Trying to break up with diet culture…

Trying to break up with diet culture is like trying to cycle uphill in strong winds. It’s a slow process that feels like nature is against you. You know the right thing to do is get to the top of that hill, but why is it so damn hard?

It’s so hard because it’s going against everything you’ve ever been told about food and your body. It’s saying goodbye to a fictional version of yourself that you thought you would one day meet. It’s accepting that you might not one day ever fit into that dress you wore all the time when you were 20. It’s realising that your morals are not tied up in the “good” or “bad” food choices you make.

Authenticity..

It’s been a while since I’ve written a blog post, but something has been on my mind a lot lately and it is the meaning of authenticity. I want to share with you my views and recent experiences.

Authenticity is only something that came to the forefront of my mind while I was at a yoga class a few months ago. The studio has large glass walls and the sun made the space feel like I had transformed into a sweaty slippery seal. My left wrist was playing up and aching when fully bent, and the person on the mat next to me was gracefully floating to the top of her mat and doing all sorts of advanced inversions. Adding all these factors up, the situation I found myself in did not make me feel good. I felt frustrated with myself. The teacher then started to speak about the concept of being authentic. It was just what I needed to hear at that point in time. I can’t remember what exactly she said, but she spoke about being authentic within yourself and to your practice. Trying to be someone you’re not and attempting to do things your body isn’t ready to do does not serve you on or off the mat. This rung so true to me. Since then, I’ve learnt to listen and respect my body more and only do things that are right for me.

Around spring time, I deleted Instagram from my phone for about two weeks. I had found all the noise of social media deafening and overwhelming (I still do at times and find burying my head in a book my best defense mechanism). When I logged back in I soon released why I had previously felt that way. I was following people I couldn’t relate to and the portrayal of their lives was not realistic. It’s not surprising really that seeing these images consistently every day made me feel as if I was not “living my best life”. In that same sitting flicking through the familiar squares, the mass unfollowing began. I looked at images and their captions and if they made me feel bad about myself, or I found them improbable, they were gone. I deleted about 150 accounts from my Realfitspiration/My Movement Journey Instagram account and the majority of them were yoga accounts.

Because life isn’t a highlight reel, sometimes you fall on your knees, or arse!

Slogan tees, another form of food/body shaming…

Slogan on t-shirts are everywhere, on fashion tees and also activewear tops and sweatshirts.

However, while browsing online at active wear I have no room in my draw for, I came across the below and it really cheesed me off. So much so, a week later I’m still thinking about it and now writing about it.

This garment is making negative connotations towards two of my great loves, exercise and cake. How dare they! This is from a brand who’s company mission  is to “empower women through fitness”. I don’t think this top screams empowerment to women through movement, do you?

Instead it reinforces the same old bull s@&t that we have to earn our food in the form of sweat in order to have a guilt free meal. Food isn’t something you should have to earn, it is vital for our existence and ability to function. It is also one of lifes great pleasures, which is constantly being tarnished by our diet obsessed culture. We shouldn’t keep thinking that food is a “treat” or a reward. After all we aren’t dogs! But it’s hard, really hard to get that idea out of our heads.

Yoga and me…

My first encounter with Yoga was when I was at university. I went to a class at the gym with a few friends and we walked out of the class 10 minutes in! We were bored, had no idea what we were doing and felt so disengaged and uninspired by the teacher.

Fast forward a few years later and after going to a couple of classes at my local leisure centre, in 2016 I signed up for weekly Yoga classes at work. As a runner at the time who had clocked up a few injuries, I thought Yoga would help stretch me out and hopefully make my body more resistant to enjoy pain free running.

So there I was in my office at 8am with the meeting room tables pushed back and my mat rolled out. Within 10 minutes of my first pre-work Yoga class I was hooked. My teacher took the time to explain everything and really opened my eyes to how out of tune I felt in my own body at that moment in time.

As I have mentioned previously, my first real passion and interest for exercise came from running, but after a few races and many injuries, I now stick to going to the gym and Yoga. Having a greater awareness of my body, my alignment and how I feel has helped me with my strength exercises at the gym. Had I discovered yoga sooner, it’s highly likely it would have helped me with my running and I may not have got myself in such a pickle with injuries.

Practicing Yoga has not only benefited me exercise-wise, but having a better connection to my body has improved my posture and my confidence.

Another new year blog post…

So we find ourselves at the beginning of a new year again. If you read my blog a year ago, you will remember that I am not a fan of the “new year, new me” mentality. (If you would like a re-cap find it here).

