Nowadays, poor self-image is often related to what a person looks like, especially amongst us women.
Where does this come from?
Well, the fame of fashion models may have something to do with it, plus all the magazines and Internet space devoted to “who’s wearing what” in the entertainment world, plus the skimpy and seductive outfits that today’s female recording artists wear. Self-worth for many young people—even not so young (a la Demi Moore), is tied to physical appearance. In short, women keep striving for what they feel is that “perfect” image – the more they go to great lengths to achieve it, the more the media highlights it which drives the rest of us to want it too.
Today, seems all we hear about is body image disorders. What’s going on?
Here’s a little secret to steer from those societal pressures and rid our thoughts from such obsessions:
Rather than focus on what your body looks like all the time, focus on what it can do. Your body is a magnificent machine that can produce magnificent results.
Cool story….
At age 12, Cheryl Haworth weighed 240 pounds. By age 17 and standing almost 5-10, Cheryl weighed just over 300 pounds. These measurements are enough to sink the spirit of any growing girl and demolish her with never-ending self-hatred.
However, Cheryl didn’t worry about what she looked like. Instead she focused on what her enormous body could do. One day, at age 12, she was led her to a gym where the sights and sounds of weight lifting mesmerized her. She was hooked. At age 17 she took the bronze medal at the Sydney Olympics in weight lifting. In a typical workout she lifts as much as 25 tons – the weight of an F-15 fighter jet. Cheryl holds the record for clean and jerk of 355 pounds.
This ad, “ATHLETES COME IN ALL SHAPES AND SIZES”, features Cheryl (middle) and other Olympic athletes.
This doesn’t mean that the cure for any individual with a self-image problem is to perform weight lifting at Olympic level caliber. Nor does it mean that you shouldn’t get to a healthy, ideal body weight by eating right and controlling your food portions, but you get the point.
Set performance-related goals, such as:
• Run 1 or 10 miles outside nonstop
• Bench press 100 lbs
• Get through a bootcamp class without having to sit out and rest
• Run 12 mph on the treadmill for one minute—without holding on
• Squat 135 lbs
• Do the splits
• Perform 25 military push ups with proper form
There are endless “what your body can do” goals that you can devise. When you begin concentrating on effort and performance, the vanity aspect fades into the background. If you’re distraught over your thunder thighs, imagine how proud of them you’ll be when they can complete a five-mile hill hike with ease.
We’d all like to change something about our body that we have little or no control over. Every women would love to zap away all the hair follicles on her legs so she never has to shave again. Many men would like to be taller.
Rather than stew over that which we cannot change, let’s expend energy on changing what we can: stamina, strength, fitness and health. Don’t get caught up with “body types.” Instead, get caught up with body strength, body endurance and body fitness.
Eat healthful foods not because you want to look like a Victoria’s Secret model, but because you want to slash your risk of breast cancer and be around to see your grandkids grow up.
It’s always the right time to improve your self-image, no matter where you’re at on the continuum. LOVE YOURSELF and the rest will come!
