The Fastest Way To Get A Perfect Body
I'm tired of being made to feel like I'm not working hard enough because the bodies the women who personify "fit" or "in shape" don't look like mine.
I'm tired of feeling like I'm different because when I look around the room at an industry event, I'm normally only without a stereotypical "runners body".
I'm tired of scrolling through my social media feed and seeing only highlights and never struggles.
I'm tired of people saying, "Giving up isn't an option" when I know from experience that giving up is always an option.
I'm tired of seeing young girls talk about feeling like they need to lose weight.
I'm tired of seeing women tear one another down because they think they're in competition with one another.
And I'm really f*cking tired that there are actual running brands that still don’t offer size inclusive clothing. Or sports bras for women with boobs.
I remember when I was a brand new runner back in 2013, I was training for my first marathon. I was getting ready to run my first 15 mile long run and 15 miles felt like a pilgrimage. Before I left that morning, I woke my Mom up and nervously asked her to keep her phone near her just in case I couldn't finish and needed her to come save me.
I wore a fuel belt around my waist with a water bottle in it for hydration and as I slowly jogged up to my house, having successfully ran all 15 miles, my Mom snapped a picture of me approaching to capture my triumphant success. I remember looking at the picture, excited to share my accomplishment on Facebook, and feeling a tidal wave of embarrassment wash over me.
Insecure and uncomfortable with how I looked, I asked her to delete the photo.
My fuel belt amplified what I thought were disgusting love handles and instead of seeing my strong body that had just run 15 miles for the first time, I saw my love handles, my gut, my thighs, and a body that didn’t look the I thought strong should look.
Looking back, it's not surprising that I was embarrassed by my love handles because no one ever gave me a reason to embrace them. Strong, in shape women shouldn’t have love handles. I know because when I scroll through the social media feeds of the brands and publications who have defined what ‘fit’ and ‘in shape’ looks like, it's photo after photo of the same exact body type.
And when anyone who isn't rocking a low body fat percentage is represented, it's always a body positive post.
It’s same but different.
And let me just say, I know how hard those women work for their strength. I'm don't want to discredit their drive and perseverance because in addition to being total badasses, I know how inspiring and motivating they are as well. But when we fail to represent a range of body types and experiences, we are telling women that how they look is more important than feeling proud of what their bodies can do.
Why do we continue to support brands and publications who keep serving us poison punch?
Why do we glorify people who share only their successes and not the soul crushing shitty days where you cry one mile in because everything hurts, you can’t catch your breath and you have to stop to walk?
Why do we glorify diet culture and people who fail to promote a healthy lifestyle?
If I have to see one more health and fitness guru promote eating a burger without the bun, without the cheese, and without the sauce one more time, I'm going to explode.
My favorite part about running is that it's something that I'm not innately good at. I was never athletic growing up. I didn't play sports because I didn't enjoy being physically active. I used to force myself to go to the gym because I thought working out was something I should be suffering through so that I could lose weight and eventually look the way women who were in shape looked. I didn't think my body was something I should be proud of because I had love handles, cellulite, and stretch marks.
Running taught me that that was bullshit.
Strength doesn't look a certain way, it feels a certain way. And as liberating and empowering as that strength feels, it's not easy to acquire. It requires hard work, perseverance, and sacrifice. But most importantly, it requires you to get honest, raw, and ugly.
For every win, share a struggle or a set back. Because it's in those moments of vulnerability that we really shine. There's nothing more gratifying than crossing a finish line but if I'm being honest, it's the moments that used to fill me with shame and embarrassment, like seeing that picture of me with huge love handles, that I find the most empowering and liberating.
I wish I had that photo today. I wish I could have seen my strength.
Anyone can be pretty and flawless, that's why photoshop is an industry staple.
But not everyone can stand proudly displaying the parts of themselves they've been told make them less beautiful.
In order to destroy the idea that fit looks a certain way, we need to get real. We have to get real with ourselves.
Health is not a look. It’s a lifestyle.
A perfect body isn't the one you'd think you'd have if you could hit your goal weight, it's knowing that you're doing everything you can to be the healthiest, happiest, most vulnerable, and strongest version of yourself possible.
This is what strength looks like.
Go look in the mirror and say that to yourself.
Try it. See what happens.
