summer is coming and that means that word DIET and YOUR BEST BODY YET is thrown across every glossy on the newstand but here's the thing... what are these magazines really advocating? is it mission aspiration thinspiration or is it a healthy balanced body & mind because in between the 'wellness' and 'health' sections are some pretty fucked up subliminal messages... mags like nw and famous are infamous for scrutinising every kilo lost or gained by celebs in the spotlight and the high end mags are overwhelmingly littered with the same size 8 and under 'aspirational' bodies that for the average australian woman (a size 12-14) is not only unattainable but also initiates a self loathing realtionship with the only body i can guarantee is going to be with you all day errrrery day!
since adolesence i hated on my body hard and created this sense of disconnect between who i was and what my body was. UNTIL i read some deepak chopra and honestly grew tired of the torture i was putting myself through. what i realised is there is no deeper connection than the one between my mind and body. happiness became my goal and my body became my guide. when you really shift your focus from your 'imperfections' to your wellbeing, it changes everything. for years i said the most awful things to my body as i was uncomfortable in my own skin but by admonishing my 'body' i was disowning my responsibility for it. so my first step to finding balance focussed on the change your thoughts and you change your world idea.
and you know what it did. this doesn't mean that negative body thoughts don't pop into my head, they do. mostly when i'm getting ready to head out to a social event but instead of allowing them to follow me around all night (that is until i killed them with a few glasses of pinot) i leave them at home. on the floor. where they belong.
i do this by acknowleding the shots at myself as they arise and then i widen my focus: how am i really feeling? am i being critical because i'm nervous, comparing myself to others, or on the verge of pms! THEN i make the choice to disempower that inner mean girl and pay it the attention it deserves, which is about the time it takes me to ask myself what is really going on right now and you know what, i am getting so good at this that my self loathing time has dropped from a persistent obessive compulsive disorder to a small fly that is easily swatted out of my awareness.
if you too struggle with your body image, whether that's because you feel you are too big or too small, remember that having a body that feels fantastically fuelled, that bounces outta bed and is state of blissful balance is what we should all be aiming for. i guess i just wanted to use this post to tell you all, YOU control your own happiness and if you're like my oldself and into punishing your ownself for fucks sake STOP IT!
don't buy the trashy and flashy mags that make you doubt yourself, don't 'diet', don't care about the numbers on your dress tag or bathroom scale and don't demean your existence!
instead fuel yourself with adoration, great food and exercise that leaves you feeling refreshed and recentred and importantly learn to forgive yourself and not give a fuck when you feel like a gaytime on a 28 degree day, guilt will only sit in your gut, while compassion on the other hand will allow you to let go and seek balance and love the one your with!!
xo
*sidebar: i did recently flick through a cleo and a cosmo mag and i did notice that it seems like different shapes are more consitently used in these titles (props to them) rather than say the occasional Lawley (robyn lawley pictured above) that might find its way into an australian vogue... whether this is a sign that balance may become the new norm in the media is questionable but perhaps if we change what we accept for ourselves this will snowball into a message the media will have to take notice of!
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