Professional

Fitocracy published an article last week about 30 Fitness Professionals Under 30 who are changing the face of fitness.  These people are up and comers in the field and, for the most part, I agreed with their selections.  Women like Molly Galbraith, Nia Shanks, and Sohee Lee are all pioneers in women's fitness not just for their exercises, but in their work to help women love who they are.  They are about learning exercises and making ourselves stronger mentally and emotionally, not just physically.  Men such as Jon Goodman, Nick Tumminello, Greg Nuckols, and Chase Erwin.  Jon puts out two amazing websites (PTDC and Viralnomics) which help trainers learn about being a trainer.  Nick and Greg are all about the science of exercise.  Chase is a fitness competitor who trains others in mind as well as body.

However, as I read the article, a look of puzzlement crossed my face.  A fitness professional (to me) includes credentials such as a degree in fitness, a personal training certification, or other such education that can be passed on to others.  This person is someone I can look to as an expert in the field.  Whether man or woman, a fitness professional brings something more to the conversation than just a pretty face and rock solid abs.

While I am one hundred percent sure that each of the spotlighted individuals are more than a body in a picture, the article highlighted three women who were only listed as being worthy because they have won contests.  Not one of the men in the article was solely mentioned for winning at a powerlifting or bodybuilding competition, much less a beauty pageant.  I didn't see any men who were ONLY listed because of their prowess on the stage.  These women are clearly dedicated to their chosen profession and look amazing in their photos.  But, what message does it send to the users of Fitocracy?  Especially as these are the people that users are supposed to look to as experts and professionals.

It sends a clear message that the women in fitness are held to a standard of their physique.  Users of Fitocracy are usually new to fitness and looking for expert information from the knowledge section of the site.  As a personal trainer, it saddens me to see the women in the fitness industry portrayed this way.  I have to believe that there are other women in fitness that are experts and under 30.  Women who have done more than win a beauty pageant or a bodybuilding competition.  Women who have a following on their website because they espouse a belief that a woman is more than ab definition; that a woman's self worth is not linked to her physique; that a woman should aspire to her own fabulousness rather than aspiring to be like someone else.  Women who have credentials as fitness experts.

Women in the fitness industry such as Molly Galbraith, Jill Coleman, Jen Sinkler, and Neghar Fonooni publish blogs on an almost daily basis about loving yourself for who you are, not attempting to reach the standard of a fitness model.  And every single one of these women has at least a training certification.

Women today are inundated with pictures of the ideal -- websites, fitspiration, magazines, television, movies, music.  It's ubiquitous.  More spotlighting of the "perfect" is unnecessary and defeating.  Spotlight the innovators.  Show us the women providing a message of self-worth unconnected to physique.  Highlight the professionals who teach us that we deserve to be more than an image on a screen.

Welcome Back to the Hamster Wheel

A little over three years ago, I made a fairly random decision to train for a half marathon.  There were reasons and thoughts and rationales.  But, I decided to do it.  And, after making the decision, one of the first things I did was to create a blog to chronicle my journey towards the half marathon.  (This was really a way of keeping myself accountable to anyone who cared to read it.)  

Looking for a binder in my house last night, I came across two binders that gave me pause.  The first was my old running binder.  When I started running, that thing never left my sight!!  Flipping through it, I read through my first running plans, saw my first calendars of run days, and smiled to myself.  The second binder was filled with my old blog entries.  As I read, I was shocked at the positivity that exuded from the print.  I read through entries describing my first injuries, my first run in the rain, my first 5k.  I watched my "team" grow from a few close friends to a "team" that included neighbors and people I had never met.  I saw myself meet the two people who would go on to have the biggest impacts on my fitness life.  And then, I realized something important:  I didn't mention weight loss.  Or fat loss.  Or any numbers on a scale.

NOT ONCE.

And I was happy.  I was learning.  I was meeting new people.  I was inspiring others.  And as revealing as this was, it wasn't nearly as revealing as the next thought.

WHAT HAPPENED?

At what point did I go from being excited about running a half marathon to being obsessed about the number on the scale?  What decision did I make that led to excessive scrutiny of my body? 

The answer is this: I don't know.  Somewhere along my journey, that ever present number on the scale became more and more important.  And as it became more important, my happiness dwindled.  What started out as a fun way to get PTO morphed into an obsession with the perfect diet and exercise plan to help me reach an arbitrary goal.  So, last night as I went to bed, I made a decision.  I'm done with numbers and arbitrary.  I'm done with someone else's vision of perfection.  In fact, I'm done with my own vision of perfection.  I'm not perfect.  I never will be.  I have no desire to be that perfect fitness model.  Perfect abs and definition are not in my future.  I will never be the fastest, lift the most weight, or be on the cover of a magazine.  By setting these unreasonable expectations, I have been setting myself up for failure for over two years.  And I have achieved every minute of that failure.

