She was on "Thintervention with Jackie Warner" on Bravo, she's a former professional cheerleader for the LA Rams and Raiders, and she's a mom. Mandy Ellen loves to inspire kids with health and fitness, and has a "CheerFit" DVD that incorporates basic dance and cheerleading moves...more than 40 minutes worth of segments to help you and your kids sweat it out! You can WIN that DVD by emailing me at breakformoms@yahoo.com (please put CheerFit in the subject line). The first four people to email me will get a DVD!
Mandy took time out of her busy California life to answer a few questions for me recently...
You founded Turn Kindness On...explain a little about it.
Turn Kindness On (TKO) is a non-profit organization that brings parents and children together to build a lifelong relationship with community service. My husband, Brett, and our sons Keanu (13 yrs) and Tristen (10 yrs) founded TKO in 2001 because we wanted them to be involved in community service at an early age. We also believe we can build a better world by harnessing children’s compassion and energy and empowering them to make a change. Being kind is a way of life that we have chosen for our family and we hope that we can inspire other families to Turn Kindness On in their own communities and around the world.
What are some ways you get your own children involved in the community?
We started our children very young by taking them to feed homeless when they were only 2 1/2 years old. We made it fun by having them hand out candy canes or simply wiping down tables. Children all want to be helpful and kind. It is innate to them and as we get older we all get busy and forget how great it makes us feel to do kind things for others. We also encouraged them at 5 years old to do 5 compliments a day. It was a way that they could get an immediate response to their kindness. By telling someone that they were a great friend or teacher, that they looked beautiful, or that they liked someone's outfit it made someone smile and they learned at an early age how easy it is to make someone feel good about themselves. That is a powerful tool. Today we reach out in our community and around the world. Our children visit elderly centers, orphanages, birthing centers and they reach out to children in need. They are constantly reminded that their small gestures of kindness can make a big difference in the lives of others.
You were on Bravo's "Thintervention with Jackie Warner"...has your lifestyle changed since the show?
You were on Bravo's "Thintervention with Jackie Warner"...has your lifestyle changed since the show?
Yes, being on Thintervention with Jackie Warner was an incredibly life changing experience for me. I was a professional NFL cheerleader for 8 years and had never worked out in a gym. I was intimidated and uncomfortable to be in a gym because I didn't know how any of the equipment worked. Today I can walk into a gym and get a great workout in. Not only can I create a challenging workout for myself but I can help my friends and family to work out safely.
I also had to change my eating habits. I still eat all my favorite foods but I am not cleaning my kids plates in the morning. I used to have them leave their plates so that I could finish their leftovers. I now know that tossing it is a much healthier choice.
As for my health, I am constantly amazed at what I can get my body to do. I used to have a difficult time breathing when I walked the stairs in our home. I remember thinking that when my father had a quadruple bypass, that could be me. Today when I don't get to the gym for a long stretch of time my youngest son Tristen will say; "Mom, remember why you started working out in the first place, it was so you could live a long life to watch us grow up". That is all it takes and I have my shoes on and I am out the door to the gym.
What's one of your most embarrassing moments as a mom?I have so many embarrassing moments, mostly related to my poor memory. One thing we try to remember as a family is that we all can laugh at ourselves and with each other. Life is fun and should not be so serious. My husband is always so fun loving and has incredibly high happy energy. I am the more serious side of our family as many moms are. I have always been very open with our children and even started a code word for different things when we don't want to embarrass each other.
For example; I go through periods when I scold my children too much. This is still a work in progress as my husband says I even scold him. :) I remember my mom being critical of me and I want to stop myself when I go off on a tangent. I asked the boys to say to me "Mom, Please TDS". It was a code that would tell me to "Please Teach and Don't Scold me". If I was around others or just with them it would make me take a breath and gather my thoughts in a calmer manner.
What's your best "mom advice"?
I also had to change my eating habits. I still eat all my favorite foods but I am not cleaning my kids plates in the morning. I used to have them leave their plates so that I could finish their leftovers. I now know that tossing it is a much healthier choice.
As for my health, I am constantly amazed at what I can get my body to do. I used to have a difficult time breathing when I walked the stairs in our home. I remember thinking that when my father had a quadruple bypass, that could be me. Today when I don't get to the gym for a long stretch of time my youngest son Tristen will say; "Mom, remember why you started working out in the first place, it was so you could live a long life to watch us grow up". That is all it takes and I have my shoes on and I am out the door to the gym.
What's one of your most embarrassing moments as a mom?I have so many embarrassing moments, mostly related to my poor memory. One thing we try to remember as a family is that we all can laugh at ourselves and with each other. Life is fun and should not be so serious. My husband is always so fun loving and has incredibly high happy energy. I am the more serious side of our family as many moms are. I have always been very open with our children and even started a code word for different things when we don't want to embarrass each other.
For example; I go through periods when I scold my children too much. This is still a work in progress as my husband says I even scold him. :) I remember my mom being critical of me and I want to stop myself when I go off on a tangent. I asked the boys to say to me "Mom, Please TDS". It was a code that would tell me to "Please Teach and Don't Scold me". If I was around others or just with them it would make me take a breath and gather my thoughts in a calmer manner.
What's your best "mom advice"?
At a very young age we taught our children to say "How do I earn that" instead of "I want that!" It really gave our children an opportunity to feel like they were earning their privileges and treats. As a parent there are many things that we can do to guide our children and if we teach respect and appreciation with our actions it is very difficult for them to do anything but treat themselves with the same respect.
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