What Does FIT mean or look like to you?
What do fit women look like?
Today I was called a “Jacked up He-She” on Facebook for one of my mini-workout videos that I posted to help people get inspired to workout.
Honestly, it doesn’t bother me. Truly. Maybe when I was younger it would have, when I was dying to be emaciated and thin, but my body could just never get there.
But, at the age of 42, I’ve come to own my body, value it, and appreciate the great gift that God has given me, muscle.
I can’t hide it. Sure, I probably could get rid of it, but only if I also got rid of the fat on me, and that would be by doing everything wrong. Starving myself.
I’ve always been able to gain muscle really easy, and have always had a thicker frame. Always been very athletic. This is a picture 
from my senior year in high school. I struggled accepting myself and comparing myself to others. I tried many ways to get skinny. Secretly drinking slim fast, starving myself, trying to be bulimic, obsessive exercise, anything.
This continued into my 20’s, where I was on a severe yo-yo path.
Obsessively trying to get as skinny as one of my sister’s, because she got all the attention from all the guys.
I’d balloon back up and do anything to try and lose the weight, even trying to use illegal pills from a different country guaranteed to make you skinny. They didn’t work. I would always resort to my tried and true efforts, starving myself. Eating Sugar Free Jello with grapes for lunch.
Eating mustard lettuce sandwiches. Drinking Slim Fast.
This was so damaging to my confidence, my self worth, and my self love. I would only feel good about myself when
I would starve myself to get skinny for Spring break, and only eat Jolly Rancher’s candy while I was there.
I really didn’t come to accept my body type until I was in my 30’s. I appreciated the muscle I was given and not until I dove deep into bettering myself mentally with personal development and educating myself about how the body works, healthfully, I came to love me.
I’m a mesomorph. Someone who gains muscle easy and also can gain fat easy. It’s crazy that my body is more lean and healthy now at the age of 42 than when I was 18.
This is me in my senior year prom dress. Then and now.
Everyone’s perception or desire on what they consider FIT or “In Shape”, is different. Yes, there are levels of extremes.
Obviously, the fear of women lifting weights brings up images of woman who take enhancements to get to this level for competition.
Or like Lauren Powers who was featured on the tv show “My Strange Addiction”, in which she openly talks about it.
But, we are so inundated with images of “fit” success by celebrities, that becomes an obsessed focus.
Some may like this look of overly developed muscles.
Some might like this look of underdeveloped muscles.
But truth is, your body needs muscle. Muscle burns fat. Muscle gives you shape. Muscle holds your body up. Muscle allows you to be powerful. Muscle allows you to move easier.
How much you create is up to your genetics and your desire.
I like the look of muscle. I like a certain level of definition.
I have always liked the look of Fitness Professional, Monica Brant. I’ve always inspired to look like her as I felt our body types were the same.
What it boils down to, is everyone has their own opinion.
You can’t put value into it, as you don’t know where they are coming from as well as their ignorance or lack of maturity. 😉
Being a fitness professional, and helping others achieve a level of fitness, I have heard it all:
“Gross, I don’t want muscular arms”
“I’d LOVE to have muscular arms”
“YUCK, look at her stomach muscles!” “I’m working really hard to define my abs and cut the belly fat”
“She looks like a man” “She looks super athletic”
It goes on and on. YOU have to make sure you put the time into educating yourself, understanding what is healthy, where you feel good, and where you feel the most accepting and confident in your own self.
For me, I feel great. I love my muscle and wish I could keep it as defined as possible all the time. But for me as I mentioned before, I can gain fat easy. So I give moments of being leaner then other times to allow free liberties of food and drink.
But, what’s most important to me, is being an example to my kids. I don’t want them to go through what I went through. I want them to believe that exercise is just a normal daily part life, like brushing your teeth.
That being strong and creating muscle allows you to be athletic, to be powerful, to achieve your physical goals. That they create confidence in themselves and believe in themselves. That they are beautiful, caring, and that being “fit” comes in all shapes and sizes. But also, they aren’t rude, ignorant, and immature. 