And now I'm done with it.  Here's to chronicling the next part of my journey, where I learn to have a mindset that is positive and grateful.  Happy with myself and forgiving of my imperfections, because they are what help me to learn and grow.  

Welcome back to the Hamster Wheel.  It's been too long.

Because It's Beautiful

Day 5 of the #loveyourbodychallenge from Molly Galbraith of GirlsGoneStrong.

Reason #5 to Love My Body:  Because It's Beautiful

My family is going to Phoenix to visit family in two weeks.  Beautiful, sunny, WARM Phoenix.  I'm excited to see friends and family and definitely excited to bask in the warm glow of the sun after our polar vortex winter here in Ohio.  Know what warm weather means to me?? SHORTS!!  And, thinking ahead, I reminded my two girls to check to make sure their shorts from last summer still fit before we started packing.  And then thought to myself that I should probably do the same.  My discovery?  NONE of my shorts fit.  Well..... not entirely true.  A couple pairs went on.  My favorite pair didn't fit at all.  Now, I would love to report that none of them fit because they were too big.  But, the reality is that I spent much of the fall and winter dealing with emotional issues rather than physical.  And diet hasn't been my highest priority.  Neither has a routine exercise plan.  The nice part?  I didn't spiral.  I didn't think of myself as a terrible person because I've gained a few pounds.  My friends in Phoenix will still love me even if I don't look perfect.  Because my beauty doesn't come from the perfect pair of shorts.  It comes from the inside and the outside.  And, after two pregnancies and two c-sections, my abs are never going to be my best feature.  And I'm completely ok with that.  Because there are other aspects of me that MORE than make up for it.

Ya know... like my hair.  My hair is definitely my best feature, even if it's always in a ponytail.  I always know that if I'm having a great hair day, everything will be right with the world.  :)  While I still get irritated when people "boing" my hair, when the right person plays with it just the right way, it's the best feeling in the world.  And, if I let you play with my hair, that is love right there.  (And I'm kinda starting to learn that I have a pretty nice booty.  I think it's all those damn squats.  *grin*)

As for inner beauty, my stalwart refusal to give up on people is something I think is beautiful.  Once you are my friend, that doesn't change...EVER.  I don't let go of friendship.  I used to think there were only two people in my life that I couldn't be friends with.  I've since realized that I've forgiven those two people for the havoc they wreaked in my life.  Because I wouldn't be the person I am today without their actions.  And if I can forgive those two individuals, I can't ever give up on anyone's friendship -- no matter what.  So to those of you who I don't talk to regularly anymore, know that you are still my friend.  And have no doubt that I think of you frequently.

So am I beautiful?  Yes.  Do my shorts have to fit to prove that?  Hell no.  As long as I have confidence in me, that's what matters.

Because It's Capable

Day 2 of the #loveyourbodychallenge from Molly Galbraith of GirlsGoneStrong.

Reason #2 to Love My Body:  Because It's Capable

I could give you a list a mile long detailing all of the things that I can't do.  I can't squat with good form is the first that comes to mind.  I can't stick to my macros for more than a week.  I can't keep my house clean.  I can't put my phone down for more than a few minutes without checking it.  I can't survive without Starbucks lattes.  Molly's task today was to identify something that I excel at.  And I couldn't think of a thing without discounting it.  Yes, I'm good at organization.  And I'm enthusiastic.  I'm even pretty good at deadlifts.  But, for each one that popped into my head, I thought to myself, "no...I'm really not THAT good at that."  And is it true that there might be others that are better than me?  Absolutely.  I'm not the best organizer (but I do actually think I might be the best one that I know).  I'm not the MOST enthusiastic all the time.  And I know lots of women who can outdeadlift me.  But, NONE of that means that I'm not capable of doing those things and doing them well.  And I'm not the only one I know who downplays my own abilities.

This discounting of our capabilities is something that we have learned from our youth.  Learning from childhood that the result is much more important than the journey has lead to a generation of quick-fixers.  We seem to want the end result  without the hard work required to accomplish it.  Somewhere along the way, we lost sight of the countless lessons of the journey.  The journey forces us to learn hard work, dedication, commitment, and perseverance.  And, maybe most importantly, it teaches us how to fail and subsequently overcome that failure.  When we continually look for the easiest path, we shortchange ourselves and our future.  As a result, we've lost sight of (or never learned) what we are CAPABLE of.  And we are capable of so much more than weight loss surgery and watching Dr. Oz to find out about today's quick fix.  We are capable of overcoming fear.  We are capable of making good choices. We are capable of being good role models for the younger generation.  

We are strong and so much more than just capable.

Look beyond what is ordinary and mundane in yourself, embrace your failure, and look to the extraordinary and let yourself shine.

