weights, doing TaeBo, riding his bike, running, and pumping out lots of push-ups and crunches. He is getting pretty strong! He has also been practicing lifting his siblings on his back -- just to test his strength. He is only 10 years old, but he is a very mature boy, in many ways. He is ready to push his body, and his mind. I am ready to help him.

Daniel comes from a mother who has always had natural brute strength, and his father has the ability to sculpt his muscles into beautiful works of art. So I think it might be possible for him to achieve his goal of Captain America strength and muscles -- even if it takes a little longer than until the end of summer. :-) As his mom, I am doing everything I can to help him. He is so focused and determined, when he works out. He has really nice form, too. I love to watch, and be part of his efforts.

We make a point to do at least 100-200 "Billy-Bobs" together a day. They are a version of crunches that Billy Blanks does on TaeBo. They are crazy and hard. You lay on your back, lift your head, elevate your legs, put your arms out straight, and then you hold that position and pump your arms rapidly while flexing your gut, and blowing out the air. It is torture. It is awesome. It is fun to have someone to do them with me!

Back in the day (in college) I did martial arts. I loved it. It was super good for me. It was exactly the type of thing I needed to do to test my inner and outer strength, and increase flexibility. When I first started I was not awesome. But after a few semesters, I was breaking boards, and doing 50 knuckle push-ups. And I could almost do the splits. (I'll write another post about my Martial Arts days later.)

One of the things I acquired while doing TaeKwonDo -- besides fabulous muscles -- were my punching and kicking pads. I have saved them all these years. Probably because I spent $90 on them, back when that was my entire life savings. Recently, I have been putting them to good use. They are perfect for Sam and Dan to workout with. It is a great way to relieve tension and stress, too. They are also great for settling differences between siblings. :-)

It is so funny to watch them compete when it comes to working out. The person holding the pad has to be strong too, cause it can HURT! I can remember my arms being bruised after holding them in college. Sam and Dan are both really strong, and they have been letting me have it when I hold the pads for them! And that is fine, of course. If there is one thing you do not do with me it is be a wimp! :-)

It is so satisfying to punch and kick the pads.

They make an awesome sound if you kick them just right.

POW!

I caught this mid-motion, so his arm looks really long. :-)

BAM!

I am so proud of Dan, and Sam, for their hard work on their health. They have not been playing on any sports teams over the summer -- but they are both prepping themselves for the activities they have coming up at school in the near future. I am also just trying to prepare them for daily life, encourage their self-confidence, and teach them good and proper health habits. And also, exercise it just FUN!

I am a pretty dang-good drill-sergeant. I used to lead the class in TaeKwonDo exercises, and now I am leading my own children. And it is FUN! I love doing it. I love pulling the best out of my own kids. It gives me joy that I could have never imagined. I think instead of "Mother" I am going to have them start calling me "Master."

Yes, I like the sound of that. :-)

Kid Stacking Outtakes . . .

And they are down!