Weight Perception - The Emotional Roller Coaster

My arms before (left) and after (right) pole
Weight on left: 136 lbs; on right: 146 lbs

As with most people, I've suffered with body issues for most of my life now. My body type is short and thick boned. My thighs like to hang onto fat (thunder thighs galore.) It's how I'm shaped. It's very different from bodies portrayed in the media. I've come to realize this and appreciate it. I love my hips; I love having curves. Despite that, I still battle insecurities of weight gain. Once I hit puberty I put on a ton of weight. Despite the fact that I was fairly active, in my teens, being on several performance teams, and despite being pretty muscled (we joked that we could beat the football team at push-ups), I was soft over my muscles, and I hated it. I got to 143 lbs and cried. My costumes and pants started giving me muffin top (though looking back I probably needed the next size up to begin with.) I didn't eat terribly. I ate when I was hungry, but none-the-less the weight kept creeping up. I have never been able to get a handle on my weight issues. Was I overweight? Not really, I was in the normal range of healthy, but I fell for the ideals of the media, with regards to body weight and became insecure (waaaaa! I'm not a model!)

Delicious Dishes: Awesome Sauce Recipe

Though not directly related to pole, aerial, or belly dance, healthy foods are a staple of any fitness regimen. That is why I am introducing a series of blog posts: Delicious Dishes. In my journey to be healthy, I've done a lot of experimenting with recipes and would like to share my favorites with you.

I love dips & sauces. Like really, really love them. You could say I have an addiction. Whether for veggies, fruits, chips, breads, or meats, I cannot get enough dips and sauces. I am the one at the snack table shamelessly gorging myself on chips and dip. "Who ate all the dip?!" *slinks off*