To the people who planned on making a body transformation in time for bikini season but had their plans derailed by Ramadan gatherings and Lotus konafas… this one’s for you!
We took to Instagram in search for women who have taken an alternative approach to the body transformations we see so often. These ‘reverse transformations’ feature women who are much happier in the bodies they’ve got now after gaining weight. No, we’re not skinny shaming anyone, and we definitely aren’t encouraging you to stop eating healthy. Instead, we’re aiming to inspire you to go easy on yourself and to love yourself—whether that means you should build up your muscle mass instead of overwhelming your body with cardio or just calming down your intense dieting and workouts.
Here are six ladies that prove that a healthy body comes in all shapes and sizes!
This fitness influencer pushed herself hard to lose weight and found herself feeling underwhelmed. In her caption, she stated, “At my lowest I was at a place where I was eating a lot of foods I did not enjoy, and I was unhappy.” She decided to relax her intense meal plan and to focus on the things that make her happy. “I’m really HAPPY and I am not beating myself up! … Am I upset right now? I am absolutely not. Because I have been killing my workouts, been gaining so much strength, and strengthening my relationship with myself.” Which is, afterall, the most important thing.
In a bid to be crowned Miss South Africa, she lost almost 14 kilograms by putting herself on a strict diet and training 2 to 3 hours a day. However, she didn’t feel as good as one would imagine feeling after losing that much weight. “My boobs shrunk 2 cup sizes and my period stopped. On this specific day of the picture, I got home, freezing after the shoot, and I had a baby apple for dinner .. it’s NOT worth it to fight a daily battle with food or your body. Bodies are different, we can’t all look the same.”
This nurse fainted and broke her jaw while at work, and consequently, lost over six kilograms. After recovering, she decided to put the weight back the right way. She aimed for a strong and healthy body, and she achieved just that through weightlifting.
In her caption, she stated, “I will never understand how I ever convinced myself that being “thin” would bring happiness and help me feel like I would be accepted. Little did I know that lifting weights, not killing my body with HOURS of cardio everyday and eating enough would get me to the body I had ALWAYS wanted.” Amen!
She may have gained only three kilograms, but for this mother, these three kilograms meant a lot more strength. “If I can’t track a meal, my world doesn’t end. And sometimes I don’t even track at all. I enjoy my training. At one point last year I tried to take up running to get leaner. My knee hated it and it just wasn’t enjoyable. I had to force myself to do it. The fact is, you are much more likely to stick with something that you love doing … So if you don’t want to run, then don’t run. If you don’t want to eat kale or quinoa, don’t eat it! If you don’t want to track your food, then please don’t! #screwthescale”
This fitness blogger gained 10 kilograms, and she is proud of the muscle mass she’s achieved. Our favorite thing about her caption is how she urges her followers to get involved with health and fitness if and only if it is “a fun addition to your life, rather than the whole of it.”
So ladies! Embrace your bodies. Go for that second (or third) ataayef. Maybe skip dessert one time? (Or not!) Just do you!
