There has been so much in the media about body image as of late. All of the ads, articles, and documentaries, trying to show "society" that it is OK to be overweight, curvy, light skinned, dark skinned, have straight hair, curly hair, be Asian, African American, Caucasian..Urging people to get on board with what beauty is, even if it isn't what "society" thinks is beautiful.
I am first in line to board this train. I think it's great. The movement inspires me. But the missing peice here, isn't about what others think of you, it's about what you think of you. If you love you, and your body, it really doesn't matter what anyone thinks.
One of the things I have really embraced about getting older is learning what self love means.
Love doesn't come from perfection. I think about all of the men I have loved in my life that were far from perfect. If I could see past their shortcomings, whether physical or otherwise, why was I not willing to do the same for myself? My family and friends are not perfect, but I don't stop loving them because of it. I can recognize imperfections in others as beauty, so why not myself? I love them for who they are. I don't want to change them.
So why would I want to change myself to please others?
I don't strive for perfection. I still would like to lose a few pounds, but that is no longer in the forefront of my mind. Instead of aesthetics, I aim for fitness goals. Running faster. Doing push ups. I am more focused on what my body is, and not what it isn't. When I changed my goals to fitness achievements vs. pounds lost, I have had much easier results.
How would you describe your body in one word?
Years ago..I would say "fat" or "disgusting".
But the older me says "STRONG!"
I can run half marathons! I workout in the gym 5 days a week, plus I log 20+ miles in 7 days. Since shifting my focus from what my body looks like to others, to what it means to me, I am a much happier person! Self loathing is not good for the mind.
1 comment:
I love that you used the word strong. Todays media is all about attacking women for the way they look and I decided a few years back to never read those types of magazines (I call them hate mags).
How you look is a personal thing and, having just lost 10lbs (5kilos) by changing my diet to a paleo way of eating, I was very surprised to discover how more confident and attractive I now feel.
Not because society says I need to be slim to be attractive, but because I feel like myself again and feel foxy in my clothes. I'd like to lose more weight but I don't even have to think about it because just by making better food choices in order to be healthier, I lost weight as a side effect.
I've not blogged for a while but I love reading your posts. Hope Mr Magoo is doing well. x
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