I'm the fatty at the gym. :)

My sister and I are not thin. Really... we're not... Our mother is not thin and our other sister is not thin, either. My sister's daughters who are 12 and 13 are also not thin. For any of us to be thin we would have to have a gastrointestinal bug that lasted approximately 2 years. Then we might be thin... maybe... but we'd gain it all back within a month of becoming unsick. Women in my family just aren't thin. Ever.

I'm not sure how much of it is genes and how much of it is the fact that my mother taught us all that baked goods should be made frequently and can solve any problem. We love chocolate and cake and chocolate cake. Cookies, brownies, and pies, OH MY! Our husbands are happy men, though.

I won't say anything for my sister but I could safely lose 100 pounds. It would not land me in the hospital, either. It would not cause anorexic teenagers to envy me.

My sister and my niece's and I have all started going to the gym together. We've been going pretty regularly, too. Three times a week we've gone and kept it up going on our third week now. Are you proud? I realize I'll have to step it up for my AT goal but for now I think we're doing pretty well.

We all line up on a row of treadmills and walk away the pounds together. We talk and laugh and have a great time doing it at our different paces.

Then we venture over to this circuit training section that our gym has where we do a Curves like workout together.

We cool down on the stationary bikes.

I catch people staring occasionally. Younger, blonder, thinner women stare sometimes. Men who wear shorts so tight it makes me want to cover my niece's eyes if she dares to look their way stare sometimes, too. I can't be sure what they're thinking but it's probably not positive.

When we all started going together I was pretty self-conscious of these stares. Now I really can't wait to get to the gym and laugh along with my sister and my nieces. I'm truly starting to look forward to the gym. Crazy, huh?

I urge everyone who is having a hard time making it to the gym to grab a buddy and go together. For once I think I'll stick to a workout regimen and actually meet a goal or two. Rock on.