If you read my last past, you know that weight gain during many phases of life is 100% normal for women. For example:
Girls gain on average 21-26 kg between the ages of 10-16 (CDC Data)
During pregnancy, the recommended/anticipated amount of weight gain varies, but is generally in the 9-15 kg range.
During the menopause transition, women will likely gain anywhere from 5-15 kg.
These aren’t failures of control, errors of genetics, or other massive rips in the space/time continuum. It’s biology. Plain and simple.
Yet we fight it (or are taught to fight it) every single step of the way. And it’s exhausting! (And, a bit like pushing the boulder up the hill: pretty endless and defeating).
What if we used all this energy, anxiety, worry, focus, dare I say OBSESSION, with shrinking, controlling, trying to avoid the inevitable that is biology and just, I don’t know, STOP?!
Heresy, right? Unheard of. Because if you’re not trying to change your body, what is the alternative? Do you even care? Have you “given up” or “let yourself go”? Are you going to immediately die of diabetes? HELL NO! But this is what society wants women to think.
So let’s consider what other things we could do with all this energy, time, money. Here are a few ideas. I’d love to hear what YOU decide to do next.
Move it! Take up weightlifting, masters swimming, hiphop dancing, open-water kayaking, surfing, or just hiking in the forest. Enjoying BEING in your body versus objectifying and shaming it.
Learn to cook foods you REALLY enjoy! Take a cooking class. Travel to another country and take a local food tour. Learn how to make pain au chocolat, baguettes or eclairs. Have FUN with food!
Do something creative! Learn to paint, draw, crochet, knit, macramé, sew, throw pottery, play a musical instrument or take voice lessons. Use your body and brain together in a way that lights you up!
Connect with others. Dieting, restricting food and constantly worrying about what we eat isolates us, makes our lives smaller. Go have coffee (and a pastry!) with a friend. Meet your partner for lunch on a work day. Throw a pizza party with your friends. Make a sundae bar for your kids. Enjoy the heck out of Taco Tuesday. Make plans and see people. I promise, you wont regret this (even us introverts need this!).
Travel, Explore, Learn. There is so much out there we miss when we’re so inwardly focused, self-monitoring and shaming ourselves. It can be easy to lose perspective and miss the wonder, beauty and energy the world has to offer. Getting out of your day to day and testing your own limits, going beyond your comfort zone - these will all give you more satisfaction and joy in the long-run than any diet can.
So what will you do with this one big beautiful life?