I have to start out by saying that my intended reader here is the normal, regular, average Jane such as myself. I am not talking to aspiring fitness competitors or any sort of professional athlete. I am also not really giving out any fitness advice. I’m a little bitter, coming off a day that I had been dreading for months. After the turn of the new year, April crept closer and closer and I had to swallow the pill of not being able to run the OKC Memorial Marathon. I ran the Half last year and my goal was to run it every year until the end of time. The date of this year’s race was tattooed on the back of my eyelids and it haunted me everyday because my back pain wasn’t going away and I couldn’t run more than a mile. 13 miles was so far out of the question that I had shifted my focus to anything I could do to get better. Strength training, massage, yoga, whining and complaining- anything that could keep my mind off running. So the day of the race came and I cried. I allowed myself about 5 minutes to cry hard and then I made my brain move on because crying wasn’t going to magically fix my problem. I told myself that I have another year to get better and THIS situation and THESE pitiful feelings are going to make running the damn race NEXT year THAT much sweeter.
SO. Like I said, I have been trying to shift my focus onto other things- mainly strength training and weightlifting; however, with my back issues, I have had to lift lighter than I would like.
I follow many female fitness accounts on Instagram and everyone is so damn happy with all their “gains” and all their PR’s they’ve hit, and all their beautiful, toothy smiles have this way of making me feel like my accomplishments are insignificant. The amount of weight I can lift isn’t heavy enough. I can’t run far enough. But here is the thing: and really, maybe I AM giving advice here because the THING IS that I (we) (you) shouldn’t be following people on social media who aren’t in the same situation as me (us) (you). UNLESS I follow ONLY for inspiration and I don’t let myself slip into those feelings of insignificance which is so, so easy to do.
I have back issues. Should I be following Crossfit competitors who can sling double their body weight?
I have a toddler and a husband. Should I be following single girls who’s sole responsibility is to take care of only themselves?
I hate leftover food. Probably shouldn’t be following @Â MealPrepMondays because that shit just ain’t gonna happen.
Since it’s so easy to compare ourselves to others, when it comes to social media in the fitness category, let’s all vow to follow and gain motivation from women who live the same way we do. If you are a nurse or social worker who works very long hours, follow women with the same career. Get tips from them on how they fit their workouts and healthy meals into that busy lifestyle. Moms, follow other moms. For the love of GOD, follow other moms! Sometimes I just shake my head at the iPad and I think “Try doing all that with a kid! Or multiple kids!!” There are so many women out there who balance work, kids, healthy eating, the gym, family- THAT’S impressive. And y’all need to teach me some things.
Don’t get caught up or overwhelmed with fitness accounts ran by athletes who’s JOB is their body. Take all their pictures with a grain of salt. I’m not saying that any of these InstaFamous InstaAthletes haven’t had to overcome challenges, or that they don’t work hard or that they’ve got it easy. I know enough about the fitness industry to know that it certainly carries it’s own challenges. And the women who are in the industry WITH regular jobs AND children are real-life Wonder Women. What I AM saying is, to all of us regular Janes, be careful of how social media makes you feel about yourself and your accomplishments because social Media is not always real life. You want to be uplifted, not pulled down. Just like we were taught as little girls that magazines airbrush, remember that Social Media can be fabricated very easily. Happiness can be faked very easily. I’ll be working on taking my own advice!!
XO,
Dez
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