Here comes another dedication of mine, this time not to the ones who prefer short cuts but strictly to all my “fitness obsessed” lot. Yes, it may seem strange that all this while I had things to say to the unfit to motivate them to get started but now also to people who already are hooked on to fitness but that’s the point they are so badly hooked on they have no idea where to stop. Like all other things there is a flip side to fitness too and the flip side is Fitness Addiction, Obsession, thinking about your weight 24x7, setting targets your body can possibly never achieve, treating exercise as your only priority.
Fitness is good, exercising is good, following a “healthy” diet is good, being disciplined when it comes to your health is good but when all of this becomes an obsession its Dangerous. Having a realistic goal of becoming fit is good, having being able to do the household chores without aches and pains is good, increasing your stamina and strength is good but when the size zero and the hour glass figure becomes your goal, when the crash dieting sets in, when the sight of food starts haunting you, when you start spending insane number of hours in the gym, its Dangerous.
This is what I have seen happening to not only teenagers but also to a lot of women in their 30’s even 40’s. The teens have only one mantra to chant 36, 24, 36 and all the young mothers want their bodies to look like a celebrity mother. How about getting trained from them coz only they know what they actually have done to achieve what they have. Like I have always said each one of us is different in our own way and so is our body and all we can do or rather should do is recognise our own strengths and limitations, accept them and figure out our own individual goal unless u practically plan on walking the ramp. Well, actually even then.
The point I am trying to make here is relax, rest, take it easy. Don’t get obsessed by your workouts or by the way your body looks, don’t keep criticizing your weak areas, don’t keep complaining about not loosing the half inch you always wanted to loose from your waist. Stop counting calories every time you see food and please stop carrying your healthy food box everywhere you go. It’s just going to make you sound and look like a complete psycho. Instead appreciate the very difference your workouts have made on your body, be happy for the clothes you never thought you would fit into, its okay if the weighing scale did not show a weight loss this month or the measuring tape had the same measurements to show. What matters is you kept up to your levels and know where to work on. I am not saying switch to unhealthy but yes definitely loosen up a little.
That’s why I say it’s OKAY to CHEAT***. It’s all good if done once in a while. Of course you can have what you like once in a while in one meal. It’s okay to treat yourself with a cup of ice cream or a muffin once in a while. It’s okay if you happened to miss your workout that one day of the month. You’re not going to loose any weight in that one single day or in that case even gain any. Don’t let fitness become an obsession. This can only lead to an always unhappy body, lot of physical and emotional stress and therefore no positive result. Don’t treat your body like a machine. Love it, Respect it and satisfy your palette once in a while.
*** Only for the Fit.
Take the following test; if you answer YES for any one or more of the following questions, you may be obsessed and may want to start taking it easy.
- Do you feel guilty when you eat?
- You think you are fat always, no matter how thin you are?
- Do you criticize your body?
- Does working out justify your eating?
- Do you avoid food when you haven’t done your workout?
- Do you exercise even when you aren’t feeling well, have an injury or are exhausted?
- Do you constantly compare yourself with others in the gym or magazines?
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