Wow, this topic for our Hearts at Home blog hop hits close to home because I just had a baby in the last couple of months. My body is no where back to where it was before I got pregnant.
Yes, I know that it took nine months to gain all that weight so it should take some time for me to lose all of that weight.
But it is easy to get a little bit obsessed about it because the swimsuit season is coming up. I am NOT planning on wearing a bikini. That is a different issue of modesty. However, it would be great to feel good in a tankini and skirt. We spend 2 weeks on vacation at the beach and pool…that is a lot of time in a swim suit!
I realized something funny the other day. My stomach probably looks three or four months pregnant now. When I actually was three or four months pregnant I thought my belly looked cute. However now it looks the same way and I think it looks flabby. So what changed? Just my perception of things.
Anyway it got me to thinking as I was getting ready to blog on this topic of no more perfect bodies. I know a couple months ago I talked about how there really isn’t a “perfect”. But I did think it would be interesting to Google what the average women’s size is. According to an article I read the average woman is 5’4″ tall, has a waist size of 34 to 35 inches, and weighs between 140-150 pounds with a dress size of 12 to 14. I also found out that a size 8 in the 1950s is now a size 4 or less today. Hmm…It’s easy to be deceived into thinking that your self worth is measured in terms of your dress size.
I believe we should be taking care of the temple that God has given us…it doesn’t need to look a certain way or weigh a certain amount. But it is important to follow these few tips to help you know what is healthy and appropriate for you:
1. Know your waist size. The goal is to have a waist circumference of less than 35 inches. This has nothing to do with how you look. Larger than that is associated with too much internal belly fat which is associated with heart disease and diabetes.
2. Calculate your BMI. You just need your weight and height. This website has a BMI calculator…just punch in your 2 numbers! You want to keep your BMI in the range of 20-25. If it is more than this it is associated with the consequences of being overweight and obese. If it is less than that you also could be headed for trouble by being too thin. On a side note if you are really athletic you may be an exception to the BMI rule.
3. Live a healthy lifestyle. If you are eating a healthy diet and getting at least 30 minutes of cardio activity five times a week and some form of strengthening two times a week you are living an optimal lifestyle. (Now as a homeschooling mom who just had a baby I kind of laugh at this. Sleeping and resting has become more important than exercise. Although, I am sure I would feel better if I exercised every day. It really is hard to find time. I have heard that if I actually scheduled it it would likely happen.)
So with all that being said I would suggest that we aim for reasonable goals. Doing something is better than nothing at all. Right now it would be unrealistic for me to set the goal of exercising five times a week. About two days into that plan I would have failed already and given up. But I could probably set a goal to exercise 1 to 2 times a week right now and work my way up from there. Setting baby steps as goals helps you to succeed at them.
I think it is very important as moms to not obsess about our bodies…Especially if we have daughters. The last thing we want is our daughters to grow up with being obsessed about their self-image. It is much more important to show our daughters (and children in general) how to have a healthy lifestyle of eating well and exercising regularly.
I hope that I was able to put a different spin on the topic of “No More Perfect Bodies” and hopefully encourage you in this area. You will also want to check out Jill Savage’s blog and all the other bloggers for the 3rd Thursday Blog Hop!
