What's Your Excuse?

This image, with one sentence, has been floating around the Internet for days now, causing all kinds of controversy. I have read hundreds of comments and post and most of them are negative. There seem to be a lot of women out there who have taken this one photo, with one sentence, as an attack on anyone who has given birth and carries extra weight. Some are mildly irritated but many are furious and are lashing out irrationally, saying how this woman is attacking fat people.  I have read post after post for days and haven't commented until today.

My view lies with the other women who also chose to take the good from this, and not the bad. We are far too judgmental when it comes to touchy topics like this and a part of me thinks that it's got a tad bit to do with jealousy. It's hard to lose weight. I'm the first to admit that. I mean, I took drastic measures to become healthier but that's a part of what the message is from this image and it's one sentence. Sometimes we need to take drastic measures to ensure we are healthy for ourselves, the future of our children and our family. Our end result may not be a super flat stomach like Maria (above) has, but it doesn't mean we can't have our own image of what healthy is.

Do I believe she was attacking fat women? Absolutely not. I think she was trying to get the message across that she, the mother of three young children, has reached her healthy goal and that others can do the same thing. We do tend to make excuses. Let's face it. There are very few of us who can honestly say we have not made excuses and especially the excuse that we have kids. I also don't think she is trying to say that it's easy. I know it's not and I haven't even given birth. But I was carrying 100+ extra pounds and I do have a 1 year old daughter. There is nothing easy about weight loss in any form but it is possible if you find what works for you and apply yourself.

I think why I held off of commenting for so long is because I don't like all of the dramatic and negative judgement. I realize that we all judge at some point in time but instead of judging, I'd rather just use this photo to my advantage and take it as encouragement, which is what I honestly believe Maria was trying to relay to mothers. So now is the time to step back, re-evaluate the photo, its sentence and turn this into something positive in your life.