Owning our Bodies

I have written about body weight and body image issues in the past (see here) and it continues to sadden me to my core to hear people (women most especially) so disconnected from their bodies and constantly putting them selves down and shaming themselves into reducing the numbers on the scales, to the detriment of their overall health. And I’m not referring to teenagers and young adults – many of these are women living through their middle years – a time when we should feel empowered about the next chapter in our lives.

Embracing our physicality

As children, we are very connected to our physical bodies: We move freely, naturally and with infinite joy, but as soon as our minds start to kick in (often as early as 8-9 years of age) that’s when the disconnection and self consciousness grows, likely fuelled and exaggerated by social media.

I was always moving, playing competitive sport from an early age (tennis and hockey) and loving every moment of it. I love food and was always told that I had a ‘hearty Irish appetite’ (basically because I ate quite large portions!) which back then was a compliment! I realise now that I really did eat too much, but with the amount of exercise I was doing, much of the energy consumed was burnt off on the hockey pitch, the running track or the tennis court. But it was the carb overload of beer, pizza and hangovers during my university years that tipped the scales in the higher direction. This said, while my weight was undoubtedly on the heavy side, I remained relatively fit and always able to compete.

The joys of movement

It was during my mid 30s’ that I noticed I no longer bounced back from late nights, stressful deadlines and poor sleep. I was tired, yet through it all exercise remained a constant, most especially yoga which found me while living in Hong Kong. The more I practiced (Ashtanga yoga at that time), the more my energy levels thrived and it seemed those little physical niggles began to disappear and my mind was calmer .

What amazed me most about my growing love affair with yoga was how it started to bring me back into my body, helping me to rediscover the pure joy of opening my body and appreciating my physicality. That alone had a huge impact on how happy and confident I felt in my own skin. I didn’t strive to look like my bendy neighbour on the mat or on the video, but instead found real joy opening my body to the asana postures and slowly my shoulders and hips opened more, as did that feeling of pure freedom as my body moved and opened as it was born to do.

I know now that an integral part of being happy is taking responsibility for our health and this doesn’t mean constant punishment, self-flagellation and hardship. It simply means enjoying the pleasures of eating colourful nutritious foods and not beating ourselves up about it. And it means finding some form of sustainable exercise. For me, that’s yoga, but maybe for you it’s dance, brisk walking, running, swimming – it doesn’t matter but get out there and do it. Once you start to become physically fitter and stronger, those feel-good hormones will quickly weave their way through your body, leaving you naturally happier and healthier.

After all, real health goes way beyond the elusive six pack or number on the scales. It’s being in tune with our bodies and minds and the feel-good feelings that accompany this are more than enough motivation to own it.