You are more than your appearance-it’s your strength, your agility!
I know that I’m not alone with doing the same morning routine. Get up. Go to the bathroom. Look in the mirror. Pick over the things that I don’t like or would like to change just to…Instantly assess how I will tackle the day based on my physical appearance.
Ladies…we are doing ourselves a huge discredit by doing this. Why? Our bodies are more than their physical appearance. Our bodies are the only way we interact with our world. It allows us to hug our family members. Gives us the ability to lift a screaming toddler off the ground
Pick up the package of water from the store shelf. Walk the family dog around the lake on a gorgeous fall day.
It’s our bodies that allow us to do these amazing things. Their outer image is just icing on the cake for the power that they hold on the inside. That’s a major shift in mindset for most people though. Including myself.
Things that helped me with that mindset shift though:
Appreciate Strength and Function
- Focus on the ABILITIES of your body rather than its appearance. Think about how unfilling your life would be if you didn’t have the strength that you have now. Whether you’re picking up groceries, climbing stairs, or doing a squat, your body is constantly performing functional tasks that keep you going. Keeping your body strong does require maintenance with strong roots in both nutrition and fitness
Notice Endurance and Stamina
- Value your body’s endurance. Instead of focusing on weight or size, think about how your body keeps moving, even during long walks, runs, or after a busy day. Maybe you start to notice that you’re able to do your daily walk at a quicker pace? Maybe you’re not as winded? These are all signs of your stamina improving due to an increase in your resilience and strength.
Think About Agility and Coordination
- Value your body’s ability to adapt to different movements. Agility is about how well your body can respond to unexpected challenges, like catching yourself when you slip on the ice. Misjudging a step to be smaller than it actually is. These are all things that our bodies can do automatically if we train them in preparation for such events.
Recognize the Mind-Body Connection
- Consider how movement enhances your mental well-being. Our physical appearance will do next to nothing to improve our mental connection with our body. Training those functional movements helps to not only build new connections but also strengthen old ones. Who wouldn’t want to boost their brain power?
Value Your Body’s Adaptability
- Embrace how your body can adapt to new challenges. Training for a sport challenges your physical self to adapt to new challenges. It’s like a brain teaser and how it affects your mental stamina. Our bodies were made to adapt to challenges and with the right support will overcome those challenges with ease.
Our bodies are much more than our physical appearance. By training our body for the life that we ultimately want though, our physical appearance will start to fall into place. It will start to reflect the lifestyle changes that you’ve made FIRST. Which is why embracing these basic concepts of body positivity is key to getting where you ultimately want to be.
