Do I Have To Get Naked To Prove I'm Fit?
Ok, I don't mean literally naked. What I mean to say is: do I need to take photos of myself wearing minimal clothing to prove that I'm "fit?" It's totally unavoidable these days; you log onto Instagram and BAM there's a girl with a six pack, wearing nothing but a bra top, tiny gym shorts, who's perfectly tanned, and you guessed it: she's into fitness. She blogs about it, she writes about it, maybe she even makes a living out of it.
I'm not trying to say that doing that is wrong: you've got a great body, of course you want to show it off! But where does that leave the rest of us, who might be really fit, eat super healthy, train hard, but don't quite want to take such revealing photos of themselves all the time? I don't know about you, but the huge pressure I feel to "prove" to the online world that I'm fit is immense. I love to workout, I love to eat clean, I love to feel good about myself, and I love knowing that my boyfriend thinks I'm attractive. What I don't love is how often I find myself feeling self conscious about the fact that I don't often post photos of my six pack (disclaimer: there isn't one.) Am I only, truly, healthy and fit when I can confidently post a photo of an incredible six pack? I've posted photos on my Instagram account before of my progress, but did that make me feel good about myself? Honestly... most of the time I was ended up spending more time worrying that people would look at them and judge my new found confidence. You can't win!
Now, I'm not suggesting that all these amazingly fit, really attractive girls should stop posting photos of their incredible bodies (oh my goodness, please don't, I have so much admiration!) but what I'm trying to say it, can't there be some balance? One person who I've seen take this on really well is one of my favourite fitness bloggers: Zanna Van Dijk. She's young, super tall, and really, really fit. She shows off her great bod, but she writes very truthfully about the fact that she isn't perfect; and that reassures me. It shows that you can be fit, feel good about yourself, whilst not being 100% perfect.
[video width="568" height="320" mp4="http://www.oliviablogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/boxing.mp4"][/video]
The good news is that I feel fit and strong. I've never actually felt so good about what my body can do! The video above shows that (thanks to my PT Steve for filming!) I've got a few things I still want to sort out (like actually be able to lift that 60KG deadlift properly without passing out because I'm not breathing), and I definitely have body conformation goals... and that's ok! I'm just not sure I'll be posting on Instagram about my six pack all the time.
Anyway, I'm definitely rambling, but this has been on my mind. What are your thoughts on this? Do you feel pressure to prove to the world that you're fit? I'd love to know!
