byways4life
New member
Hey yall, I just wanted to share something positive that’s been a side effect of my fitness journey. I started going to the gym and getting serious about weight lifting in July of last year, after having always been one of those girls who didn’t touch weights because I “didn’t wanna get bulky”. I started at 5’1 135 lbs, my highest weight ever, and I got down to about 120 and was loving the way I looked. Then I fell of the wagon and gained it back.
The biggest surprise to me is that I still love my
body even back up at my highest weight now. I kept up with the gym and weight lifting even as I knew I was fucking it all up with my eating habits, so I didn’t lost strength or muscle. Just a few weeks ago I snapped myself out of it and got back on track with my diet. When I say I love my body now, I don’t mean that I’m satisfied. I’d like to relose those 15 lbs and maybe 5-10 more at most, while continuing to build muscle. But when I look in the mirror now, I don’t see a fat girl, I see a strong woman who has worked hard to build a muscular body that just happens to be carrying a little bit of extra fat on the surface right now. But it’s no sweat because I know it’ll come off again eventually.
This might sound pretty simple to some people, but it’s life-changing for me. I struggled with an eating disorder and body dysmorphia in the past. At my lowest I was like 95 lbs and I still hated my body. I’ve wasted 35 years of my life wanting desperately to be skinny. I would have done almost anything to be skinny. And now, I don’t actually want that at all anymore. Being skinny like I used to covet would mean losing all the gains I’ve made. It would mean losing my butt and thighs, which I used to want to carve off with a turkey carver and are now some of my favorite assets. I genuinely LOVE my body now, even as I recognize room for improvement.
So I wanted to thank this sub and others who helped me take the plunge to start working out, because I would still be that girl trying to diet my way into size 0 jeans otherwise (not that there’s anything wrong with people who do wear size 0, or those who are skinny. Everyone’s body goals are different).
The biggest surprise to me is that I still love my
body even back up at my highest weight now. I kept up with the gym and weight lifting even as I knew I was fucking it all up with my eating habits, so I didn’t lost strength or muscle. Just a few weeks ago I snapped myself out of it and got back on track with my diet. When I say I love my body now, I don’t mean that I’m satisfied. I’d like to relose those 15 lbs and maybe 5-10 more at most, while continuing to build muscle. But when I look in the mirror now, I don’t see a fat girl, I see a strong woman who has worked hard to build a muscular body that just happens to be carrying a little bit of extra fat on the surface right now. But it’s no sweat because I know it’ll come off again eventually.
This might sound pretty simple to some people, but it’s life-changing for me. I struggled with an eating disorder and body dysmorphia in the past. At my lowest I was like 95 lbs and I still hated my body. I’ve wasted 35 years of my life wanting desperately to be skinny. I would have done almost anything to be skinny. And now, I don’t actually want that at all anymore. Being skinny like I used to covet would mean losing all the gains I’ve made. It would mean losing my butt and thighs, which I used to want to carve off with a turkey carver and are now some of my favorite assets. I genuinely LOVE my body now, even as I recognize room for improvement.
So I wanted to thank this sub and others who helped me take the plunge to start working out, because I would still be that girl trying to diet my way into size 0 jeans otherwise (not that there’s anything wrong with people who do wear size 0, or those who are skinny. Everyone’s body goals are different).