STRONG IS THE NEW SKINNY

You know the story. Prince Charming saves Cinderella on his white horse because she couldn’t save herself. Alone, helpless, lost. He comes around, sweeps her off her feet and rescues our little damsel in distress. They live happily ever after. The end.

Pause. Rewind.

Nope. Not today, not anymore. Wake up. It’s the 21st century babe, we don’t live like that anymore. We aren’t thinking like that any longer. It stops here. Times are changing and so are we.

I know you’ve heard this concept before– it’s nothing new. But I’m trying to go a bit deeper here. I’m trying to resurrect all my strong queens who became preoccupied with wanting to be the Selenas, Zendayas and Camila Cabellos of the world.

We’re done romanticizing a size 0, a prominent collarbone, a thigh gap. It’s time to think differently. I don’t want to be skinny anymore. Did I used to?

How could I have not? We have been relentlessly conditioned to strive for unrealistic expectations of ‘beauty’.

Not today. Today, I want to be fit. I want to be healthy, I want to be strong. Being fragile isn’t pretty anymore. In fact, it never was. Being strong is hot. Having a strong body and mind– even hotter. Doing it all for yourself? *Ding ding ding* We have a winner.

Loving yourself, taking care of your body, getting enough sleep, eating right, being confident in your own skin– these are the real goals we should focus on. We shouldn’t be focusing on looking a certain way to live up to expectations that these models and celebrities themselves could never even reach.

It’s idealistic and unattainable because it simply does not exist. Imagine a world without plastic surgery or Photoshop, any form of unrealistic body modification– imagine what our perception of beauty would then be. There is no one form of perfection or beauty or ideal– it’s subjective, it’s what you make it.

Being strong, though, is attainable. Loving everything you are and knowing your worth is attainable. Living to please yourself and no one else is attainable. Women are not objects. Did you get that? We are not objects. We weren’t meant to be perfect. We were meant to be human.

Scars are beautiful. Stretch marks are natural. Birthmarks are cute. It’s what we choose to define ourselves that shows our character. “Imperfections” don’t define us. Perfect is boring. Strong is empowering.

Be the change you wish to see, be strong for those who are preoccupied and need to see what true beauty looks like. It’s not about your physical features, it never should have been.

I’ll be honest, Selena Gomez, Zendaya, Camila Cabello are beautiful women. But they are beautiful for who they are beyond their looks. Their charisma, confidence, success, and ability to empower make them beautiful. They promote self-love, strength and beauty from within.

Let’s click play. Let’s move forward so that the next generation will never have to question what true beauty is. Let’s fast forward together and show each other that it’s not about being skinny, being perfect, being pretty. Let’s cut that out. Let’s be pretty kind, pretty fun, pretty smart, pretty strong.

Play. Fast forward. 

Decide for yourself what our future looks like.