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Healthy Helper

Health. Happiness. Helping Others.

Looks Can Be Deceiving {giveaway}

[Reminder: All through the month of November I will be accepting ‘corrected’ fitspo pictures for my #CHANGEOURFITSPIRATION contest! Email me your pic at proulxkr@roadrunner.com for a chance to win an amazing prize and be featured on my blog sidebar!! Check HERE and HERE for more details!]

Take these muffins…

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThey look pretty tasty right?

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERANice and chocolatey, fluffy….DOUGHY.

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As I mentioned, over the weekend I did some de-stressing baking. I made some of my usual plantain breads and attempted a new recipe for some chocolate mint protein muffins. But even the best laid plans made with the best of intentions can go wrong. Unfortunately these muffins had an overly dry, spongey texture and were not sweet enough to compliment the strong flavors of cocoa powder and mint. (Don’t worry though…I don’t let anything go to waste….I’ll be eating these up for sure! I’m pretty much a garbage disposal 😉 )  But you probably wouldn’t be able to tell that just by looking at them!

This got me thinking about other things that can be deceiving upon first glance….namely our bodies.

There has been a big focus on body acceptance movements lately. Accepting your body at any size or shape, and embracing what you are naturally or what you happen to be right now. While I think this is important…we certainly shouldn’t be thinking negatively about any part of ourselves on a consistent basis….but sometimes I think we focus too much on exterior attributes all together. Whether they are good or bad.

I think the biggest boost we can have in accepting ourselves, is to just focus on our bodies less in general! Or at least the aesthetic, physical characteristics. Cause frankly, they’re not that important. And a lot of people find the body acceptance movement frustrating because they have real trouble accepting their bodies. Sometimes it really is hard to just change your thoughts. It can even make you feel worse about yourself if people are always telling you to do it and you struggle with it! I’ve been there in other areas of my life and I know how hard reframing and rethinking can be. This all has got me thinking about another perspective to consider our bodies from. Here’s where the looks can be deceiving notion comes in.

When it comes down to it…what’s most important in our lives in regards to our bodies? The health of them!

And the size and shape of our body isn’t really a great indicator of that! Sure you could be thin and seemingly fit….but maybe under that exterior are a host of health problems caused by malnutrition or maybe a high level of body fat because you rely on a high metabolism to keep you thin and don’t eat as heathy as you should. Maybe you appear to be overweight but really have the heart of an ox and are perfectly healthy with just a different body type….or conversely maybe you ’embrace your curves’, have confidence and feel comfortable being overweight, but your heart and other organs are suffering because of it. There are tons of different scenarios….but the underlying trend is that looks don’t determine your health! Your numbers, vitals, and body functions do!

What’s the point in accepting your body if you don’t have the health to go with it? So next time you’re thinking about your body in a negative way, try to steer away from the exterior components. Think about whether you have your health or not! If you do, be thankful and proud that you’re doing right by your body and giving yourself a good place to live. 🙂 If you don’t, use THAT as a motivating factor to make some changes…not to change the way you look!

And believe it or not…when our bodies are functioning to the best of their ability in terms of health, our brains think more clearly and we feel better all around. All that can lead to a better body image! So even in making an effort to not think about your body as good or bad in terms of looks, and instead focus on its internal state, you will in fact feel better about yourself! You’ll think of yourself as whole, functioning person…mind, body, and soul working together….as opposed to just the way you’re perceived on the outside.

Just something to consider…

[I was inspired to share this perspective after talking with a friend who was lamenting about how she sometimes feels belittled by the body acceptance movement because she has real struggles with thinking positive thoughts all the time!! So instead of trying to fit yourself into yet another mold that society puts out there (even if this one is definitely more positive than others), try to think about your body in a totally different way. From a perspective of health rather than looks.]

On a lighter topic…

Sometimes looks can be deceiving in a good way!

I recently received a pair of capris from my friends at Albion Fit last week (I reviewed one of their shirts a few months ago!).

