Week before last I was at the gym walking away on the treadmill when I felt a tap on the arm. It was my good friend and fellow blogger, Keisha Broomes. As we worked out together we did what we always do. We had some good ole inspiring and motivating conversation. I always leave her company feeling like I can conquer the world. Everyone needs a friend like that (I’m fortunate to have a couple). We talked a lot about body image and body acceptance, all of which I was going to try to replicate in a blog post. Then the thought hit me. Why not ask Keisha to be a guest blogger on my blog? So I did and she said yes Take it away Keisha…
“As simple as it sounds, we all must try to be the best person we can; by making the best choices, by making the most of the talents we’ve been given.” ~Mary Lou Retton
A few years back I completely made the biggest goof in the history of my weight loss journey. What goof was that? Thinking that I could sweat, run, and diet myself into a slim lean build. That was incredibly wrong. Why? Because no amount of work can give me a body type that I simply was not born to have.
I’m a curvy girl. I have curves in areas I’m not sure even the average woman has them. These curves may get bigger or smaller depending on how much I weigh, but the curves themselves do not and will not ever go away. But I kept dieting and exercising for years thinking that if I stayed focused, I’d suddenly wake up one day with the ability to wear skinny jeans and NOT stop traffic.
Okay, so, that never happened. I remained frustrated with my non-slim frame until 2008 when I read an article written about Serena Williams. Serena Williams, the tennis world champion and sister of the slim-built Venus Williams, talked candidly to a journalist about her own struggles with body acceptance. She said that as she grew up, she never quite understood why she couldn’t wear the clothes that Venus wore. That was until she realized that Venus had a long slim build, and she had a curvy muscular build. She is one of the best athletes in the world and is fit and healthy. She wears a size 12.
After reading that article I knew right then that I had to turn things around and kick things into high gear in order to be the best me that I wanted to be. Guess what? You can do it too! If you are struggling and you feel you aren’t achieving your weight loss goals, do the following:
- Be grateful for your own body. It is unique. It is wonderful. Accept and love it.
- Research and take online tests to figure out your body type.
- Tailor your workouts and your caloric intake to work best for your body type. There are many blogs and websites that can help you out with this.
Do you put on muscle easily? Great news for you! Strength training will skyrocket your metabolism and help you tone up and look awesome. Do you normally have a lean build but you’ve put on a few pounds? Good news for you as well! Those pounds may come off easily with some simple tweaks to your diet and an increase in cardio.
The bottom line is to love yourself and never beat yourself up for being what you are not. You can only be you. So go on and BE YOU! Learn about your own body, go on and embrace life, have a living plan that supports you being the best you that you can be!
Wow, Keisha thank you so much! I could not have said it any better. I’m happy to say I do embrace my curves and that I am working on being the best me I can be. After reading this, all I have to say is, Serena Williams look out girl, I’m comin for your body
ChrisB says
Awesome!!!
Stacey Strickler says
Hey Chris! YES!!!! Awesome is definitely the word. I’m so grateful for Keisha’s willingness to share
Dee says
Wow, the two of you just helped a lot of women. I need to forward and print this out as a reminder to myself and to give to some young women who are trying to be what the see in magazines.
Stacey Strickler says
Thanks Dee! Thanks for sharing this on your Facebook page as well. I think when we all accept and appreciate the body type we’ve been given and blessed with, and focus more on taking care of our bodies…a whole lot of us will be freed up