Don’t Body Shame Yourself
Maybe I’m the only one that does this – maybe not – but the
truth is none of us should do this ever, and here's why.
Also at over 50, the metabolism doesn’t crank quite as fast
as it did even in my 40s. So, while I see fabulous results from the programs I
do and recommend for other folks, I myself see limited benefits – other than
being in great health, being stronger than I’ve ever been and being able to embarrass
most guys half my age – but I don’t have the fabulous abs that I think I want.
So, I body shame myself.
I think “Dude! You’re a Personal Trainer! You’ve gotten nutrition
certification! You should be able to crack the code for all these mid-life
crisis baby-boomers to get in phenomenal shape!
And truth, I can. But what I do is different. I like to eat
dinner with my family. I don’t like to put pressure on my wife (who home
schools my 3 youngest, is one of the co-administrators of the cooperative they
attend, does the budget, shops organic, makes most of the meals for the family)
to have to cook every meal to meet strict dietary guidelines. I also (because I
have five kids) don’t train six times a week. I train 3 days with full body
workouts and I get my 10k steps in every day. No half marathon training, no two
a days. So, I really train a lot more like a normal 50-something year old guy
with a family who wants to stay fit, strong and healthy.
But when I look in the mirror (other than flexing my arms ;-))
there are just some days I get mad. I’m frustrated. I think “DAMN! 10 years ago
I would have already been 10 pounds lighter! How come I’m not?! I suck. I’m
fat. I’m never going to look good in that bathing suit.”
And that’s wrong. Because, yes, 10 – 20 or even 30 years ago
I would have dropped the weight in next to no time, but that’s not the case
anymore. And the case is I’m studying for more certifications, getting my
marketing strategy set to launch a business, working a full time mentally
demanding job, and oh yes, being a husband, dad and general lawn maintenance
guy for my household.
Here’s the TRUTH. Instead of being mad. Instead of body
shaming myself because I’m not 20, I should be doing back-flips!
- I can run around with my five year old son and roll on the floor with him, coach his baseball team and play catch.
- I can intimidate the boys that want to suit my teenage daughters (yes, they’ve told me, and some of the guys have been six foot 200+ pounders).
- I can carry my youngest girl from the car to the emergency room after she sliced open her leg and needed to get stitches – without getting winded.
- I can carry all the luggage out to the van for my oldest girls going on a summer vacation.
- I can motivate my eldest girl to be a fitspiration herself.
So today, I’m not going to body shame myself, I’m going to
rejoice. I’m going to celebrate four years of turning my life around and being
in great shape. I’m going to celebrate that I just ran my 3rd
Warrior Dash, and did it in my best time and it had the most obstacles. I'm going to celebrate that I'm in good health, I'm not injured and I can enjoy every blessing I've been given, including time with my family.
Join me in the celebration!
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