I Believe in 'Strong' Women

I'm sorry I missed the PBS documentary "Strong!" -- featuring Olympic Medalist Cheryl Haworth. I love that she's one (of many) Olympic athletes who breaks the barrier of what a woman's body type should be...

You can read more about Cheryl HERE, if you're interested. When she was 17, she won the bronze medal in the super heavyweight class at the 2000 Sydney Olympics -- lifting a total of 594 pounds (275 in the snatch and 319 in the clean and jerk). She weighed 307 pounds at that time -- and was the heaviest woman to ever compete in an Olympic Games. Cheryl holds the Pan American records that ranked her highest in her sport, male or female.

I've been both FAT and FIT at the same time, by the way. You can be heavy and be fit (able to do a lot of things that others can't, even though they might weigh less), in case you don't know. I admit I'm NOT fit right now -- and some of that is certainly weight-related. But it's not entirely about weight. Diets are far from the total solution to being more healthy. It needs to be a combination of exercise and rest, eating right and relaxing, work and play. My goal is to be healthier in many ways, not just skinnier. To reduce the stress in my life and get more sleep, to keep a better schedule and organize my life.

Anyway, women like Cheryl are an inspiration. And it's great when they catch attention and show girls and young women that there are many options, aside from magazine-model-thin...