Hi Tarsh here, back with another installment of my blog series taking look at body image and self esteem.
Remember to credit your body for all the awesome stuff it can do
I recently read an article where Ronda Rousey (former UFC Champion) uploaded a photo-shopped picture of herself to her social media. The photo was sent to her to post in order to promote a TV appearance, and she didn’t notice the editing. She quickly took it down and put up the original, with an explanation for her fans.
You see, the photo-shopping had slimmed Ronda’s arms. Ordinarily, many women would appreciate this editing (normal reaction don’t worry), but the way Ronda sees her body, is that we should all appreciate our own. She has worked long and hard for her sport, and this is what her arms look like as a result. I’m sure she has put in countless hours training and getting her body physically ready for competing and it is not about what her body looks like. Rather, it is about what her body can do.
In psychology, this discrepancy is appearance vs. functionality. People generally exercise in order to achieve something somewhere on the sliding scale between the two. For Ronda, it is all functional. She needs her body to be strong and be able to perform and endure what she does for a living. Many people these days, however, exercise mainly for appearance reasons. They want to tone up, or lose weight or get bigger muscles. When the functionality aspect is lost completely, that is when it can get dangerous. Skipping meals can cause you to miss out on important nutrition, and steroid use does not make you stronger (proportionately) but has so many negative effects on your physical health.
Who has the better body image? Answer: the people who appreciate their bodies for what it can do and not so much for what it looks like. If you’ve given birth, run a marathon or broken a bone, I hope you know how absolutely incredible it is that your body could get through that. Even if you can go upstairs, touch your toes or go for a walk; we shouldn’t take these things for granted. Exercise for function. So you can pick up a box without hurting yourself, so your core muscles can support your back from slouching and so you can walk to the shops without puffing.
Body image improves with age. As people get older, they learn to love their bodies for what it can do, and who cares if it doesn’t still look the same! You hear stories of older or elderly people being fitter and stronger than they have ever been, and you can bet it isn’t so they can squeeze into a size 6 or show off huge guns in singlet.
Let us know what you think.
Tarsh
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Self esteem Body ImageSpeaking to someone about your problems can be the first steps to a solution.
