Let’s talk Body Image

Let’s take a moment to address Body Image, shall we? How impacted are you by those unrealistic images seen in the media? Especially those seen on social media?

How do societal & cultural pressures affect you to look a certain way? How would you like to feel stronger from within and comfortable and happy with the way you look instead?

If you read this far, I hope it means some of it resonates with you. And; YES I’ve been there, I was brought up to believe that gaining weight is an absolute No No. Growing the 90s meant comparing myself to models and actresses I saw on TV. Simply put THIN was IN. The “perfect” body type was small and slim framed – small BUTTs & BUSTs. Being Lebanese, my curvy figure didn’t fit the standard. A guy even broke up with me with this excuse, his exact words were :”YOU are too curvy and I like petites girls”, I remember crying my heart out, I was 29 years old! But that’s another story for another day.

But what did I learned and what many women in family learned doing was hiding our “défauts” -French- or ‘Faults”. We are taught from a very young age that we lack beauty, we lack perfection and we need to hide it underneath layers and layers of clothing. So we become more acceptable to others, more acceptable to the public eye! And, we end up believing that we ARE NOT ENOUGH! We become so insecure that we think our happiness comes from achieving the “perfect” body, “perfect” nose, lips, cheeks and contour, etc…

When I was 15, a family member told me to get a breast reduction surgery. Writing this blog, reminded me I used to wear a sports bustier on top of my regular bra, to flatten my chest when I was in school. And, guess what I used to wear on top of all that! Yep My posture Corrector 🐧 . Just imagine how teens tend to believe anything their ROLE MODELs tells them to do. I didn’t go for surgery in the end…I am so glad I didn’t!

Years later, some family members took the liberty to ask me : “How will you become a pilates instructor when you look the way you do?” in plain english: How am I going to convince clients to work with me because I don’t fit the personal trainer or pilates instructor profile you see in the media. Lucky for me, I had made the reconciliation with my body image long before I was asked these questions. Otherwise; I believe I wouldn’t have lasted a day in my new career. I would have set myself to failure even before trying to teach a single human being!

It doesn’t stop here, I hear it from my clients almost on weekly basis. “I want to lose weight: If only I lose my belly fat, then I can be happy. Once a client told me she didn’t want to attend a group class because she didn’t want to be the only FAT person in class when everyone else is slim. The first question that popped into my head was; Do you workout for you? Or to please and compare yourself to others. I tried not to judge, but I was choked! And then I started to encounter more and more of these concerns along the way, that I finally understood, we WOMEN need to change our mindset, and I am going to do everything I can to help pave the way!

Alright I admit it! YES I am conscious about my weight but I don’t let it control my happiness. If I gained weight, I acknowledge it and realize that it’s okay for my body weight to fluctuate during the month. It’s okay to gain a kilo or two and maybe three…knowing how to manage this weight gain and balance it out in the next few weeks. It’s not the end of the world!

And this is one of the main reasons why I practice gratitude with my students at the end of each lesson. It’s a gentle reminder for everyone to celebrate what our bodies allowed us to do, and the progress we achieve during each class. We embrace our cellulite, stretch marks and belly fat and crash those exercises, work on our endurance and stamina. We CELEBRATE the small TRIUMPHS. The weight loss will come eventually, don’t stress about it.

I will close with a few tips to reach a positive body image:

1 ) Appreciate all that your body CAN do

2) Unfollow the people who tell you things that HURT your self-esteem.

3) Surround yourself with people that make you feel POWERFUL and HAPPY and grateful for what you have.

4) When you see yourself in a mirror or in your mind, choose NOT TO FOCUS on specific body parts.

5) NEVER COMPARE YOURSELF to a STRANGER on the internet.

Did you ever catch yourself criticizing the way you look? The way others look? Tell me about it in the comments section, I’d love to hear about your personal experience.

💕 Zeina

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