THE FROSTING. — EM FIELDS

‘When nobody celebrates you, learn to celebrate yourself. When nobody compliments, then compliment yourself. It’s not up to other people to keep you encouraged. It’s up to you. Encouragement should come from the inside’

-Joel Osteen

Honestly one of my favourite quotes that I am constantly referring back to for myself and others. When people ask me how I stay so motivated and driven I feel like I need to give them a lesson in shifting perspectives. I wasn’t always this motivated. I worked hard to get to where I am, for years.

I remember when I first started posting progress photos on my Instagram I got a shit tonne of backlash and ridicule. I never started working out to have a good body as most of you know. I started training to increase mental strength more than anything else. When I started seeing changes in my body I was like ‘woah what the’. It was the first physical representation of the hard work I had put in to overcome inner battles. I think that’s the hardest thing about mental illness- because you can’t see it, it’s hard for people, especially those who suffer from it to believe that it is ‘real’. I think at the time my body to me was proof that I had overcome something. I didn’t post photos to get attention from guys or to show off, I posted photos for me. I was so proud of myself, and I had every right to be.

What I started posting at the time was a little more out there than what I post now (and those of you who have been following me for a while will understand what I mean haha), but I got ridicule left right and centre about it. Negative shit, all the time, like people couldn’t stand the fact that I was openly proud of my body. You know what? Not one single fuck was given. Not one. You know why? After my years of struggling with the way that I felt about myself, I realised that I deserve to look in the mirror and love what I see. I always deserved that. Every damn day I deserve to look in the mirror and say ‘damnnnn Fieldo you fiiiine’, and I am not sorry about it.

You see, one thing that bugs me the most about the health and fitness industry is that it is built on one completely BS notion- that you are not good enough. Damn I hate that word- ‘enough’. When I see those posters around gyms that are all ‘lose 5kgs in 2 weeks’ as if to say that you’re not rad enough with the extra 5 kilos. This is where people go wrong. It’s a complete mindfuck. You start by chasing that ‘dream rig’ on a mission of validation as opposed to celebration. The most important thing you are forgetting to do, is love yourself enough in the first place (and this is the only place that damn word should be used).

When a journey of change starts on a foundation of negative connotations you’ve got to wonder- when will enough be enough? When will I be enough? The secret is- you already are. ‘You exist, and therefore, you matter’, by living, breathing, you are enough and you deserve everything in this world you’re willing to work your ass off for.

You can carry this mentality into everything you grind for, not just your everyday #fitspo. You deserve to have financial security, and your dream home, and to travel so work your ass off to be the best you can be in the company that you work for. You deserve to have amazing friends, so support them with anything and everything you can when they need, and they will support you back. You deserve to have a beautiful family, so look after them just as well as they look after you.

Try to flip your perspective on the things you want in life. Don’t look at goals and intentions as a means to fill what you believe to be voids in your life. They aren’t voids- you’re just bored. Look at goals and intentions as an addition to your life- look them as frosting on the cake. The cake was always delicious- but FUCK YEAH FROSTING. You deserve the frosting, every damn day.