I Can't Take It!
Last night Cindy and I were on a high. We started training a group on 12 year old and 18 year old female softball players. For the next 15 weeks, we get to condition these young ladies and get them ready for their spring season. The energy and focus of these young athletes was intoxicating! I think the energy that surrounded our training session kept me from sleeping. So, instead of laying in bed bemoaning the fact that I wasn't sleeping, I got up and tried to get some things done (always the multi-tasker!). I was looking through the recent articles and posts in the health and fitness arena and couldn't help but feel, well.....like I had just watched a Kardashian reality show. What do I mean by that, you ask. Well....
I'm a mother of 5 beautiful girls and my daily focus generally involves family logistics (transportation, school requirements, after school activities/sports), food preparation, household maintenance, and of course, fitness. This is pretty typical of all women I know as we are the caretakers and nurturers of our clans. As I've said before, giving ourselves 4% (that's one hour of our day to dedicate towards our fitness) is an essential component of my staying sane and healthy. Cindy and I workout because it makes us feel better emotionally and physically. We've shared the many reasons why fitness is so vital for a healthy lifestyle. And.....none of them have to do with being SEXY!!!!
Let me share with you some of the headlines from the articles I came upon this morning:
9 Secret Skinny Girl Tricks to Stay Skinny and Sexy
Get That Thigh Gap With This Workout
Sexy Six Pack With Just This Exercise
Turn Heads With This Butt Lifting Bikini Workout
6 Steps to a Tiny Waist
Whaaaat??!! I saw more photos of women in sport bras in poses I would kill my daughters if they ever took and it was all under the umbrella of health and fitness. All these images that we (and our daughters) are bombarded with have the potential to leave us feeling inadequate. They give us images of "perfection" that we will never achieve. I felt angry and disappointed that the fitness arena has seeminly been swallowed by the Kardashian model of success.
My intention with this post is to remind all of us how special and perfect we all are....just as we are in this moment. Can we all make changes to live healthier lives? Of course! But does that fact that I don't have a tiny waist and Kardashian butt mean that I am some how "less than"? NO! Just as I surround myself with people who lift me up, I also must constantly edit the "fit" images that I am bombarded with in our media. I am more than my thigh gap, or lack there of! I am more than my sexy behind, or lack there of! I am more than my high, head-turning breasts, or lack there of!
Be glorious, be healthy, be loving, be inspirational, be caring, be intentional, BE YOU!!! That is the biggest step towards being fit for life that you can make. Keep the focus. Put your media blinders on and block out the objectification of women in the fitness arena and zone in on the 4% that you give yourself each day towards fitness. Focus on the healthy choices you are making with your nutrition. Focus on the example you are setting for your family. Be glorious, be healthy, BE YOU!