Some say she doesn't live in reality and that she must have a nanny, she must have professional help, she must have good genetics, she's got it easy because she's pretty - I call B*shoot to that! The fact is Maria has 3 young kiddies just like I do. Maria has incredible self-restraint and did so before her pregnancy, during her pregnancy, and after her pregnancy.
Yes, Maria is pretty but what does pretty have to do with health and your body shape? Here's the image that set off the cray-cray in some people.
Most people see pregnancy as an excuse to pig-out. Those people know they're going to get bigger because fat-is-fat they just don't feel the need to think about it long term - sort of like spending on a credit card where you buy now and pay later. Once their babies are born they then talk about how hard it is to shrug off those excess pounds - those excess pounds were caused by the stodge you put in your mouth while pregnant plain and simple. I'm not on a high horse here because the truth is I was one of those people.
I ate to ease my sickness (it was all day) I went from 7.5 stone up to 15 stone! I'm 5ft 1. Yes, my end weight was caused by severe pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes which was partly caused by poor diet and lack of exercise. The difference is I knew my weight was caused by the food I ate and I had no-one else to blame but myself and never once did I try to kid myself and blame other people for it.
If I could go back knowing what I know now I would have exercised and ate right from the get-go. As someone who has lots of incurable health issues, I know that the food I eat affects every single cell in my body and it's what I put into my body that gives it (for the most part) it's appearance. I am weak! I love cakes! I love coffee and I love chocolate. I wish I had the self-control that Maria has - I know if I worked harder at it I too would benefit, my clothes would fit better, my energy would improve and my cellulite would diminish and my overall sense of self would increase also... Maria should be seen as an inspiration because what she has accomplished is damned hard.
What you will find is that most people talk about her natural beauty and find ways to pick her apart. 'Oh she must be so big-headed' 'Photoshopped' ' She's full of herself' and other hurtful comments are flung her way and her response to each and every one of them is genius. What comes across is someone who works hard, exudes self-confidence and happiness while being a damned good mum.
She's not trying to portray someone who's perfect or someone that everyone should idolise, she's very much real and in a way, I could never be. She uploaded this image above showing her mummy belly to the world with no qualms. While I'm proud of my baby scars and flabby skin I'm unfortunately not brave enough to upload a photo of it. Again she should be seen as an inspiration because she makes us realise that our mummy bellies are awesome! they're not imperfect and we shouldn't be ashamed of our bodies - maybe in time I'll become 100% comfortable and upload a photo like Maria has.
Then, of course, you get those who say she simply can't have the time to keep fit, be a mum and run her businesses. Well yes, she can actually. When you're a mum prioritising is important, organising your life and planning - a lot of planning is involved. I do this! I try to keep fit, I work in PR, I do a home study course with the Open University, I blog -daily; I also do the school run, keep my house in tip-top condition, play with my sons, look after a puppy and do everything else that comes my way. My friends and family always say 'how do you do it.' I do it because I plan, I make use of my hours and I stay up late - super late. It's actually 2.30am as I write this. The image above is taken from Maria's Facebook and shows how she manages her workload, Maria also like myself is not a single parent but my husband works from 9am to 9pm at night and I manage it with no help, no family babysitting or childminding and certainly no nanny.
As for the keep fit, she gets her kids involved, she works-out while the kids play at the park, she works out while her kids are busy in the house instead of sitting on her butt watching TV, gossiping on social networks or other tasks that may not be pro-active. Why not try doing some squats while you put out the tea? Add in some star jumps and lunges when the adverts come on? it all helps.
Some say 'how can her kids have any fun' 'It must be so dull living with her.' This actually made me angry. Eating healthy is good, kids love to eat healthy if that's what they become accustomed to. My sons love fruit, certain veg, and vegan cupcakes, they love water and drink a well-sized amount of it daily (I may be exaggerated this but you get my point). We love baking healthy 'junk' foods using vegan recipes and guess what? they taste AMAZING! my kids aren't overweight, they have tons of energy, great teeth and are super happy, calm and so intelligent it amazes me.
♥ Maria eats healthy but isn't unrealistic She actively posts her 'fail' days on her FB and doesn't feel ashamed. She very much believes that everything in moderation is good. Maybe if we stopped feeling like our food 'fails' were really bad we wouldn't feel that we were restricting our diets and end up pigging out.
So for everyone who believes Maria was directly 'fat-shaming' have a re-think. If you believe she's calling YOU fat because YOU haven't lost weight you believe shouldn't be on your body is it really her fault? is it may be that you weren't exercising as much as you could have? was it maybe that you were eating too many calories and not burning it off? Is your thyroid out of whack? Is your diabetes going crazy? Do you know that these can be eased (yes I do have an under-active thyroid so can totally relate) by losing excess pounds?
We need to stop blaming others that make us jealous (it's such a pointless emotion guys) and instead start pointing the finger at ourselves. We are in control of our lives, not Maria. Start looking at ways you can improve your own health, can you exercise? a brisk walk? wheelchair stretches? yoga for people with pain disorders, mobility issues, terrible fitness levels? Like she said if she can do it why can't you? she also doesn't directly mean 'why can't you work as a fitness model' she is implying that if she can get herself back into a fit and healthy state then you can too so 'what's your excuse' [for not doing it].
Take ownership of your own actions, emotions, and life - it's no-one else's fault. I vow to get my butt moving more, I vow to start eating healthier and I will blog it with complete honesty. I HATE exercise because it's tough. I rarely have excess energy and struggle throughout the day BUT I still want to try. If my bodies healthy chances are my conditions will improve, my energy will improve and my children will be happier for it in the long-run. I would do anything for my children and this is where I begin improving their lives also. No pain - No gain as they say.
Love and hugs. Let's do this together!
Elyse
Statement: Nothing to Disclose
i stumble upon the story today, and i don't believe what she is doing is fat shaming at all! i mean if people don't want to hear what someone wants to say or do all they have to do is walk away, she is not forcing anyone to believe that her way of taking care of herself is the only way, she is just showing the world how she is doing it and what the results are, people should be grateful, bully's are the ones going after her for being herself.
ReplyDeleteHi lovely, the story was shocking wasn't it. It felt like those who were going after her just wanted to ridicule and blame her for their own issues - a witch hunt of sorts. It made me angry because they mentioned her being beautiful but that had nothing to do with her getting fit and healthy.
DeleteThank you for your comment though it's nice to know I'm not the only one sitting over on this side of the fence.
Happy Sunday! xx
i couldn't agree with you more!!! we are often guilty of pointing out others flaws when what we should be doing is complimenting the positive things about people and encourage them to do better, instead of bringing her down people should say good job keep it up!
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