The Long Road to Loving Yourself

This may be the first post in a long line of topics related to self-love...and I'm not referencing all-out narcissism or anything. Too many women nowadays are literally hitched to the self-loathing wagon and anyone who isn't seems to get the sharp edge of the hatred stick. By no means am I a perfect example--rather I choose to work at my relationship with myself on a daily basis. I read this article today from one of the groups I follow on FB:

http://www.jencomaskeck.com/2012/06/dear-self-you-look-damn-good-today.html

I had to laugh because subconsciously I do the exact same thing. I look at myself in the mirror, and I start to meticulously pick apart everything I don't like about my body. I wonder when this trend started to become second nature? When did women start reducing themselves to piles of sub-standard flesh? There's no doubt this practice is harmful in so many ways to our psyche, which is why I'm sort of rebelling against the societal norm in several ways. The first is diet related. After my month-long detox/fast I started an intermittent fasting protocol (don't freak out yet folks) which calls for a 6-8 hr eating window followed by fasting until the next day. This isn't much different than what people do everyday anyway (you don't eat while you sleep) but it just extends a bit into my normal day. The following websites are a wealth of information on the subject, but for now I want to focus on the idea of self-love:

http://fitnessbaddie.wordpress.com/

http://www.leangains.com/

I can tell you that since I have embarked on this journey of no longer hating my body every second of every day, eating large amounts of food I love, lifting heavy things and NOT running anymore (a subject I can go on about incessantly) I have felt a greater sense of relief and personal freedom. Even if I don't happen to hit some magical number on a scale, I have the proof of strength gains and more muscle which in aesthetic terms looks better to me than just a thinner version of myself. I've even caught myself looking at someone else and thinking "I remember when I wanted to look like that, but now I think I'd like to have more muscle."

I guess it just goes to show we can change our realities one thought at a time.

Blessings,

Denora