“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.”
~Henry David Thoreau
Hello. My name is
David and I have a body image problem. I
have always been too skinny or too fat or too big around the middle. I am never “just right” and I am never lean
enough. There are many reasons that I am
a big guy: my genetics (all the guys in my family were big), work ethic (I do
just enough at the gym to maintain), and general insecurities that I never have
gotten over from childhood. I also love
to eat, refuse to be a vegan, and I don’t really want to work out six hours a
day (four or five times a week for about an hour is plenty). Oh, did I mention I
REALLY LOVE to eat?
I succumb to all the same media hype that brainwashes many
women. For them, it is the supermodels, Victoria’s Secret angels, and the fit
actresses. For men, it is the Ralph Lauren cologne models, the athletes with
six-pack abs, and the bodybuilders. Men
will not admit it, but they are influenced by the “ideal” body image more times
than they want to admit.
This is a problem that I will undoubtedly deal with the rest
of my life. There are a number of ways to address this issue. The first is to
give up hope and let your body run into disrepair, give yourself some slack,
and let nature take its course. You can
look at the people in your family and just resign yourself to the fact that you
will look like your older relatives someday.
Cancel your gym membership (that’s a waste of money anyway). Eat whatever you want. You may still exercise,
but just enough to keep up with your food consumption. If you run a mile, that means you can get a
double cheeseburger instead of a single and don’t have to feel guilty about
those second helpings.
A second option is to put your training regimen into third
or fourth gear. Hire a personal trainer
and completely change your eating habits. Only shop at the health food store.
Take enough vitamins every day to hear yourself rattle when you walk. Never
indulge or treat yourself. Stay away
from all bad foods and beverages and work out incessantly. Sadly, after six
months, you will look in the mirror and probably still not be happy. There will
always be the person at the gym with lower body fat or more developed
muscles. You may have an amazing body,
but other body image issues will take over.
For women, certain body parts will give in to the effects of gravity.
For men, your hairline will continue to recede no matter how fast you try to
hold it back.
There has to be a middle ground and I am constantly searching
for it. I want to challenge and push
myself, but also know that it is impractical to work out three hours a day.
Sure I could do it for a few months, but there is no way I could keep it up for
years. I want to find exercises that keep me in shape, add variety to my
routine, and continue to improve a little each year. I am a person that likes to set goals, so I
have chosen to run a couple of 5Ks a year and walk one or two as well. As far as food goes, I want to start eating cleaner
and continue to keep away from fries, buffets, and opportunities to overeat.
But I must learn to give myself a few days a month to indulge. I will
occasionally have the fries, but very rarely. I will teach myself to stop
eating when I want to keep going. I also want to work on my body fat and bring
it down to a reasonable level. I will
probably never have six-pack abs, but that’s alright.
The key is learning to be discontented with your body without choosing
either extreme. I think a slight unhappiness with your body is a good thing,
but only as it compares to your personal motivations. Don’t let anyone tell you that you have to
look a certain way. Be your own personal
trainer and push yourself, but find a few friends that can give you a nudge
when you need it. Get in shape and stay in shape for the right reasons, mainly
for your health and to be able to have an active and productive life.