I have found that trying to correct what I have previously seen as negatives within myself, clouds the positives that I am so lucky to have. It is always easier to build on the positives, rather than trying to erase the negatives.

So on that note I thought I would reflect on the list of achievable goals I set myself for 2017, and look forward to what 2018 may bring.

Because cake tastes better than abs…

So the other Sunday I was flicking through Instagram and felt a little angry when I saw the below post from someone I follow.

As motivational as the above quote may be to some to stop eating so much processed high fat foods, I think it has the potential to do more harm than good.

The main reason is it can lead an individual to feel guilt over enjoying in moderation the foods they love. We already have to suffer from body shaming, who’s great idea was it to create food shaming too? I love fries every now and again when I eat out and love burpees (slam ball burpees are my favourite), which is why the negativity of this image really got to me. Don’t imply that the wisest choice is not to eat the fries, or something else I enjoy!

To sweat or to sneeze?

Should you exercise when you have a cold/are unwell? It was a question I asked myself a lot the other week when I had a lingering cold/sore throat.

It started on a Monday when I was doing my upper body workout that I realised I wasn’t feeling quite right. It can be easy to know what a good workout sweat feels like and the buzz you feel from it, but this was different. There was no buzz, I was only sweating slightly but I felt so hot, clammy and fatigued. I knew something was up so I turned my workout down a notch and did less reps or a lighter weight.

For the remainder of the working week I stayed clear of the gym and caught come extra z’s which isn’t like me. For a change I thought I would try and rest so it went away quicker. Usually I try and power through which only makes things worse. The only exercise I did was my hour yoga classes before work on Thursday which I wouldn’t have been able to do without a tissue nearby!

All or nothing. Or somewhere in between…

It’s common that when you take your first steps towards living a more active and healthy lifestyle, that you will have an “all or nothing” mentality. This can be a great approach at kick starting your new habits, but it is fueled by one thing, motivation.

Motivation is like one of those friends who are a bit flaky, who comes and goes when it pleases them.  When motivation leaves your side, giving it your all becomes so much harder. You push yourself less at the gym and you might revert your diet back to its old ways. Having one bad day of eating means you give up on your goals for that week and feeling like you need to start again from scratch next Monday, or not at all.

The worst part is the guilt. You were really going to stick to your exercise and eating plan this week, but someone brought a homemade carrot or lemon drizzle cake into the office (a couple of personal favourites) and you happened to have a slice with your afternoon cuppa tea. Having that slice has ruined it all, and you feel like a failure for giving in.

I think having this “you must give 100% to succeed” mentality is where I have fallen down before and why it was only last year that I started to grasp the concept of balance a bit better when it came to my body, exercise and food. It can be a useful mindset to begin with, but it can’t be maintained because of that fleeting friend called motivation.

Having one delicious slice of cake and enjoying it does not make you a failure. Being very strict with your food and exercise regime is only setting you up for failure.

The only way I got myself out of the “all or nothing” mentality was to view my actions and body as a tipping scale like the one below (and actually the middle part of the scale looks like a person who has long legs, so not quite me!)

When things get busy…

So it’s been over two months since I last sat down and wrote a blog post. Initially because I lost my writing mojo due to my knee injury killing all motivation, but then life just got darn busy. How I’ve felt over the past two months is quite well summarised on one of my birthday cards below.

As amazing as the past two months have been and I wouldn’t change them for the world, it has felt that everything has been an inconvenience to my usual eating and exercising routine. Sort of like how drinking a mojito is an inconvenience when jogging, haha!

But it is always the case that when time is tight, exercise and eating right is always put at the bottom of the pile, even though I know personally how important it is for my physical and mental well being.

It is important though to remember that just because it is at the bottom of the agenda, doesn’t mean it has been lost for ever. As cliche as it sounds, life really is for living and the special and happy times I have had recently I will always remember.

Be your own motivation…

As I write these words it is Saturday morning and nearly noon. I have had a great session in the gym, yummy protein porridge with my usual generous helping of raspberries and peanut butter (don’t ask me how many 1kg tubs I’ve got through this year, I’ve lost count!) and I’m on a train heading to south London. Flicking through instagram and seeing everyone’s workout and delicious looking breakfast photos, I feel motivated to do it all again!

But where did that initial motivation come from to set an alarm on a Saturday morning and get my butt to the gym? The same goes for those people on social media who have had a simial morning to mine. They have, and I have become our own motivation…

Whether you are exercising to lose weight, maintain your weight, for your physical/mental health, to feel fitter and stronger or are doing it but because it’s something you love, all these reasons are why people catch the fitness, exercise, running bug.