The time of summer bodies, Instagram bikini pictures and nude models are upon us. With the rise of the “slim-thick” movement, it becomes harder and harder to love your body. From the constant reminder of pictures with the “ideal body” surfing the web, magazines and even billboards, it seems as though America is trying to stuff its expectations of perfection down our throat. And it’s a hard pill to swallow.
It took me several diets and exercise programs to realize that I was trying to get fit to lose weight so that I could fit into society’s standards. I did everything I could – I stopped eating as much, I let myself go hungry, I’d make myself throw up and nothing worked.
With being overweight for nearly all of my life, it was easy to convince myself that I was ugly, fat and every other degrading word I could thinkof. My friends and family couldn’t cheer me up, seeing the body positive movements couldn’t help me, and for a while I was simply a lost cause trying to accomplish an unrealistic goal.
This was because I was focused on the wrong thing. I wanted to be fit and pretty, and I wasn’t even thinking about the healthy aspect. The realization had to come within me; no one could help me realize my self-worth until I accepted it for myself. And once I realized just how beautiful I was, things started to look up for the better.
I set a realistic goal for myself and realized that I wasn’t going to be able to lose all my weight overnight. I stopped starving myself, and I let myself enjoy food as long as I went to the gym to work off what I ate. Becoming healthy was the goal I should’ve focused on from the get-go.
By working out and eating healthy, I’m achieving my goals one step at a time. However, I’m not dying to be skinny anymore. Because, if I couldn’t learn to love my body now then how could I ever be happy once I reached my goal. How could I let my looks make me hate myself? How could I let society tell me I was ugly?
So, yes, it’s okay to want to get rid of your chub, but learn to love yourself in the process. It takes years to reach the body of your dreams. It all depends on how dedicated you are to working out and eating healthy.
Once you become comfortable with yourself, the trips to gym become fun challenges you’ll want to overcome. The mirror won’t be the daunting portal you catch yourself staring into every morning wishing you looked different. You won’t try to hide your body in your clothes hoping no one will notice your beautiful love handles.
The decision to become healthy was my best one yet. Having a bikini ready body is such a small asset to the overwhelming benefits that come with being healthy. So set realistic goals for yourself and be patient; know that it’s going to be really hard some days but you can overcome anything. Here’s to a better, healthier you.
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