 

Love My Body -- A 28 Day Challenge

I follow a number of female fitness professionals through their blogs -- Neghar Fonooni, Girls Gone Strong, and Molly Galbraith are among my favorites.  Their fitness content will kick my butt every day but what stays with me is their continuous work on compassion and gratitude.  Women all over the world struggle with body image and body dysmorphia.  In my work as a trainer, I see this from my clients every day.  We all want to look like the woman on the magazine cover.  And, as Molly put it, it's completely unreasonable to compare ourselves at our worst to someone else on her absolutely best day with a team of professionals to make her look perfect.

Body image is something I specifically struggle with.  As a trainer, I am expected to have a certain "look" to get clients.  And I don't have that look.  I don't deny the fact that I could stand to lose 15-20 pounds and get my diet back "in check" to have that look.  However, I have learned that the work that it takes to get there makes me crazy.  It makes my family crazy.  And it makes me a very unfun person to be around.  So Molly is throwing out a 28 Day Love Your Body challenge.  And, as a fitness professional who doesn't always love her body, I'm accepting it.  Moreover, I'm embracing it and sharing it with others.  Because it's important to set an example.  28 days to have a better understanding and acceptance of my body as it is.  I will continue to work on improving my diet and keep with exercise BECAUSE I love my body.  Not because I need to achieve a standard of impossible perfection.  

So thanks for following along with me along the next 28 days...

Pre-Work

The first day is a bit of self searching with a pre-challenge questionnaire.

1.  How do you feel when you think about how your body looks?  

     (1= absolutely terrible, 10 = freaking awesome)

     I'm a 6.

2.  How often do you think about things you'd like to change on your body? 

     (1 = constantly, 10 = never)

     Easily a 3.

3.  How often do you look in the mirror and think "I look really awesome!"?

     (1 = never, 10 = always)

     I'm a 4.

4.  How confident do you feel when you're in a swimsuit?

     (1 = not confident at all, 10 = extremely confident)

     I'm a 2.  Sadly.

5.  How confident do you feel about your body during intimate moments?

     (1 = not confident at all, 10 = extremely confident)

     I'm a 6.  Because my husband loves my body and he's amazing.

6.  How often do you catch yourself saying/thinking negative things about your body?

     (1 = constantly, 10 = never)

     I'm probably at about a 5.  I've gotten better at this in the last year.

7.  How often do you catch yourself saying negative things about your body to other people?

     (1 = constantly, 10 = never)

     I'm definitely a 3.

8.  How well do you receive compliments from others?

     (1 = not well, 10 = really well)

     Probably around a 7.

9.  How often do you have feelings of shame in regards to your  body?

     (1 = constantly, 10 = never)

     I'm around a 3.

10.  If I told you that you could drastically change your perception of your body in 28 days, would you believe me?

     (1 = absolutely not, 10 = no doubt about it)

      I'm an 8....sadly.

My total: 47/100.  I think I definitely have room for improvement.  

Here I go with 28 days to change.  Wish  me luck and share your own personal Love Your Body stories!

I'm Sexy and I Know It!

It's all about perception.

A few tidbits over the past few months have gotten me thinking about how important perception is to exercise and losing weight.  My progress and my body image are relative to how I think about them.  Consider the following:

Back on Easter, my mom asked if I was skinny.  Now, to me, skinny is not something I aspire to be.  Trim?  Yes.  Fit?  Yes.  Look good in a bikini lounging on the beach?  Absolutely.  But skinny?  Never.  Skinny to me implies ribs sticking out and an unhealthy sort of look.  Think MaryKate and Ashley Olsen if you get the picture.  But, when I tried to answer the question, I realized that it was a question of perception.  To a person who struggles with their weight, I am probably fit and skinny!  To a person who has been an athlete her whole life, I'm probably still a bit on the pudgy side.  And they are both right.


Because body image isn't a matter of a number on a scale or a number on a clothing label.  And it certainly isn't reflected in BMI or my body fat percentage.  It isn't even about how much weight I can squat or how fast I can run a mile.  Body image is very personal and completely about perception.  On a good day, I can perceive myself to be smoking hot and awesome looking in that string bikini.  And, on others, I can look in the mirror and see nothing but cellulite.  Which is the real, true, objective image?  Neither...because it's all based in perception.


Body image and "sexiness" isn't what you see in the mirror.  It's very intangible and results more from your own personal confidence and mental image than anything else.  Having a great day?  Everyone knows it and your attitude shifts and changes as a result.  You automatically seem more attractive because it is your positivity that is attracting others.  Having a crappy day?  That negativity rubs off too.  


No matter where you are in your body's journey, keep it up.  Whatever your goal is -- focus on the process and stay positive.  That positive attitude and self confidence will enable you to reach your goals -- no matter what your personal daily perception happens to be.