Why do we look at younger girls and envy their bodies?? They’re young, haven’t had children yet and haven’t experienced years upon years of office politics, family drama, tax audits, nosy neighbors, sick kids, sick pets””of course they look great. This is their time to worry about themselves.
In contrast, being a mother, whether you work inside or outside the home, usually means putting yourself way down on the priority list. We make sure that everyone else is taken care of first””not because we’re “martyrs” but because we want to. We love our families.
Instead of berating yourself for not looking like a teenager, give yourself a little credit! If you’re working hard at the gym, whenever you manage to work in some exercise, you really need to be proud of yourself and acknowledge the gains you are making. Success might not come as fast or as easy as when you were 19, but it will come with hard work and dedication.
Just getting to the gym alone is an accomplishment worth noting. Keep in mind, we don’t have the luxury of grabbing our gym bag and heading to the gym whenever we feel like training. Planning your day so that you have time for a workout requires organization. We have so many other things that need to get done, and procrastinating is so tempting.
If you made it there, give yourself some props””and instead of being envious of that pretty young thing working out next to you, take those feelings and use them as motivation to work out to the best of your abilities. In the end, you are your only competition.
So give yourself a pat on the back. I think too often we don’t realize how much we take on being wives and mothers. It’s okay to be proud of all you do!
Southern States Championships top contender Melissa Transou, a figure competitor, wife and mother, blogs about the unique sports nutrition needs of female athletes exclusively for Vitacost.com.