Defining Brush Strokes

Health and Wellness; let’s take a moment to study this.

I strongly support taking care of yourself. Our bodies serve us well- or should- and we’re stuck with them for an awfully long time, so it seems like common sense to look after the thing and treat it well. But let’s be candid: people abuse exercise and dieting.

We abuse ourselves with these two wellness regimes. pushing our bodies far beyond their limits and then denying them the nutrients they so desperately need- it’s insanity. I’ve seen it happen often, we get in a mindset. “If I could just lose the pounds, just lift the big weight, If I could just lose that one more inch…" Well then what?
Will it make you more happy? Less hungry? Will it magically change you into a new person?

The answer is “No, it won’t.”

You may lose the inches or pounds. You may finally get into the dress size you think you deserve. And Kudos to you. God knows it isn’t easy. But more often than not the result is a new standard. “Well this is great, but it’s not quite good enough. If only…”

The problem here isn’t what size you are, or what your weight record is. The problem is denying yourself a happiness in pursuit of an unattainable goal. At what point will you accept yourself just the way you are? No more ifs. Just look at yourself and say, “Yeah, this is good. This is great.” Sure, maybe you could stand to lose a few pounds. But who cares?

Watching my cousin paint, I noticed that she doesn’t just go straight into the picture. First she lays down some background color, layering and smoothing and roughing it into something with character, something that defines whatever object and scenery she’s creating. The object itself is cool, and the scenery is nice. But the underlying tones and shapes are what really drive the piece.
The same goes for you and your body.

At the end of the day, it’s still you in that body. Work on accepting You first. Define what that is, and that will tell you what you need to know about your body.