for the sake of our daughters, stop complaining about your body :: tone it up app

Body image is a very personal thing. I’ve spent many years beating myself up and feeling badly about how I look. Have you ever wished you were as fat as the first time you thought you were fat? Oh my, yes!!! I disliked the photo of myself in the purple dress below. Makes me shake my head now.

My struggle with my body image started in 6th grade. I got slightly chubby before a growth spurt and I was really aware of it. Thankfully nobody teased me or even said anything that I can recall, but my personality was a bit obsessive and I would try to ride the exercise bike for an hour a day. I felt guilty if I didn’t make my goal. The thought of my daughter being worried about her body makes me want to protect her from this for as long as I can. As her mom I try to live by example in what I eat, what I feed our family, and how I speak about my body.

I cringe when I think about this… my husband would give me a compliment and I would say something like this, “Thank you, but I feel like a sausage in this dress.” Then I would draw his attention to the places I felt insecure about. Try keeping those comments to yourself or confide in a close friend about your trouble zones. Do we want our young daughters to be aware that there is such a thing as a “trouble zone”? They don’t need to know about muffin tops, cankles, or thunder thighs. If we don’t point out our insecurities, I would bet they aren’t being noticed. Don’t draw attention to it.

In recent years I’ve come to a place of acceptance about my body. Don’t get me wrong, I’m always working towards a goal, but it’s an attainable goal that doesn’t include thigh gap or size 2’s. I have a sustainable routine for my current stage of life. When I had little ones to chase around, I was lucky if I got to workout. Ironically, I was a lower number on the scale, but I wasn’t particularly healthy or happy about my body. If you are in that busy time of life with babies and toddlers, hold tight! Do your best to maintain or give yourself goals you can meet. There will be more time for fitness goals as your children grow up.

My current routine includes the Tone It Up app. My sister in law encouraged me to try it. She’s in her mid-20’s, slender, and I felt like a mushy old mom trying out her program. However, I changed my attitude quickly. I really liked the studio workouts each day. They were a challenge at first, but then I started to feel stronger. After I googled and found out I was the same age as some of the instructors. I was really inspired with that knowledge.

Around the 6 week mark, I noticed I was firming up. After a few more weeks others asked me what I was doing. It’s not been a drastic transformation that is even worthy of a photo, but I feel so much more comfortable in my own skin. The kids ask me every day if I’ve done my Tone It Up workout because they like to hop in with me and do it too. There’s a 7 day free trial if you look up the app and want to try it. Don’t miss Gina’s post about Tone it Up bars too.

God made us all different shapes and sizes. Some people have to work much harder then others when it comes to their weight. I hope you can find a balance and peace in your life about how you look. Your family wants a happy mom and wife. They want a mom that puts on a swimsuit and jumps in the pool with them. Motherhood goes by so quickly there’s not time to waste being hangry or sad about how we look. Be healthy, happy, and content with your mom bod. Have goals to be healthier that you can pass along to your daughters, but remember there’s no room for negativity about our bodies.

I’ll leave you with a cute post I saw recently…

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🍪 We all have that one friend who makes the best treats. #sundaytreats

A post shared by mom.approved.community (@triedandtruemoms) on Sep 2, 2018 at 1:12pm PDT