This Adorable 2-Year-Old Works Out Harder Than You
As a child, Danielle Jones (@msboston) was always super active: She played all the sports including college basketball, then got her personal trainer certification shortly after graduation. By the time she hit her 30s, she was in the best shape of her life. "I loved my body," she said.
But things changed pretty quickly when she put on 54 pounds while carrying her daughter Honor, who is now 2 years old. "The weight gain never bothered me during my pregnancy," she says, "but once my daughter was born, I would have moments of hating my body."
While she would have loved to go back to her old eating and exercise routine after giving birth, she couldn’t. See, Danielle was set on breastfeeding, and every time she tried to cut back on calories or amp up her workouts, her milk stores would deplete. "I had to remind myself that when you have a child, at times they are going to have to come first," she says.
It wasn't until Honor was 10 months old and eating some solid foods that Danielle could breastfeed less and double down on her efforts, doing five workouts a week and eating six meals a day to keep her metabolism churning.
Although Honor's grandmother was retired and available to babysit during gym sessions, Danielle opted to work out at home alongside her daughter, doing four rounds of five full-body exercises per 40-minute session.
"I would do it next to her while she was playing with her toys, and she would laugh," Danielle says. "I couldn't wait for her to get to an age at which she could actually work out with me."
As it happened, Danielle acquired a pint-sized workout buddy much sooner than she'd expected: Before Honor's first birthday, Danielle was playing back a video she'd filmed of herself doing a workout and noticed Honor in the background, mimicking the moves.
Then, when she was one-year old, Honor asked her mom to help her use the pull-up bar, and Danielle obliged.
"I put her up there not thinking she'd do anything, but she hung for almost one minute. I couldn't believe she could hold her weight for that long," says Danielle, who began encouraging the toddler to work out alongside her. And Honor didn't just take to fitness - she made the activity look extra adorable, one reason why Danielle has shared so many mother-daughter workouts videos showcasing moves Honor has mastered, such as wall climbers, wheel barrels, burpees, squats, sit-ups, lunges, shadowboxing, and hip-thrusters.
While some parents might raise an eyebrow at a two-year-old working out - after all, she could get hurt, and shouldn't two-year-olds be doing things besides working on their fitness? - Danielle isn't concerned: "You may see her playing with two-pound weights, but she's not lifting them, she's playing, and it happens to be good for her," Danielle explains. Besides, it's not like the nearly 40,000 fans who follow the mother-daughter duo on Instagram are complaining. "All the feedback has been positive and amazing," Danielle says.
Now Honor takes part in almost all of her mom's home workouts: She'll participate for a bit, dance for encouragement (and ~bonus~ cardio), or run into her room and bring back toys to play with while watching her mom finish up. "Some days she's very focused, and other days her dolls have to do all the exercises first," Danielle explains.
And while the new mom thinks it's important for her daughter to establish healthy habits, it's not like she pressures Honor to pound out reps. After all, it's often Honor who makes sure regular workouts happen: "If we are getting ready for bed, and didn't work out that day, she'll remind me," Danielle says. Talk about setting a good example. 👍
Get all the ~FiTsPiRaTiOn~ directly in your feed. Follow Facebook.com/CosmoBod.
Follow Elizabeth on Twitter and Instagram.
You Might Also Like
