Be careful with “I Wish”…

Today I saw a woman I was in complete awe of. She was taking part in a Cross Fit challenge at Perth Exhibition Centre and rocking a full on 6 pack in a sports bra and tiny shorts. Her physique was simply incredible, no other way I can describe it. And whilst her body was something of a masterpiece in many ways and I felt a huge amount of respect towards her, I have to say I was glad to find myself saying to my friend “She looks amazing but I wouldn’t want that body”. Why you ask? Well because I realised soon after that whilst I would like to be more toned or a little leaner or change certain parts of myself, like 99% of us do, I could appreciate this woman for what she was without an ounce of jealousy and not by comparing myself to her.

How many times have you seen a person and found yourself wishing that you had what they had? Wishing you were as thin as them? As fit as them? As pretty as them? And then begun to compare yourself and start picking apart each little thing you aren’t quite happy with about yourself? Done that recently have you…?

Jealousy is a nasty little thing. It can steal away present moments and bring out a side in people they never knew they had. You are always going to come across someone who has something you want or who seems further along in life than you; they could have an amazing job, that caring partner or those ripped arms you one day see yourself showing off in a halter neck.

But the beauty of working towards your own goals and being the best version of YOU and you only, is that when you see others achieving their own success you can genuinely be happy for them. By following a path true to you, regardless of the outcome you hope to achieve, you will feel a sense of satisfaction in knowing that you are on your own journey and you too will reach your goals in life. Whether it be job satisfaction or dropping a few kilos it’s all the same. We all have ambitions, hopes, aspirations, dreams; whatever you want to call them! It’s when we start to lose focus of what we as an individual want in life or stop pushing ourselves to go after it that we can begin to act bitterly towards those who do.

Go after what it is that you want; eat the way you want to eat because it makes you feel great or workout 6 times a week because you have a bikini you want to look amazing in. But do so with dignity and a passion that ignites a spark in others and not a negative attitude that leaves a foul taste in someone’s mouth.

Don’t wish for what others have and be envious that you don’t have it. Make your own goals, race after them and I guarantee everything else will fall into place…

Back to the books

When people ask me what would I do if I won the lottery my answer is always the same…

“I would buy the rights to Channing Tatum’s 6 pack and i’d love to study again.”

Because if I had Channing’s 6 pack I could use it as a desk to do all of my work on and each time I felt like my head hurt I could lay down on him and….ok, getting slightly side tracked now!

But seriously, I love to learn! And when I was at college I dropped out because I wanted to start earning money and being a grown up – I thought paying bills would somehow make me feel important.

And in a strange kind of way it did, I like my routine and the fact that I come home from work each day feeling like I have achieved something. But the opportunity to soak up more information is something I like to grab at any opportunity, especially when it is something i’m passionate about like health and fitness.

When it comes down to it I know what works for me and what makes me feel good. I don’t like to slog my guts out doing the same gym routine day in day out and I can’t live off protein only forever. I like to do a mixture of workouts, some that make me feel like I want to vomit i’ve pushed myself so hard and others at a more steady pace for when I feel like I need to clear my mind. I love experimenting with new recipes to keep my meals interesting and learning about new ingredients. And I simply love sharing everything with anyone who will listen so a course in Fitness is just made for me!!

Hence I am now a full time working student 🙂 That’s right, full time worker by day and student by night, I am on the track to obtaining my level 3 and 4 in Fitness and couldn’t be happier. It will be great to back up my beliefs and thoughts with facts and actually learn more about this limitless topic I am interested in. Who knows where this qualification will take me in the future – for now i’m happy to simply be studying in my spare time and increasing my knowledge on a subject i’m crazy about.

However we go about being our best selves, whatever exercise we like and whatever foods we eat that best suit our wellbeing, one thing is for sure:

A healthy person is a happy person 🙂

Who are we to judge?

I think unfortunately it’s in our nature to judge. As a species we are so competitive and constantly strive to be better and there is nothing wrong with that. But does being our best self make as any better than the person next to us? Does eating a sugar free diet make us better than our friend who starts her day off with a croissant and jam? Or does the fact that we run 5 kilometres every day make us better than the stranger we travel past doing a fast walk?

The answer is no.

Being a truly wonderful version of you is not all based on a rocking body that you feel confident in and an attitude to match – it goes so much deeper than that. You aren’t better than someone simply because you have worked for a body you’re proud of or because you haven’t eaten a carbohydrate in 2 years. And your idea of a happy weight or way to eat is more than likely going to be completely different to at least 90% of the rest of the population so why waste your breath judging others around you just because they don’t believe in what you do?

Be proud of what you have achieved and the journey you have taken. Share it with others and be excited that you have found yourself! But beware the fine line of sharing and preaching…

I like to remind myself sometimes that if I could eat ice cream covered with marshmallows and toffee sauce and chocolate sprinkles and caramel wafers…caramel…caramel…caramel………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..where was I? Oh right ice cream! So I like to ask myself, if I could eat ice cream with let’s say (to be on the safe side) a variety of delightful toppings for each meal for the rest of my life and not work out and have the body of a Victoria’s Secret Angel then would I? Uhhhh hell yeah! I mean who wouldn’t right? But the simple fact of the matter is that just won’t work for me and the harsh truth is i’d probably kill myself within a year or turn into a 99 flake. Oh and just so we’re clear I wouldn’t last longer than a day as a 99 flake as either i’d eat myself or the dog would so this is just not an option for me! The point is if we are really honest with ourselves, we would most likely choose the easy way if it were viable in helping us achieve our goals. Only it’s never that simple and if it were, well it wouldn’t be a journey now would it.

So instead we set our goals and we work hard for them, sometimes making sacrifices and doing things that we might not always want to do and yes I get it. I understand the frustration that can arise when you say no to the bread basket or no to that cocktail with your friends because it’s not going to help with your class tomorrow. I appreciate it can be difficult and seem a little unfair and so when we finally hit our goal we may somehow think we are ever so slightly inferior to everyone else. But step down from your pedestal and don’t judge because they’re on their third cosmopolitan of the night – it’s not their journey remember.

Instead be graceful and embrace their choices as you would hope for them to embrace yours because after all, what’s so special about everyone being the same??

Make your journey a positive one by letting go of any negativity and in doing so you’ll make it so much easier for yourself, I promise 🙂