Longer days and hotter weather can mean only one thing: spring is nearing. And along with spring comes spring break - the national college holiday where everyone gets trashed on the beach for an entire week.
With spring break around the corner, a great deal of attention revolves around the idea of having a "spring break body," especially for young women.
"Alexa, how can I lose 15 pounds in a week?"
"Are laxatives really that bad for you?"
"I'm halving all of my portion sizes, and it's doing absolute wonders for my body!"
From my experience, I have watched girls go above and beyond to attain that perfectly toned, impossibly tiny body for spring break. However, I believe the notion that women should have to go on extreme diet plans and workout 24/7 in order to look good in a bikini is both impossible and unhealthy.
Having a healthy relationship with your body is one of the hardest, but most important, things to accomplish in your life. Is this about to be a self love blog? Oh, yes it is.
The pressure that is put on the women of our generation to look like a Calvin Klein model is absurd in its entirety. Honestly, your body is not supposed to look like it's been airbrushed and edited.
NEWS FLASH: Cellulite is natural. Having a stomach is natural. Fat on your body is natural. So please please please don't set false expectations for yourself.
As it has been said many times before, comparison is the thief of joy. It is incredibly easy to look at social media, magazine covers, or other women and feel like you are not enough. But I'm here to tell you that you absolutely are enough - and so much more. Validation from frat boys may feel good for a fleeting moment, but it is imperative to realize that 700 likes on your latest Instagram pic is not what life is about.
Listen to me when I say that I know what it's like to have an eating disorder - it can take years or even a lifetime to overcome, and in no way am I trying to diminish the pain and hardship it brings to one's mental health. But that same pain is also time and life wasted.
The journey to a healthy relationship with your body does not happen overnight; rather, you can make simple choices to better yourself daily. Instead of restricting yourself to 1,000 calories a day, try replacing your typical snacks with fruits and veggies. Instead of forcing yourself to run 3 miles, try doing a fun gym class that you actually enjoy.
It's all about perspective.
Don't get me wrong, I'm 100% an advocate for health and fitness - I believe a healthy body is a happy body. However, I want women to understand that they are worth so much more than a number on a scale.
Do you think that your thigh gap tells me how intelligent you are? Do you think that your flat stomach tells me how funny and kind you are? Of course not, because that's ridiculous.
Similarly, if we put our worth in these worldly, shallow things, it's RIDICULOUS! Because you are smart and creative and talented and beautiful and clever and passionate and silly and that is what life is all about. It's all about perspective.
To end my rant, I just want to say that your spring break body does not define you. I hope that our generation will teach those to come the importance of loving themselves - mind, body, and spirit.
Please strut your smokin' hot stuff on spring break, and spread self love.
