What's been bothering me lately...

I want to go off topic a little with this post and discuss an issue that really has been bothering me lately, body image.

As I have shared on my blog, I recently took up a martial art. That martial art has burgeoned into three and naturally my body has changed from all this extra physical activity.

I didn’t start doing martial arts because I wanted to lose weight but it appears to be a side effect that I’m not upset about.

Now I’m not skinny, never really have been and I’m comfortable with that. I love my hourglass figure. So losing weight as a result of martial arts has granted me more than a few comments about my body.

“You look great!” “Keep doing it, you’ll be skinny in no time.” “What is your goal weight?” “You should buy a set of scales to monitor your weight loss.” The list goes on. In all honesty, it pisses me off.

Why? Because, I am a woman. It’s no secret that given half a chance ANY woman will have body image issues. Give a woman a set of scales and she’ll obsess over her weight. Tell her how many calories she’s allowed to have a day and she’ll be counting those fuckers like her life depends on it. It is scarily easy for women to develop, or delve deeper into these things.

I don’t own a set of scales. I don’t give a shit how much sugar, natural or otherwise, is in my fruit salad. And please, don’t tell me that bananas are not good for me. There is so much ‘research’ and marketing out there to tell us what we should and shouldn’t eat, how we should look, and what we should weigh.

I say fuck that. Fuck anyone who pushes that shit.

My desire is to be healthy. Fruits and vegetables are good for you. Don’t let any idiot tell you otherwise. And if I want to eat a piece of chocolate cake, you can bet my plump ass I’m gonna devour that thing. My body. My choice.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not pro-fat or pro-skinny. I’m pro-it’s my body and as long as I’m happy then it’s none of your damn business. Now I know those people who are commenting on my smaller dress size were only trying to be nice, I can appreciate that. I just don’t agree with behaviours that perpetuate body image issues.

I am Alysha. I have interests and hobbies, passions and careers. Ask me about any of those. The topic of my body is not up for discussion unless I ask you directly for your opinion.

In closing I’m going to share a link from Brittany Herself. Brittany recently hit the Huffington Post with a post, ‘How do I teach my daughter to love her body?’ Every woman, mother, and daughter should read this. There is a lot we can learn from her methods.

Mad Love
Alysha