What can your body do?

What can your body do?

"Our destiny changes with our thought; we shall become what we wish to become, do what we wish to do, when our habitual thought corresponds with our desire." -- Orison S. Marsden

How do your thoughts influence how you feel about your body?

When I went home to Rhode Island this past week, the visit was not for vacation, rather a quick return home to see my father who had undergone emergency surgery for a complication with his colon. My parents are my life line - literally - and they are my heroes, my strength, my spirit, my heart, and absolutely the reason I am the person I am today. As I age - 32 years old in 57 days - family becomes more sacred to me; I have lived away from my father since I was 15, yet we are close. I consider him, along with my mother, my best friend and I cherish our phone conversations and his belief in me. He's not only my father, but he was my coach for years; he has helped me become the best athlete that I can be and he has been there through stellar performances and those races that I just couldn't finish.

I also visited with my aunt who is winning the fight against breast cancer. She is so beautiful with short hair. When I visit we power walk almost every day. I joked with her this visit that I need to run to keep up with her. How infectious her spirit is! It was 10 degrees outside most mornings and she still got me outside at 7am to conquer 4 miles of hills and ice. My fondest memory of her is popcorn and eating snacks at her island in the kitchen. Since I was a small child this has been our thing; my mother and me with auntie talking and snacking and enjoying family time. These are the moments I miss as an adult but cherish when I do return home to visit.

The reality of your family's mortality can hit home suddenly when sickness halts your daily routine and you return home to be by their side. I internalize everything. I am a deep thinker. I ponder often. And this visit home was not short of deep thought, care and concern, and the difficult questions you ask yourself when silence is the only comforter.

Both my father and my aunt are optimistic and know that their thought influences the health of their body. I have always known this, yet practicing this can be difficult. I have read Louise Hay's You can heal your life and Rhonda Bryne's The Secret. I know that thought is a powerful tool of influence. Just like we are what we eat, I do believe we are what we think.

When I spent time with both my father and my aunt I became more aware of what really is important in my life and the necessity of not only positive thought but productive thought. It was a challenge for my father just to get out of his chair or bend down to get something that had fallen to the floor. My aunt is unbelievably fatigued from radiation. And yet my father still did his best to help my step-mother with the house chores and my aunt still made it a priority to exercise every day. I witnessed their contagious and energetic will for productivity and the power of their thought that empowered their actions. I felt my father's yearn to hurry up and heal so he can begin to run and garden again. I was overcome by my aunt's desire to beat the cancer to be able to go to spin classes again. Suddenly I was humbled. Though all personal struggles are just that, personal and relative to the individual, my visit home enabled me to step outside of my own battles with self and appreciate the health of my body, what it can do, the energy I wake up with each day even when I say I am tired, and the health and fitness of my soul.

Admittedly I do workout to be "thinner," to fit into my skinny jeans, to look good in a bikini and a sports bra, and to hopefully encourage people to pick me as their trainer. I watch what I eat to compliment my desires for a leaner stomach and tighter booty. However, when visiting both my father and my aunt, I could not help but to feel embarrassed that my daily struggles involve self-image when theirs pertain to actual survival.

We are what we think, bottom line. Positive thought is just that, a productive tool of reason that absolutely influences the health of our body and the esteem of our self. I know that there's more to life than what we look like. However, I admit that this rational thought can get pushed to the side when self-consciousness is stronger than reasonable thought.

What can your body do? Is this not a better way of approaching fitness rather than the traditional practice of What does our body look like? It's not always the easiest approach, but I believe that if we learn to adopt this thought process our woes and panics of body image could possibly decrease.

I am a strong woman. I am 5'6", 150lbs, 22.5% body fat, and I have a 33" waist. I can run a 5k in 23 minutes. I can do 20 full push ups. I can squat 60lbs 12xs for 3 sets. I can clear a step with 7 risers on each side. I can train 9 clients a day. I have taught 5 classes in one single day. Is this not fitness? Okay, so I may not think that my stomach is the flattest! This thought has now become absolutely ridiculous to me when seeing my father and aunt fight to be back to their normal selves.

What can your body do? And how does your thought influence the way you feel about your body?