When I headed off for West Virginia last fall, I had it in my head that I was going to become a fitness nut once I got to college. I wanted to work out daily, eat well and live a much healthier lifestyle than what I was living at home. I was more motivated than I ever had been and I really thought I was going to make a huge change in my lifestyle. Oh, was I wrong.
After being at school for a few weeks, I quickly learned that most of my dining options for my freshman meal plan were complete crap. Most of the dining hall food was gross, and my only other options were greasy fast food chains. The rec center was on the other campus and was almost impossible to get to as I had to rely on the iffy public transportation options that my school provided.
The moral of the story is that I quickly succumbed to the unhealthy lifestyle that I ended up living throughout my first semester. I never drank enough water, I ate Chick-Fil- A once a day at least and I dated a guy with a car that drove me to all my classes so I barely even exercised.
Now, I have never been a tiny person. I grew up in an area that was filled with girls with what the media used to claim as the “ideal” body type and I struggled with accepting my body for most of my life. Finally, I realized that as long as I am healthy, who cares if I weigh more than my average weight and have a little bit of extra body fat.
Well, after my first semester, I barely fit into any of the clothes that I had. I had to spend my winter break shopping for new jeans and shirts that didn’t suffocate my arms. For a short time, I’d look at myself in the mirror and think to myself what the hell had I done. That’s when I realized that I needed to make a change again, and this time for real.
The only difference? This time I went into making a change loving my body, not hating it. I quickly have become so much prouder of my body. I realized that no one can set the standard of what’s considered a nice body besides myself, so this time I am going to focus on making myself love my body even more than I already do instead of trying to go for an ideal shape or look.
Yes, in the scheme of things I wish I had never gained the extra weight. But now when I work out, I work out for fun. I don’t try to conform to a certain persons perspective other than my own now. Those 15 pounds have only encouraged me to live the best and strive to be the best version of myself that I can be.