I've been on both ends of the spectrum. I've been the fat girl that was ignored and mistreated. I've been the girl that wore the swimsuit with a skirt and felt humiliated to be seen on the beach. I once had to beg a group of salesmen in a car stereo shop to help me. ALL of them were standing around...not busy...none wanted to wait on me and the one that finally did, walked off in the middle of my question to help a young, thin girl that walked in. I remember leaving and sitting in my minivan crying in the parking lot. I've also been the girl that walks in to a room or a bar and had all heads turn and watch my every move. I've had salespeople fight over who would help me. I've felt a sense of pride as I walk down the beach in a bikini. When you make the kinds of changes that I have made and you've swung so far on each end of the pendulum, it's hard not to feel a little "better than" sometimes. When you do the kinds of rigorous, extreme, difficult movements and workouts that I have done, it's hard not to feel a little elitist. I'm so glad that I don't.
Most everyone thinks that THEIR way...is the best way. I mean, why else would we chose to do the things we do if we didn't think that? And so it's easy for people that are bigger to put down people that are thinner and easy for thinner people to think bigger people should do something different or more. We are conditioned to narrow our view of what is pretty or what is strong or what is right. We think "pretty" means a certain color hair or a special kind of makeup...that being "good" means acting one way...that being "strong" should look like a certain body type. I have learned over the years that that is just not the case. Beauty and goodness and strength come in many different shapes and sizes. If we close ourselves off to the ways or looks that are different from our own...we lose out on so much. When we choose to close our minds to different ways, we limit our OWN possibilities and rob ourselves of the opportunity to grow and become better. We waste precious time we could be spending developing ourselves, trying to look or be like someone else. A lean yoga instructor and a female powerlifter both have different strengths and beautiful bodies, but if the female powerlifter thinks she should look like the yoga instructor...she will end up hating herself and never truly appreciate the beauty and the strength that she has.
Most everyone thinks that THEIR way...is the best way. I mean, why else would we chose to do the things we do if we didn't think that? And so it's easy for people that are bigger to put down people that are thinner and easy for thinner people to think bigger people should do something different or more. We are conditioned to narrow our view of what is pretty or what is strong or what is right. We think "pretty" means a certain color hair or a special kind of makeup...that being "good" means acting one way...that being "strong" should look like a certain body type. I have learned over the years that that is just not the case. Beauty and goodness and strength come in many different shapes and sizes. If we close ourselves off to the ways or looks that are different from our own...we lose out on so much. When we choose to close our minds to different ways, we limit our OWN possibilities and rob ourselves of the opportunity to grow and become better. We waste precious time we could be spending developing ourselves, trying to look or be like someone else. A lean yoga instructor and a female powerlifter both have different strengths and beautiful bodies, but if the female powerlifter thinks she should look like the yoga instructor...she will end up hating herself and never truly appreciate the beauty and the strength that she has.
Strength comes in ALL shapes and sizes. Fitness blogs and websites and magazines are a dime a dozen. You can find endless diet plans or workout plans or pictures of half naked fitness models. The world does NOT need more of that! What is different about me and the "Strong is the new skinny" Facebook page is that in MY eyes, there is NO one too skinny or too big to too strong or not strong enough or too sexy or not sexy enough. I truly believe that appearance is just a great side effect of the hard work we do in the gym. All of us are at different places and everyone should be working to better themselves rather than judging anyone else or feeling like we need t
o look like anyone else! I've said it so many times before and I'll say it again...BE THE BEST YOU, YOU CAN BE!
o look like anyone else! I've said it so many times before and I'll say it again...BE THE BEST YOU, YOU CAN BE!
From Rascal:
ReplyDeleteOnce more...an amazing blog post from you. You are truly one of the wonderful people on the Earth.
Thank you for what you have said. Thank you for the life you have chosen to live, for the being and becoming the person that you have chosen to be, day after day. The world would miss a bright Daughter of Light were you not here.
I deeply appreciate you and I know that you are lighting the way for tens of thousands of people, especially women.
I smile occasionally as I cover a lot of ground on the Internet, compiling information, when I run into a picture of a smiling woman wearing a SINS shirt. Although quite often it is her back that is shown, wearing a Marsha produced SINS shirt. A well muscled back.
Your "best" blog today expresses what so many of us need to hear. Thank you again.
I so relate to this post. I've been on both sides too, going from a high school weight of 140, to a first two years of college weight of 220 to a now weight of 118. For a while, all I wanted, was to get "skinny." And I did. I dropped down to 108 pounds last year and looked like a skeleton. People started criticizing me just as badly for being "too skinny" as the did for being "too fat." I couldn't seem to make anybody happy with my weight. That's when I tried rock climbing. I loved it, and I kept looking around at the really good climbing chicks and realized how GOOD they looked. They weren't super skinny, some were even what some would consider "big." But they were all just so damn STRONG. I wanted to be strong. And I wanted to be strong for ME. I wanted to be strong to be a good climber...there's nothing like topping off a hard route. SO for a year now, I've been focusing on STRONG and HEALTHY. I couldn't be happier. Strong IS the new skinny...thank God for the revolution!!!
ReplyDeleteHi Marsha! I have been reading your posts through the SINS Facebook site for a few weeks now, and I think you are such an inspiration! I too have been on both ends of the spectrum. Now, I am ready to start making myself stronger and healthier, for LIFE. I was hoping you could answer a few questions for me regarding more specifically how you got to where you are. Like what types of food you eat, what is your typical work out like, etc. And of course, how did you get your killer abs, even after having kids?! I have had 2 kids, and I hate my stomach. Any advice would be appreciated! Thank you. --- Katie B.
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