Who’s ever not done something for fear of judgement, criticism, not being good enough, not fitting in or not looking a certain way??? Or you look at someone else’s body and feel “I wish I looked like that’. We want the ‘good bits’ we see in everyone else and often forget that everyone has parts of them they don’t like.
I’m sure many people can relate and have experienced that at some point in their lives. We may have not joined a group fitness activity or sport because we feel that we’re not good enough. It’s worrying that a number of women claim they don’t have enough body confidence to exercise. I’ve heard it from men too. They don’t feel comfortable training at a gym because they can’t lift as heavy as the other guys and fear being ridiculed. Ego holds so many people back from attempting new things.
What you have to remember is most people are busy worrying about their own problems or insecurities and actually not thinking of you at all. It’s a limitation we internally place on ourselves. A fear we put in our own heads that can actually stop us from achieving or trying something that potentially could be incredible for us.
It’s healthy to have an inspiration or somebody you admire if it challenges you or gives you a motivation to work a little harder. However we need to realise that everybody is on a different journey and at a different stage in their lives. But we all had to start somewhere.
We need to stop comparing ourselves to others and the only comparison we should make is with ourselves….are we challenging ourselves and becoming better than when we started, are we improving?
I printed out this quote and have it up in my house to remind my kids (and myself)
‘Day by day in every way I’m getting better and better’.
In the past I’ve been told that I’m ‘too thin’ or ‘too muscly’. But I honestly don’t care anymore what other people think of me. I feel like an enormous weight has been lifted off my shoulders and I’m free to be me and do what’s right for me and my body and what I like. I’ve realised that everyone has a different perception or opinion about what they like or don’t like and what appeals to them and that’s a good thing. The world would be a boring place if everyone was the same!
Every person has the right to exercise and feel confident about themselves. Don’t let these limitations hold you back from that.
Be mindful of your self-talk and try to replace negative words with positive. Remind yourself constantly of the things you like about you and your strengths. Try your best to be grateful for what you’ve got, but not so much about what your body looks like and more about what it does for you. Make a habit about noticing there are many women around with different shapes and sizes and recognise that everyone has a unique beauty…including you
Lisa x