I have come to appreciate that much of my work as a fitness professional is helping people develop a healthy relationship with their body. I wish for every person to accept and be comfortable with and in their body.
I have seen too many women and men scrutinize every inch of their bodies only to discover a litany of defects – a sagging belly, a jiggling tricep, a big butt – the list goes on. On an endless quest and never satisfied, they berate themselves, and buy into the pop culture/fitness myths such as: “In a few moves or for only 10 minutes a day – or in 8 weeks or less you will have a better, and of course, sexier body, if you follow this program or that program – you’ll look like this celebrity or that.” (No thank you – I just want to look like me.) I don’t necessarily blame these people – I blame our culture – especially the media. We are inundated with bodies on a daily basis!
What does the perfect body look like anyway? Is it thin, curvy, supple, voluptuous, hard, soft – and who has one of those anyways? I find that mine has changed over the years. You are bound to be deeply disappointed if you are on a quest to attain the perfect body. You are missing the point that you already have a body, which you should accept, honor and respect. Your striving can be easily derailed with sudden illness – injury and the inevitable fact that you will age like the rest of us. So wake up and enjoy what you’ve got! It’s more than adequate.
