Happy Mother’s Day Monday!
A dear client shared this quote (see below) with me and I thought it was appropriate for Mother’s Day (and everyday, really). I wanted to share my favorite excerpts with ya’ll and I hope you can resonate with the message. Even if you never knew your mother, or are not a mother. And for those of you that struggle with fertility, I see you and understand. I can’t have kids, but God has blessed me in other ways and I’m a proud mama to 2 cats + 1 dog.
“Imagine a woman who believes it is right and good she is a woman.
A woman who honors her experience and tells her stories.
Imagine a woman who trusts and respects herself.
A woman who listens to her needs and desires.
Who meets them with tenderness and grace.
Imagine a woman who acknowledges the past’s influence on the present.
A woman who has walked through her past.
Who has healed into the present.
Imagine a woman who authors her own life.
A woman who exerts, initiates, and moves on her own behalf.
Who refuses to surrender except to her truest self and wisest voice.
Imagine a woman in love with her own body.
A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is.
Who celebrates its rhythms and cycles as an exquisite resource.
Imagine yourself as this woman.”
-Patricia Lynn Reilly
My favorite line:
Imagine a woman who trusts and respects herself… Imagine a woman in love with her own body. A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is.
I grew up in a house where my parents never dieted. They never talked about their weight (or mine), body image, and never once told me or my three sisters that there are any off-limits foods. My parents always encouraged us to eat balanced meals. And we always enjoyed some dessert 😉 They always encouraged fun (and competitive) physical activity and my parents encouraged me to work hard and be strong.
So maybe you can’t change the way you were brought up and what your folks taught you (or didn’t)… but you can change your current lifestyle and your mindset.
Here’s one thing you can start doing TODAY.
It will change your life.
And if you have kids, it will change their views on food, fitness, and body image.
Start speaking kindly to yourself. Don’t say anything to yourself that you wouldn’t say to your children or your best friend. So if you wouldn’t tell your 6 year old that they are a failure because they ate 3 cupcakes at a party, why do you think it’s ok to tell yourself that? What you tell the young child that indulged on some cake or pizza at a party? Hopefully something like this: “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself at the party and loved the foods. Let’s make sure we have a balanced dinner with some protein and veggies.” Give yourself grace and move on. No snowballs, all or none, or quitting. When you love yourself you give your body respect. You feed it and move it out of a place of love and not hate.
Do you believe your body is enough, just as it is? How can you better trust and respect yourself? How can you love your own body?
