STUMP
(noun)
1. The part of a tree trunk left protruding from the ground after the tree has fallen or has been felled.
2. Informal: a leg.
3. A short, thickset person.
4. A place or an occasion used for political or campaign oratory: candidates out on the stump.
Take that word “exercise” and throw it out on the lawn, through the window. Try this other stuff instead.
To most people, “self-love” and “self-care” don’t make a lot of sense. It sounds like some weird sex thing (self-love snicker). Or some woo-woo New Age thing (“Come join our full moon solstice self-love circle”). Possibly also a weird sex thing. Or a spa thing (“Indulge with our diviiiiine self-care facials!”). Or maybe some medicated […]
I give you permission to ask for help, to throw out garbage, to be greedy.
Stop shrinking and starving, and start filling out whatever outline YOU make.
Ultimately, rules tell us nothing about ourselves. They tell us nothing about what we need or truly want. Questions are better.
What do you do when it feels like life and your body are cheating on your if-then rules? When it feels like life and your body are breaking their pinky-swear-promise that if you “do the right stuff” and be a good girl or boy, then they will deliver all your rewards?
“Success or failure has more to do with what is going on in your head than the size of your muscles… If you have an ambition the most important thing you have to do is to start on your journey towards making it happen. Then it’s just a matter of perserverance.”
- Felicity Aston, Arctic explorer
“I was excited to be a weightlifter, and I never once thought about what I looked like… Instead my mind was occupied with learning and working towards a goal. I had the time of my life… I want to be fit to compete in anything that’s fun. When it’s not fun, it’s time to go. The more activities I try, the more I can share.”
- Gillian Mounsey Ward, strength athlete
“The first time I saw Olympic weightlifting, I was captivated not only by the idea of human beings handling so much weight, but also by the speed and the agility and the grace with which these athletes were performing these maneuvers.”
- Cheryl Haworth, US women’s weightlifting champion
“Strength training has given me the confidence to love myself and love my body.”
- Molly Galbraith, creator of The Modern Woman’s Guide to Strength Training
