If only....

If only I could lose 10 pounds I could wear that new dress/try a dance class/find a mate/be happy.

Do you tell yourself some version of the sentence above?  Do you limit the activities you do because you don't think you're pretty enough or skinny enough?  Tell the truth.  The answer is probably yes.

There's a disjoint in this country between what advertisers tell us to eat and what Hollywood tells us to look like.  Ever want to see what real people look like on TV?  Watch a British TV show and see that yes, women can have arm fat AND be stars.

The dirty little secret that the entertainment media doesn't want us to know is that regular people have love handles and hips and butts.  Now, these same people can be in great shape too by doing activities that they love, not caring what the world thinks.  If you hold Gwyneth Paltrow up as your standard of beauty to strive for, you're sure to come up short.

Sure, some people are born skinny and can eat anything to stay tiny but most people have to starve themselves to be a size zero.  Do you want to starve yourself?  If the answer's no, then it's time to chuck the ol' body image issues out the window and live like you love life!  Exercise because you love the way it makes you feel, not because you want to loose 5 pounds.  Eat veggies because they taste fabulous and you feel good after eating them.  And for goodness sake, wear a bathing suit!  Summer only comes around once a year so you may as well enjoy it!

People, it's time to love your life, including your body and stop abusing yourself because you look the way you look.  This is the only body you get, it's getting older one day at a time so you may as well enjoy what you have right now while you have it!

Photo from freedigitalphotos.net by AKARAKINGDOMS