Lately I have found myself in a few situations where I've listened to people discuss varied dietary habits or choices, or workout regiments. What I've taken away from these conversations (with the occasional "conversation" actually consisting of me eavesdropping or social media creeping) is that people are full of shit and often feel like shit, and would like you to feel like shit with them. Harsh? Maybe. In all reality, I could be in an overly dramatic headspace but for what it's worth, I'm giving myself permission because I've got firsthand experience with the feeling-like-shit part of what we're discussing here, and have also been guilty of trying to bring someone into it with me. Having acknowledged that, my apologies to those who have put up with me along the way. Let me elaborate...
For all the times I told you that one bite of pasta or one bowl of ice cream wasn't a big deal, thank you for not telling me to fuck off. For all the times that I rolled my eyes at you hitting the gym on a Sunday while I sat on the couch, thank you for ignoring my patronizing reaction. For all the times I complained about my body and proceeded to do so with some shitty processed food in my mouth, thank you for not deciding in that moment that I was annoying as fuck, and you had better places to be. Because without a doubt, that was a bunch of average-normal bullshit on my part, and incredibly unsupportive with regard to your above-average and better-than-normal goals and habits.
.JPG)
Just some of that above-average shit I'm talking about... And yeah, post-workout selfies count!
Granted, I'm coming at you as a convert, essentially an evangelist for lifestyle change. But having lived a lot of years in the Church of Normal (my metaphors get out of hand sometimes), I'd like to think my perspective is pretty well-rounded. And in all honesty, I feel the need to apologize to those I have shamed for traits that should be admired. Sustaining a lifestyle that involves discipline and structure is something that is not easy and definitely not always fun, but it is the product of wanting more for yourself, of desiring to be better than what "normal" tells you is acceptable. The reality is that normal people are overweight. Average people eat foods that are destroying their insides. Afterall, average refers to the majority, right? And the last time I checked, the majority of North Americans aren't doing so well in the health department. I feel like there's a new documentary every week about all the shitty food we eat and how fat we are, and it strikes me as worrisome that there continues to be more material to draw from.
I get that this might be annoying as fuck to hear about. I know we all chirp fitness people for their FB and IG posts (follow me @serenaastrid for such posts...and pics of my dog), but I've come to realize that these posts exist because it's fucking exciting to feel good about yourself. It's a wicked feeling to walk into a grocery store with hunger, and to walk out with food that will fill you up and fuel your body, without giving you diabetes. It's a rush to finish a training session after the longest day ever, and to know you could have bitched out, but you didn't. Because you're better. Why do we award medals at the Olympics? Because it's fucking awesome to be better. And guess what, the Olympics were around loooooong before spin class or CrossFit, so recognizing that better is better isn't some novel concept.
Now, before you start on me about balance and all that shit, I'm not promoting extreme behaviours that endanger your health or the health of others. But eating some chicken and kale never hurt anyone. And exercising regularly and consistently isn't obsessive behaviour, it's legit behaviour. I'm far from my end goal, and honestly, I'm not sure if I've identified what that is. What I do know is that when I feel good about making a food-related choice on the ferry, when I'm surrounded by burgers and toast and cinnamon buns and whatever else, I'd prefer that it was a choice that was celebrated, rather than having the cashier confirm with me that all I'd like is eggs and salad. Twice. Just in case I forgot that I was allowed to get some white toast with it. And yeah, that's me chirping you for eating some bread, because there are better things you could eat, so why not eat them?
Odds are good I'm only scratching the surface here, and I will likely rant about this in a more detailed fashion in days to come. I suppose I'm just in the mood to give credit to all of the people I know who don't have "just one bite" and who complete their training after a 10 hour workday, and hopefully writing about this can keep me on track to becoming one of these people. I'm fortunate enough to be surrounded by some pretty amazing individuals who are strong and smart enough to not give a shit about what they would be doing if they were "normal," and are instead smashing workouts and eating amazing food that will likely help them live to be a lot fucking older than average.
I guess the gold medal goes to them...
