What normal women look like.

Yesterday I had a bit of a rough day.  It's midterms week in my neck of the woods and I'm struggling.  Not enough sleep combined with stress eating too much Halloween candy had me feeling less than my best.  But I had to go to school and I had to mail a package and I had to buy cat food, so I threw on an old pair of jean shorts, a baggy tee, blew off make up and walked out the door.  And then I spent the day feeling pretty shitty about myself.  I was convinced I looked awful and that everyone else thought so too, and I let it ruin my day.  Until I got home that is, accidentally caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and realized I had spent the whole day with a negative attitude for nothing.  I looked fine!  Granted, it's not the best I've ever left the house but it certainly wasn't the worst (read: the swine flu epidemic of 2009).

So today, I've brought you proof of what I experienced first hand yesterday, and what I'm sure you've all experienced countless times... that even when you don't look your best, you still look fine!  And how have I brought proof of that, you ask?  Celebrities without makeup! 

I love pictures of celebrities without makeup.  Why?  Not because I like judging other women, no.  I love them because they prove once and for all that celebrities are real people too!  Some days they look fabulous and sometimes they look like they could use a latte and a couple hours of sleep.  That is, they're just like us!

So, for your viewing pleasure, I present..

Jennifer Lawrence, one of the most beautiful and genuine actresses in Hollywood:

Tyra Banks, a Victoria's Secret model and the heir to the America's Next Top Model throne:

Hilary Duff, the girl I wanted to be for at least half of my childhood (who could resist the promise of becoming an Italian pop princess?):

Mila Kunis, who was Esquire's 2013 "Sexiest Woman Alive":
 

 
Kelly Clarkson, the first American Idol:

And lastly, Sofia Vergarra, a Columbian actress/model and a real stunner:

Alright ladies, what was your first reaction?  That these ladies are ugly and horrible and that they never should have left the house looking like that?  No, it's that they just look normal!  And you know what?  That's what people think of you when you're not looking your best either.  (This is even more true because nobody holds you to as high a standard as we hold celebrities!).

We all have those days where we know it's just not going to happen.  You're bloated, your skin broke out, you pulled an all-nighter to finish that paper... whatever the reason, you're just not feeling your best.  And typically we spend the whole day feeling crappy because we think we look crappy and we think everyone else notices we look crappy. 

But you know what?  They don't, because to them, you look normal, just like every one of these beautiful women here.  Sure, a pair of spanx and some contouring would probably make you look more runway-ready, but on the day to day, nobody is noticing the condition of your yoga pants or your skin.  So stop spending so much time worrying about it and just get through the day!  We all have enough on our plate to worry about (school, jobs, boyfriends, the list goes on...) without adding the pressure to look amazing every day to that load!  So the next time you wake up and know it's just not your day, put on your comfiest clothes, grab your favorite Starbucks drink and let yourself off the hook.  You are beautiful, just like you were yesterday and just like you will be tomorrow, and the only thing that can change that is your attitude.  That's the whole point of this blog, isn't it?  Change your attitude, change your life.

Oh, and treat yourself to a little Halloween candy this week!  Trust me on this one, a few pieces of chocolate are not going to change a thing.

Back with a vengence.

Alright, I'm going to be straight with you guys: I went off the radar for far too long.  I let spring semester get the best of me, and then I figured I'd take the summer off, and then I started in on my core zoology courses and then I got a job and then I started looking at grad schools... long story short, there are a million excuses but I'm back!  For real.  But I'm making a few changes.

Weekly posts (now on Tuesday nights) are still a go! However, 2,000 word diatribes on the ins and outs of body acceptance in Western society, not so much. I don't have time to write them, you don't have time to read them, enough said.  So instead, I will be blogging once a week and trying to keep it short and simple while hopefully still providing tons of inspiration and food for thought.

Okay! Let's dive in.

On the agenda for today is something that has taken the internet, and many impressionable young girls, by storm the past few months, and that is "fitspo"- images of supposedly "healthy" women with inspiring quotes that are supposed to motivate you to get "healthy" too.

They look something like this:

Or this...

And they get me real riled up.  But I usually just brush them off and figure we've all gone through that early teenage phase of trying to starve ourselves and we eventually realize bags of chips are delicious and you're never going to get that thigh gap back anyway, so why worry about it?

And then I saw this one:

This image has been circulating through social media for about a week now, and every time I see it I find myself just getting more and more frustrated, namely because I had hoped that by the time we reach motherhood ourselves, we will have given up on the vanity of focusing so much of our time and energy on self-appearance, as well as the self-deprecation that comes along with it ("What's your excuse?").

But then, lo and behold, a sister in body solidarity posted this beauty in response:

All I can say is glory, glory, hallelujah.  First of all, can I just give some mad props to the wonderful husband undoubtedly who took this picture?  You go, man.

Second, since when is raising three children an "excuse" for not being a size 2?  Honestly, somebody clue me in here.  Because I thought that once you went through the transformative process of becoming a mother, you got let off the hook a little bit.  When we were learning about reproduction in 6th grade, they seem to have left out the part where if you don't have a rock-hard fitness-model body within a year of having a baby, you're officially a failure.  I mean, you just created life for God's sake, I'm pretty sure you're allowed to indulge in a little ice cream!  (Not to mention all those late nights staying up with the baby... forget the freshman 15, I'm talking about that first-year 15!)

More importantly though, I'm being honest when I say I think that second mom, the woman who's okay with having a little extra skin after giving birth to those three beautiful little munchkin faces, looks pretty darn happy with herself and her life.  And you know what ladies (and gents)?  It's okay to be happy with your less than perfect body.  Who decides what perfection looks like anyway?  There are a lot more important things in this world than the size of your waist.  And while she may be carrying a few extra pounds of baby weight, I would say that that second mom, our inspiration for the week, has a heart that's way big enough to make up for it.  So how about you let yourself off the hook a bit and realize that your body is far from the be-all and end-all of who you are?  There are a lot more important qualities you should be defining yourself by that are much more indicative of the kind of person you are than the number on the scale.