A Healthy Body Image: Strong Mind, Strong Body

All through my university years, I was competing heavily in Karate.

I was weight training 3 times a week, karate training 4 times a week, and running every other day to maintain my 117lbs to compete in the lightweight division.

During the off season, I would go easy on maintaining my strict diet and I guess what you call "bulk" a little. I was quite lean, and under weight for my 5'5 frame, since I have never been able to get down to that weight again while trying to maintain a good amount of muscle.

I remember one Halloween party during the off season, a guy I had met at another party once before, came up to me and said "Wow, you're looking so great! The last time I saw you, you were looking too skinny and too muscle-y!"

The problem with statements like that, is that this guy knew nothing about me and actually had the audacity to make judgement about my body. Some may think there is nothing wrong with statements like that, but for years it made me think twice about getting any stronger because I was worried about gaining more muscle, or being too big, or being too skinny, or trying to be everything to everybody. Also, in reality, I was more skinny than I was muscular, as I didn’t have enough muscle mass to sustain any heavy weight lifting activity.

Lucky for me, I had a strong support system of family, friends and coaches that always pushed me to be a better version of myself, and I eventually came to understand that other people's opinions don't count when you are making decisions to enhance your own life. After all, no one has to live your life but you, and since then I have learned to trust in my own judgement and experiences to make decisions about who I want to be and what I want to look like.

Now, I simply want to be strong, I want to be healthy and I want to be able to do things that I couldn't do the day before. Also, I love to eat real food without dieting, I want to lift heavy, and I want to keep adding to my PR.

If I had to listen to the opinions of everyone else, I would probably have to stop doing most of the things that I love... sorry, but all of the things that make me happy are non-negotiable.

I look forward to the day when we stop judging each other for being too big, too skinny, too muscular or too much of anything and just want happiness for one another. Let's just workout to be stronger, to be faster, to be healthy and live long happy lives, and acknowledge that healthy comes in many different shapes and sizes.

To Being Positively Strong,

Sunny