BE YOU. BE AWESOME! (unrealistic "fitspo" goals are MY fault not theirs)

Seriously?  She looks amazing but
I try to shy away from “insane” training.

We all have our own reasons for working out and there is nothing wrong with wanting to feel good about the reflection you see in the mirror but some reasons for hitting the gym are definitely better and more motivating than others.

In fact, the goals you set and the reasons why you work out help set the tone for your entire lifestyle and can even play a role in your long-term health and success. So if your goal is to look like the insane trainer to your left because you think you're not good enough, then you may want to take a step back for a moment and reassess your reasoning. Reality check! You are good enough and you will always be some version of you no matter how many infomercials tell you otherwise, so embrace it. Make sure to choose empowering and uplifting reasons to lose weight and work out rather than punishing yourself with starvation and workout beat downs.
Molly Galbraith wrote an article a while back about "FitSpo" - extremely lean women with sayings like, “Winners never take a day off!” or, “Train insane or remain the same.” Fitspo and how.  She says,  "It’s a sad, dark message disguised as happy and inspirational artwork." Molly Galbraith 

After having read her article.  I have to agree with her point of view but I'm also going to somewhat disagree -well not really disagree, just kinda take another perspective.  Here it is.  It's up to us women and men to be accountable for our own thoughts and actions.  These images can be inspirational. Heck, I even like a few of them but in the end, I'm assailed by enough messages, sometimes self inflicted, that have me feeling like I'm not good enough and these images are no different.  That's my fault for falling for the B.S. not theirs.  The women and men look outstanding and had to work very hard to look that way.  Good for them!  They are genetically gifted.  Good for them!  The messages on these pictures can be misleading and just plain dangerous but who's fault is that for following the message?  No one else's fault but your own.  I'm no different.

I’m too darn old to  "Never take a day off." or "Train insane.'  I've tried those methods before and wound up hurting, stressing and blaming myself for not being insert (strong, dedicated, motivated) enough.  I didn't see how unrealistic my goals had become.  I threw away the idea of intelligent training and focused on aesthetics or some nonsense.  I was training for all the wrong reasons. One, because I felt fat and needed to burn away calories rather than exercising to feel strong and energetic. Two, to get lean. Hey, there's nothing wrong with wanting to look good naked, and exercise can definately help. But if exercise is seen as a temporary fix, a chore, a task needing be done to get that beach body, then those results will be fleeting and time spent being miserable. Exercising in extreme amounts or in order to "get skinny", won't last and isn't healthy long term and I can tell you now it won't make you happy. For me,maybe it was the impossibly perfect boobs? But I wound up chasing an unrealistic and definitely unhealthy body image.  Come on guys!  I'm 5 foot 1 and built like a gymnast.  Duh!  Right?  What was I thinking?

Eventually it was my body and not my mind that had to tell me I was being idiotic in my thinking. At that time I was naive and following the medias recommendations on fitness. I wasn't training with my body type or life in mind.   The idea that if only I ran/lifted/trained enough I'd look like them was abolished when I just couldn't do it anymore.  I was tired.  I was angry.  I was hungry.  I was unhappy.  Afterall, I did everything I was supposed to and I just didn't look like I'm supposed to.  Which is what?  I looked like ME.  What's wrong with that?

So do these poster encourage us to compare ourselves to others or create a belief that we are at fault and need to harness MORE willpower because we're obviously weak? Maybe.  It did for me but who's fault is that?  Mine. I knew better.  Hating ourselves is just plain unhealthy and counterproductive. Our bodies are unique to us.  Tall, curvy, short, slim, you name it.  We have unique hormones, food tolerances, fat storage systems, and limitations. We should be judging ourselves and others based on what we do, not on how we look. But that's a laugh.  We all do it.  I'm guilty.

Hey, don't get me wrong.  I do share these posters every now and then because the messages can be good. Then other times... BAM, I see one of these "inspirational" posters and sometimes, just sometimes,  I poke the squishy bits, I focus on what's wrong about me and forget to praise my years of progress.  My mind reels with all the things I should be doing- work harder, eat cleaner, lift heavier, on and on.  Afterall, I have a gym full of people relying on me to be a role-model just like these insanely ripped women.  Oh my god!  I can't do this! I'm going to eat an entire bag of chips now.  Again, not the fault of some poster but my own insecurity and I know I'm healthy and strong and pretty darn awesome.

Kristin Rhodes. Strong woman.

Afterall, what does healthy really “look” like? The most irksome poster is “Strong is the new skinny”.  It's such a pile of ----, because the people in these, oh so inspirational posters, are usually skinny.  It's still unrealistic and often misinterpreted by those thinking they're promoting a healthy image.   It's healthier than uber slim models, I guess but “lean” just means skinny with muscle. Where are the truely strong women? Like this. I have a whole post on that one here.

So… the next time you see one of these "motivational" pics up on a friends wall, remember that you are good enough and don't let the Photoshop and fake boobs get you down. 

Thank you Molly Galbraith for opening up my eyes.

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