​ 
  Over the last week, the Larry Nassar scandal has unfolded in front of America, and it is disturbing to say the least.  If you don’t know, the team doctor for the US Gymnastics training camp and Olympic team, has been jailed for up to 175 years for sexually abusing more than 150 young women – some, at the time, as young as 6 years old.  The numbers are actually speculated to be in the 1000s, for Nassar was the go-to “doctor” in women’s gymnastics for the last 20 years.  Except, he is not a doctor. He is a child molester.
    All of this started to come out with one email sent from a victim to the Indianapolis Star. The paper was already investigating abuse in the sport, but their tipping point was this unsolicited source. The email read,
“I recently read the article titled ‘Out of Balance’ published by the IndyStar. My experience may not be relevant to your investigation, but I am emailing to report an incident that may be. I was not molested by my coach, but I was molested by Dr Larry Nassar, the team doctor for USAG. I was 15 years old, and it was under the guise of medical treatment for my back”.
   Woman after woman started to come forward with similar stories, and through the 156 testimonies against him, we’ve learned just how horrific all of their experience’s were and how much of a monster Larry Nassar is. *Nassar does not deserve the title of “man”, for he lacks human qualities. He is a despicable waste of space.*
   Almost routinely, Nassar told his “patents” he molested the same thing he told Olympic gymnast Mckayla Maroney; what he was doing was “medically necessary treatment” that he had been doing for over 30 years. (time.com).  The countless stories of these events are disgusting and almost unbelievable:
Nassar had some girls in pain before competitions due to his abuse.
There is an account of him drugging a girl, fast forward to her waking up in his hotel room.
He gave some of these so-called “treatments” in his own home.
Nassar’s abuse even led a woman to take her own life; her mother heartbreakingly had to speak for her in court.
How could any of this have occurred for so long without anyone finding out the sick truth? It didn’t. People, trusted adults whose job involves protecting these girls, knew and swept it under the rug. These trusted associations did nothing to help the situation, they only prolonged it.
They are the United States Olympic Committee, Michigan State University and the USA Gymnastics Committee – and they are to blame.
Speaking of Maroney, she (and speculated many other women) was paid $1.25 million by USA Gymnastics to not speak out about the abuse.
Michigan State University had been receiving complaints about Nassar since the 90s. Michigan News Service unbelievably defended his behavior, saying that “intravaginal manipulations are indeed an approved, if rare, osteopathic treatment for pelvic pain”. 
The USOC refused to even conduct an investigation after early allegations. Olympian Aly Raisman revealed something even the judge was not aware of; that after USA Gymnastics terminated their lease at the camp Nassar committed a number of his crimes at, athletes were still training there. (FoxNews.com).
I think this quote from survivor, Rachael Denhollander, sums up the general feeling of the girls; “I was confident that because people at MSU [Michigan State University] and USAG had to be aware of what Larry was doing and had not stopped him, there could surely be no question about the legitimacy of his treatment. This must be medical treatment. The problem must be me … I was wrong.”.
These institutions are put in place to protect, and they did just the opposite. Young athletes, women, parents and the general public trusted that they were doing their jobs, but the truth is far from it.
These committees you are as much to blame as Nassar is – he could have never done this for so long without them.

I am disgusted as I’m sure everyone else is, but I hope this results in change, because no one, and especially no child, should have to say “Me Too”.

     When I first started regularly working out, I did the same workout everyday for about six months. Towards the tale end of it, I realized it was starting to be ineffective. THEN, I had a conversation with my uncle (a fitness junkie you would say) and he told me that I should be working a different part of my body everyday instead of just doing a full body workout. So that's what I...sort of...started doing after that. There are just somethings I need to do everyday, but thats different for everyone. Here's an example of what a normal workout week for me would look like now:

      MONDAY:          TUESDAY:        WEDNESDAY:      THURSDAY:     FRIDAY:            SATURDAY:        SUNDAY:
- Thigh                  - Kickboxing       - Kickboxing           - Arms                  *NO             - Kickboxing         - Butt
- Ab                       - Ab                     - Ab                         -Ab                 WORKOUT*      - Ab                     - Cardio
- Cardio (dance)                               - Butt                                                                                                      - Ab