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On first glance they might seem like your typical workout capris. Mid calf, tight-fitting, and fun striped pattern! But these are a lot more than that.

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They are perhaps the softest,  most comfortable workout capris I own. The material that Albion uses for their products is AMAZING. A mix of nylon and spandex….they have great stretch as well as that softness that I spoke of before. And it’s not the kind that goes away the first time you wash them! The shirt I have from Albion as well as these capris have retained their softness and their fit after many cycles of washing and wearing. That’s really important to me, as I tend to wear out my workout clothes really quick from hard sweat sessions in them! OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Another thing I really like about these capris in particular is that they are tag-less. Nothing is more annoying during an already challenging workout then having to deal with an itchy, annoying tag!

These capris are light weight and body hugging…perfect for outdoor cardio or anything that you’ll be moving around a lot for! But I have to admit…I’ve been wearing them a lot for just lounging around and for bed! They’re that comfortable. Love the neutral stripe pattern too….goes with everything!

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[excuse my poorly matched socks]

Albion has generously offered to give one of my readers a $50 gift-card to be used in their online store! So you have the opportunity to try some of their quality gear for yourselves!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And don’t worry, even if you don’t win Albion gave me this coupon code that can be used until November 19th for all of my readers!!

Just use the code helper20 at checkout for $20 dollars off a $100 dollar purchase!! Perfect for the upcoming holiday season! I know I’d love to get something from Albion as a gift! 🙂

What are your thoughts on focusing on the exterior versus the interior?

Have you had any kitchen fails lately?

Did you happen to read yesterday’s WIAW post? Check it out if you haven’t!!

Kaila

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Todays’s Healthy Help: Helped a friend finish a project for her bio lab!

Never too late to start Lending a {Healthy} Hand for this weeks round-up! Tell me what you’ve done to help someone else lately!

50 responses to “Looks Can Be Deceiving {giveaway}”

  12. I love your muffins they look so good…hello chocolate 🙂
    Body image is a struggle for even myself and I am 46 with 3 kids and I know I am in great shape and fit, however struggling with being short and always wanting to be “more fit” or toned is an issue and my head gets in the way of enjoying my healthy body ….thanks Kaila 🙂

    Reply

  20. Healthy Help: I feel that I take that extra step every day to ensure kindness and not only safe nursing care as an ER Nurse. I truly make it a point to make the person know they’re cared for. I believe knowing your nurse actually cares in an emergency is huge! 😀 P.S. LOVE your movement!

    Reply

  21. Your tights look super cute.
    Its actually funny, reading your post this morning. I was thinking of body acceptance and how I am finally starting to make due with my shape and learning to embrace the things-hips-that I can’t change due to genetics. I have to work what “my momma gave me” after all.

    Reply

  25. Haha. So now I feel bad about clogging your instagramed post with mismatched socks talk 😉 My bad.

    I have definitely come to realize that looks are not everything when judging someone’s habits or health. You cannot tell how much a person eats or doesn’t eat, what quality of food they consume, how much they exercise, how they are feeling, etc. by their size. And as far as cholesterol, blood tests and the like go, size isn’t everything either.

    I so would have predicted that those muffins would be good! Bummer.

    My last kitchen fail was a microwave muffin gone slightly awry.

    Reply

  26. loved this post!! health is always #1 in my book. thinking about the nutrients in the foods i was eating and viewing working out as a destressor and time to just get away from life (instead of something i had to do) really helped me to view eating/exercise as a component of my health, not my looks.

    Reply

  35. nice post. Indeed a lot struggles from such idea. Well, everyone thinks that a healthy body are the slim ones but looks aren’t the indicator of it. It saddens me that most girls nowadays develop poor eating habits due to their insecurity when it comes to the way they look. Health isn’t reflected on your size but on how happy and comfortable you look. Eating healthy is very much different from eating less. ˆ_ˆ

    Reply

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