How to be not skinny and love it.

I'm not fat. I feel like I actually have a pretty rockin' bod. What's weird is that I've lived with the same weight (more or less...fluctuations are inevitable (that's my way of justifying weight gain (not to say that fluctuations in body weight don't naturally happen (although it could just be that everyone uses it to justify sudden weight gain (/loss)))) for a couple of years.  So why is it that sometimes I feel hot and other times I feel like putting on pants is the equivalent of shoving a potato into a straw?

Courtesy of Alaina-Kyle Photography

Sometimes I look in the mirror and I have a very narcissistic fall-in-love-with-myself moment. I can't look away. I'm the best. But more often, I look in the mirror and my eyes glaze to my least favorite parts. They linger on a blotchy part of skin or gushy midsection. I can't look away... I'm the worst. But lately, those moments occur less and less often. Be ready friends, I'm about to give you the first, that's probably a lie, guide on how to not be skinny and love it.

Step 1: Stop worrying about it.

I'm not saying that if you are unhappy with the way you look, just change your mentality and it'll all be better. I'm just saying stop stressing over it. Stop telling yourself that you have to look some way to be happy. And please, for the love of all cute, fuzzy animals, stop saying "I just want to be healthy and fit," while thinking that THIS is how all "healthy and fit" people look.

 I don't look like that and I climbed a 16 ft rope to the top of the ceiling and rang the cow bell yesterday. Yeah. Brag, brag, brag.

In the end, a lot of you are probably thinking, "Yeah, that's easy for you to say." And you're right. I'm comfortable with my body and it's a pretty good one. Maybe this whole post just annoys you. And that's fine. Really, all I'm getting at is that I'm happy with my body when I used to not be.

So.

That's about it.