    As you can see, I find it really important to do abs everyday for myself. Also, if you don't know, kickboxing is basically a full body workout but it mainly targets cardio, your arms and your legs. If you haven't tried it, its a really great a effective workout, I highly recommend it. If you can, incorporating at least one class a week is a really good thing; it reminds you that everyone is working hard, not just you. Anyway, here are some of the best at home workouts for every body part:

​
​                                                                                CARDIO
     - These dance videos serve as a great warm up for when you don't want to do intense cardio but you need a little fuel. They also really boost my mood before a workout! AND, you don't have to actually be a dancer to do them, you just have to get moving.  The cardio video on the right is good for when you haven't been walking a lot (like on a Sunday) or you need to burn some serious calories. You'll see a lot of her videos on here, she's one of my favorite trainers on YouTube.

​
                                                  ARMS
    - The best part about these workouts is that it doesn't use weights and the one on the right will kind of serve as a bit of a cardio too (you'll be out of breath by the end). I can tell you from experience that these workouts are highly effective, and to be quite honest, I find arm workouts without weights leave me much more sore than with.

                                                                                       
​                                                                                     ABS
    - My. Favorite. All of these are the most effective and are pretty explanatory on what part of your abs they target. But when I'm in need of a "quick fix" (there's no such thing, but whatever), Intense Abs is the way to go.

                                             Butt / Thigh  
    - I promise, these will leave you super sore and looking good. Even though my schedule didn't target this area often, I try and suggest doing it as much as 3 times a week. 

There you have it! I know it could be really hard to workout after school and other activities, but I hope these will help. They've definitely helped me stay more consistent in my exercise routine.

Email me with any other fitness questions or comments:)

Love always,
Caroline Meade

I JUST CRIED AND WHEEZED OVER THIS VIDEO AND IT MADE MY HEART EXTREMELY HAPPY.
I HOPE THIS MAKES YOUR WEEK.
WE NEED MORE CUTE THINGS, GOODNIGHT.

THANK YOU TO MY MOM FOR SHOWING ME THIS:)

I get a mix of responses when I ask friends or family eagerly, "So what are your goals for 2018?".  Regardless of the response, everyone seems to be either taken off guard or uncomfortable.  I get the sense that people are a little embarrassed to share their resolutions, especially if they don't have the most confidence in themselves to fulfill them.  I also think people are embarrassed to say what they want to change about their lives; most of us fear looking insecure. (Some bask in it, but thats not something I understand nor want to talk about).  However, I love hearing about what my friends are ambitious about. I love hearing the way they want to better themselves; it makes me feel like I am on their journey with them.  Overall, sharing your goals is a great thing and I believe it can strengthen a relationship.
   I've read two articles in the past week about this.  One was titled "Why You Wont Stick to Any of the Resolutions You Make" and "Why New Years Resolutions Aren't Realistic".  First of all, thats quite a negative outlook (weirdly negative to be from two normally positive lifestyle websites).  Second of all, whether or not people stick to their resolutions for the next 365 days, wanting to make yourself better and happier is never a bad thing...ever.  (Also, people usually stick to them for at least a few months, c'mon).  Bettering yourself in any way is a good thing and granted, you shouldn't wait for the new year to start.  However, if that motivates you, then thats great, end of story. New Years Resolutions DO NOT automatically equal failure.
    I find an effective way to stick to resolutions is writing them down (with a pen and paper *gasps*) and putting them where you can see them every day.  That way you never forget what you intended to do, and you start your day with a mission  in mind, before you even leave your house.  Another way to make your resolutions a reality, is to think big and small.   Set small goals for yourself, like little things you've always wanted to do with your friends or something bold you've always wanted to say, as well as big goals.  (They might sound really little but sometimes the littlest things can make for great memories and more fulfilled days).  For example, a small goal of mine (on a list of my 39 resolutions) is too read more books and a big goal of mine is to be prepared to apply to college.  Set yourself up your success, but don't forget to think big. 
     In 2017, I actually fulfilled a lot of my goals because I consistently reminded myself of them.  Granted 2017, went nothing like a thought it would, but I still kept the same priorities.  I am not sad to see 2017 go because of how excited I am about this year, but 2017 was one for the books and a year I will always cherish.  I did a lot of adventurous things, met amazing people and grew as a person more than any other year.  My main goal for 2018 though is to make more time to be with the people I love and to do more of what makes me happy. 
I hope you all are as optimistic as I am about 2018.

Best wishes,
​Caroline Meade