Apparently, ladies, Shape Magazine wants your attention.
Look at our Mary. Look at her. Adorable little outie belly button and all. Look!
Though she is obviously missing a tattoo or two, ahem, Mary is looking stunning throughout the magazine. Inside, you’ll see Mary sharing clips of her own fitness journey, what made her give up alcohol for good, and even photos of her performing her favorite exercises!
Here’s a few of my favorite parts of the interview:
How do you stay motivated to work out?
I hate being out of shape! But I don’t exercise just to lose weight. It makes me feel better when I et that run in. I could be in the worst mood, but when I do my cardio I feel much, much better.
Speaking of cardio, we hear you’ve recently overcome a big fear of the water and are now swimming. Why did you take the plunge?
I never swam as a kid, and that always bothered me. There was something in my spirit that kept saying, “Mary, you need to learn how to do this!” At first it was very hard, but once I got in the water and figured out how to breathe, it was so liberating. Now it’s helping me with every aspect of my life — personally, and professionally. Conquering that fear was a huge boost to my confidence. I’m as proud of this accomplishment as I would be if I had graduated from college, which I never got to do. But I did do this.
Did you do anything different to prepare for your Shape cover?
I stuck to my regular training, but I increased my running to 10 miles a week, and I stopped eating sugar 21 days before the shoot.
(Oh, is that right?)
Mary also shares that she’s been clean and sober for 15 months – congratulations, Mary! – and, when asked why, she said the following:
“Whitney Houston’s death really crushed me. I saw someone incredibly talented juust diminish, and I refuse to go out like that.”
One final pair of quotes from the interview:
How do you stay on the path?
Praying, meditating, and being honest with myself. It’s not easy – but at the end of the day, if it’s not healthy – or if it’s killing you – you need to see the truth and stop. Others may be able to drink and have a great time, but it doesn’t work for me at this point.
So, so happy for Mary. Her latest CD, A Mary Christmas, is in stores now. Go check your girl out!