Angela Lansbury's Positive Moves: My Personal Plan for Fitness and Well-Being

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Her clothes suited her age, but they were something that older women’s clothes hadn’t been for decades: they were becoming. The tape gives us a look into a typical day off for Lansbury: in addition to exercising and stretching, she takes a walk, polishes her Mercedes, goes for a swim, kneads bread, does a bit of gardening, enjoys a cup of tea, and takes a bubble bath where she reveals that she believes "femininity and sexuality go hand-in-hand" and talks a bit about keeping romance alive after menopause.

This book was never intended to me a workout book or a weight loss book, as some reviewers seem to think. I think about each demand that will present itself in the coming day, and I visualize myself meeting it easily and well.

Though out of print, it is fairly easy to find an inexpensive copy of this wonderful lifestyle and health guide by Angela Lansbury. Lansbury's philosophy was to stay positive about each new day: "I take these few moments to focus on the day ahead. Also, for such a talent to have not written a high profile memoir, the personal perspectives and stories contained in this work make it essential to any further understanding of her. Some moments are amusing, such as when Lansbury introduces us to "land swimming", an exercise move she came up with herself, and "moving freely", where she manages to keep a straight face while dancing in a peach-colored jumpsuit to the tape's synthesizer background music. It was so well-liked by senior citizens that it pretty much single-handedly changed the way older women dress.

Lansbury did exactly what she said she would do in this book - she answered fans who asked her "What do you do. But there's actually a lot of good advice to behold here no matter your age, and the notion of an older star promoting her fitness routine and lifestyle advice to women of her age range was ahead of its time in the 1980s. When Positive Moves came out, Lansbury was most recognizable as the star of Murder, She Wrote, which was in the fifth of its twelve seasons. The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) bestowed upon her a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002.Seriously, everyone from Marky Mark to La Toya Jackson, and that includes Golden Girl Estelle Getty, the least-memorable kid on The Cosby Show , and — somehow — comedian David Brenner. Much of the advice seems to be good advice to talk, although there were a few things I disagreed with as something I would want to do, personally. When I was growing up, women over 60 wore flowered house dresses or polyester twin sets — with a fat string of Barbara Bush beads, if they were being fancy.

Right from a childhood of dancing across Regents Park in a toga, Lansbury had a positive, practical approach to life.I have been mourning Angela Lansbury, my Hollywood grandmother, these last few months, and having recently turned 40 myself I decided it was a good time to check in on her program for “fitness and well-being” in one’s later years. Ultimately, I found the great actress’s account of her fitness and diet regime a little thin/idiosyncratic, though I did mark a vegetable soup recipe I might try later this week. All written content, unless otherwise noted as being quotes, has been written and copyrighted by me. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others.

Yes, the Murder She Wrote star followed in the footsteps of Debbie Reynolds by releasing a workout tape presumably aimed at women of a certain age, although the moves Lansbury demonstrates can benefit anyone. In truth, the book’s real value is the bit of light it casts into Lansbury’s life and upbeat personal philosophy.The content and writing style are so breezy and light it feels like you are sitting down with auntie Angela for a good chat. This is a delightful and quick read that one is able to do with the author's voice just saying the words in your head. If you’re too young to remember, it was a perfect storm of spandex and leg warmers, brought on by Jane Fonda’s Workout Book and Olivia Newton John’s “Physical,” and culminating in every single famous person ever putting out a workout video. She left us without writing a full memoir, so we must be grateful for the few stories about growing up in England, balancing professional successes with personal struggles, etc.