Blog Archive

Search This Blog

About Us

My photo
Jessica is our 2016 Olympic Hopeful and Sarah is our 2012 Olympian in Weightlifting. We're setting out to be "Pretty Strong" and we encourage you to do the same.

Translate

Thursday, August 6, 2015

I am a Large Woman

To this you would think, "Duh!" and you would be right. A lot of people view their bodies as inhibitors. "If I were taller, shorter, skinnier, more muscular, had a bigger butt, had longer hair, etc. I could do _____, I could wear ________, So and so might be interested" and so on. While I can most certainly empathize with you, I have lived a very interesting life and have slowly learned along the way that besides my personality and hard work, my body has been a catalyst for the wonderful, beautiful, adventurous, and fun things in my life! Which consequently has helped so many women feel good about themselves, inspired them to do things they never thought they could, and live healthier and more active lifestyles! How cool is that?! As I am a fan of positive elf talk and loving even the things that frustrate you the most about yourself, I'd like to share some things with you.

As a large woman, I get noticed and it's not always positive. I was teased a lot growing up and still hear rude comments and get stared at this day. I was never good at hide and seek. I couldn't fit under the desks at school if there was an earthquake drill. I wasn't picked first for games. I have a hard time finding affordable, modest, beautiful plus size clothing. I sweat more than an average sized person. I hit my head on things. I walk into stuff all the time. Chafing sucks. It's tedious to always have to wonder or ask what the weight limit is on things. It sucks being crammed into airplane seats. It's easier to get fatigued and harder to recover. It's easier for a medical ailment to get blamed on weight. My height and weight add a new element of difficulty to dating. Being stronger than men also adds another element of difficulty to dating. It's rare that my size isn't a thought on my mind for one reason or another. As a large person, especially a female person, things don't always come easy, cheaply, or comfortably. BUT! These are not the things to dwell on. They are there. They are real. They are valid and I share them plus so much more with at least half the female population.

Here are some great things that happened not in spite of but because of being a large woman. Or jut simply, because I believe I am the whole package. We are all the whole package! Our worth and blessings come from us being all different! When you look at a table of gifts, do you shun any of them because they are of different sizes? Do you want to return them because they are wrapped in different paper? Maybe one box is small and another is oblong, another can be huge! I don't want to compare us to objects but, I think we are all gifted with different attributes and we can be gifts to others.

I've gotten fan mail
I've made an Olympic Team
I've traveled around the world
I've been kissed!
I've made an unbelievable amount of friends and witnessed the births of their children
I give awesome hugs
I have a better vantage point and can find things and people easier
I can reach things safely off high shelves
My long arms enable to snatch a lot of weight
My height has helped me throw shot put and discus far
My bodyweight helps me move heavy weights
Looking intimidating has helped me feel safe
Being strong makes me feel safe
I can pick up children if they fall
Kids feel safe with me being their "body guard"
I can pick up injured animals and carry them to safety
I am strong enough to help people move when they're sick
I can reach easily around someone to give them the Heimlich
I can change light bulbs and use top load dryers
I don't have to ask for help for pretty much anything. Especially pickle jars. Screw those jars.
My height, weight, and strength weeds away week minded people
My weight, height, and strength weed out superficial men. Most people I get to date are high quality
I get to inspire people

I'm not famous, or popular, rich, or traditionally beautiful. However, I am the whole package and so are you. Not a single person on this earth is perfect. We can learn to accept our imperfections, improve on our faults, and keep adding to the list of amazing and wonderful things we can do and be. It may be hard but, try to look at yourselves objectively and you'll start to see the great things about your self!

Love, Sarah

1 comment:

Mel said...

LOVE.IT. :D You are WONDERFUL! And funny, to boot! As my old gymnastics coach used to say, "Smart AND Good-looking!" :) Rock on. And CONGRATS on your ability to compete once again!!!!