If I only knew that I never had to diet in order to become my best self.

If I only knew that I never had to step foot in a gym to feel the benefits of movement and exercise..that all I actually had to do was ask my body what it wanted and it would tell me to go outside and play.

If I only knew that I didn’t have to look a certain way or have a specific looking body in order to have other people think I’m fit enough to be a personal trainer or group fitness instructor.

If I only knew that health and happiness has nothing to do with a number on a scale.

If I only knew that trying to deprive myself would end up in an eating disorder and unhealthy mindset that would last for years.

If I only knew that there was no magic to any of the fitness DVDs I used to watch and swear by (and even the ones I produced myself).

If I only knew that I counted calories and grams of protein and tried this diet and that diet, all so that I could look a certain way to other people…when really know one ever cared or judged me, but me.

If I only knew that a mirror is nothing but a reflection of what I choose to see, not what’s actually there (because that’s all on the inside anyways).

If I only knew that it’s okay to just be who I am, that I never needed to try to be anyone other than myself, that I am enough just as I am right now in this very moment.

If I only knew that the journey of life is happening regardless if I decide to show up or not.

If I only knew that I didn’t have to wear the most stylish of clothes or have the perfect hair style in order to acquire friends…that all I had to actually do was to be kind to others.

If I only knew that life isn’t about coloring within the lines but knowing that nothing bad will happen to me if I don’t.

If I only knew that talking less and listening more would give me some of the most life changing and powerful a ha moments and experiences of my life.

If I only knew that in order to have the good shit in life I’d have to simply give up the bullshit.

If I only knew that happiness and success doesn’t come in the form of anything materialistic but it comes in the form of love.

If I only knew that food labels are kind of bullshit and so are calorie counters…and that my body knows exactly what it is that it needs and how much.

If I only knew that all I had to do was learn to listen to myself (my mind, my body, and my intuition), that all of the answers I’ve ever questioned were right inside of me all along.

If I only knew…

 

 

Relephant: 

5 Ways to Stay Authentic 

Stop the Beauty Madness: A New Campaign to Challenge “Pretty.”

 

 

 

Author: Caitlin Croteau

Editor: Renee Picard 

Image: kate hiscock at Flickr