So I just finished a really good workout today that has left me feeling strong and empowered. I did some boxing with my brother and we finished it off with a 4 mile run, and I stretched it out with a yoga flow routine. Now sitting here, glistening on my yoga mat, I though about all the reasons why I started working out, as opposed to my reasons now.
When I first began seriously working out at the beginning of high school, my main reason was to lose weight. Like most teen girls, I was fixated on looking totally put together, a form of perfection, looking like a million dollars whenever I went anywhere. I counted my calories like a mad woman and kept myself to a strict diet routine, often starving myself to meet the goals I had in my head. My reason for working out was to look better, not feel better. It was a chore; a task that I HAD to do to be deemed beautiful. I wanted to share what working out means for me now, and I hope it inspires you in some ways about how you view working out.
- It makes me feel powerful: In our world, many things are out of our control. Our days don't always go as we would like them to and, if your at all like me, that can stress you out. But there is one part of my day that I always have control over, and that it when I work out. During a workout, I decide how much I want to put into something, I decide when it's quitting time, I decide when I should push myself harder. I get to really listen and understand my body completely.
- It makes me feel beautiful: I'm no longer fixated on looking a certain way. You'll notice I said feel beautiful, not look. When I finish a really good workout, I feel like a million dollars. I don't have to wear pretty clothes or do my hair or wear makeup or smell the best. When I'm working out, I feel beautiful with all my imperfections showing through, with my hair frizzing out from all the sweat, with my ugly t-shirt soaked with sweat. It's a rare experience to be able to feel that good about yourself, even when you don't look the best.
- It helps me through my day: By strengthening my body, I'm giving it more potential. You never know how amazing your body is, until you push it to that euphoric spot, where all you can think about is getting through that HIIT workout alive, and all the worries that you had been thinking about, fade away. When I run up and down the hills by my house, I like to think about all of my problem as the concrete I'm pounding myself into, and it puts everything into a new perspective.
- It helps me forget about weight: I'm not gonna lie, I dealt with my weight for a really long time, and while I was the perfect size for my body type, I never felt good enough, which led me into some pretty deep self hatred. But I reached a point where I didn't care about the weight on the scale or the calories I ate, and instead focused on how I felt. I decided to be happy, even if that meant not living with the strictest diet and routine in the world.
Those are just a few of my favorite things about working out and what I've learned from it. I didn't want to make this post extremely long because honestly, there is seriously nothing poetic about why I workout. It all comes down to being happy for me, whether that means sticking to a really intense workout schedule, or having weeks where I only get in a few workouts. I don't think that exercise should take away from your life, but add to it. So I hope that this post maybe motivated you are inspired you to give working out a shot. But please realize, it might not feel amazing at first but after awhile of commitment, you will come to love it. I love you all so much and I'll talk to you next time!
Grace
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