I love the fact that I live in a place that truly supports our healthy lifestyles, even though there are other areas of the country where healthy options are more readily available.
The South Florida community is becoming more and more health conscious everyday,
even when being in optimal health is not the goal looking amazing and "SEXY" is.
Think about it the wide open Ocean Air. Miami/Ft.Lauderdale where some of the most beautiful people are. Will Smith wrote a song about it.
The place where everyone wants to be.
With the Palm trees riding Jet skis you know the lyrics...but at what cost does this beauty come?
There are some that will opt for surgical intervention and for others to achieve that dream body means pushing their bodies to the outer limits just so they can flaunt those rock hard abs on the beach. This is something I had struggled with for years. I lived in paradise but very limited to experiencing it. I was terrified to be seen at the beach let alone wearing a bikini.
I became obsessed with my body image.
What can I do...?
I wanted to look like that the typical beach bikini babe. I hated the fact that I didn't and when I stopped trying to obtain the impossible I felt more like a failure than I ever did.
Even though I ate better and increased my body movements it wasn't happening fast enough. Maybe you can relate.
When we don't meet expectations it can leave us feeling desperate and feeling the need to take extreme measures. The aggressive approach what else was left. I thought to myself "I'm going to make my body look the way I want." yes even if it KILLS me! (Ouch)
Sound familiar?
Maybe you've watched infomercial after infomercial only to find yourself
ordering the latest workout tape or fad diet ; Tony Horton's P90X, Jillian Michaels, or perhaps The 30 day banana diet... now that one i have not tried; not sure I will.
The point is that:
Many are inspired by these exercise Gurus and experts and that's good because
Inspiration is the driving force to make necessary changes in your lifestyle but is the extreme measure the answer to achieving your healthy fitness goals for YOU?
It's important to recognize we are not machines and it's time to connect with ourselves, to stop and really consider our personal limitations.
In the work I do I have seen to many people ignoring their bodies and just pushing it to the max and not giving it the honor it deserves. Your body and mine is a vessel and when we don't treat it the way it deserves we are left with no energy, lack of motivation, brain fog, and just plain frustrated; In many cases there's no difference in-fact theres more inflammation and weight gain than before.
What if I was to tell you the key is very simple and it doesn't cost anything.. infact it's FREE!
Would you do it...... would you?
The key is to
RELAX and let go of this feeling of FORCE. yup that's a major part of it and one of the many ways I lost 50lbs.
Amazing, the answer has been just you listening to your body and slowing down.
The truth is the idea of - "Eat, sleep, train, repeat" has been taken quite literally and to extremes by some and their bodies are paying the price at some point.
So take the time to see where you are at right now and what is possible for you.
We need to ask ourselves; what do I want? Then give the body a chance to respond and listen.
Soft movements like stretching, yoga, and fast paced walk-run may be a good place to start.
So next time before starting some extreme exercise routine or diet, ask yourself; is my body ready to handle this intensity? Is it really giving my body the honor it deserves?
If it is and you have the coach for support then GO FOR IT! Otherwise listen to your body and move it how you see fit.
I have found throughout the years when we come back to a place of what our bodies and minds are capable of, we start to recognize where we truly are and it is at this place we can begin again.
Always come back to a place of balance when honoring the body.