I am more than my body

Yesterday a man decided to pass a judgement about my body. I was waking home from the gym, minding my own business and this man thought that mumbling under his breathe that I should go to the gym and exercise, and proceed to call me a fat ass was such a great idea. Well I am here to tell you that it was not such a great idea. I don't know who this man is, I'm sure he has many an issue and I sincerely hope I never see him again. 

I am here to tell you that I am more than my body. I am more than a number associated with how my body looks. And I am most definitely not alive to impress you, or anyone for that matter. 

I wish I could say that what this man said went in one ear and out the other but I can't. It stung, it was hurtful, and while in the privacy of my own home I did cry...not for long thanks to the Gardiner fam...I am not going to hide that fact that words hurt. Words hurt a lot. You carry words people say to you everywhere and everyday. As an introvert it also takes me longer to process what people say and takes me even longer to let it go so words tend to stick like glue to me. 

I've always had a hard time wrapping my head around this movement where women go on about their bodies being their bodies. I understood it and where it was coming from, but I've never felt the things some women have, until yesterday. I get it entirely. 

My body is not here for you to judge. My body is mine. Your opinion of it doesn't matter. My body is healthy. The food I put in it fuels my active life style. I make no regrets for the food I put in my body. I run for myself, because I feel accomplished and strong when I do it. I lift weights to build muscle to make myself better. I do these things for me and no one else. I run to maintain my sanity in this ever increasingly insane world. The feminist in me has had enough of men judging my body because they don't feel it's good enough. My body is better than good enough- it is perfect. And it belongs to me. 

One of the reasons I love the running community is that everyone is so supportive of one another. The elites have been in the beginners shoes, they've been in the injured runners shoes, they've been at races with no one and with hundreds of supporters, they've been in the same pain and had the same aches. I have never heard a runner put another runner down. Friendly competition or being excited when you pass another runner whose traditionally faster than you is entirely normal but that doesn't mean you turn around and stick your tongue out at them, instead you pass them and tell them how great they're doing and that they're almost at the end and to keep it up. John Stanton tweeted this today "as a runner you really succeed when you encourage others to succeed and enjoy our great sport!"...if everyone lived by this everyone would be so much happier. 

So if anyone feel like challenging me on being a "fat ass", I would love to spend some time running with you and see how quickly your mind changes.