What does it mean to be happy?

I was discussing weight loss and fitness with another mom the other night while at one of my kid’s sporting events. She (a “tight” size 4) was sharing with me her frustration with recent weight gain and how she was unhappy with the infamous POOCH that we women get both after child bearing and age. I (a comfortable size 18) was polite and listened to her venting, all the while thinking to myself “I would KILL to be YOUR size. What one Earth are you complaining about?” She continued to tell me that although she realized that she was “thin”, there were still so many things about her body that she did not like. She had noticed that cellulite was appearing, she was a size larger now than she had ever been before, and there were areas that she wished she could suck in or have contoured. It was then that I had sort of an epiphany:

Even FIT and TRIM people can be unhappy!

I know it seems kind of naive and silly, but somehow I associated “thin” to be synonymous with “happy.” I mean, somewhere along my journey to lose weight, I began to believe that when I meet my goal weight, I will be HAPPY. I will be content with who I am and my appearance, I will be thankful for my size, that all of my problems will be solved and that world peace will have been accomplished. Well, OK…maybe not that last thought…

I now realized that even if I meet my goal one shining day, although I will rejoice in my accomplishment, losing the weight alone will not bring me happiness.  Even after loosing all of my weight, my body will likely NOT resemble that of the 18 year old swim suit models (a tough pill to swallow, I know). Humans are SO critical of each other, and the worst offenders when it comes to ourselves. I realized that it doesn’t matter how much weight I lose, how physically fit I am, or how beautiful my face is. If I can’t accept WHO I AM regardless of what I look like, I will never find happiness. Becoming comfortable in my skin because of who I am, what I stand for and believe, is the ONLY way I can reach my utopian existence, because if I am not, if I do not love myself enough, I will NOT allow myself to succeed.

You know that old saying, “beauty is only skin deep?” My conversation this weekend really made me realize how true that saying is.


Until Tomorrow!
Keep healthy, keep safe and keep going!

Have an awesome day!

♥Fit~NOW~Girl♥