Back in elementary school, I had to read a book called Food Rules, and yes, it is exactly what it sounds like- a long list of recommended do’s and don’ts that we should follow when it comes to the food we put into our bodies. At a young age, we are taught that we should eat healthy, to supply our bodies with the proper nutrients it needs to grow and develop properly, and that’s the honest truth. I think this book was able to portray this with the right intentions and message to its readers, and the book has definitely stuck with me this whole time. However, I am not writing this blog post to do a book review.

We know that society has changed many things to fit their standards, including fashion, music, entertainment, and even eating. Although not the case for everyone, I’ve grown up around the idea that you need to eat healthy, not to be healthy, but to be skinny because skinny was ¨beautiful.¨ This social construct that we see in most of our media and entertainment from many years ago until now play a huge part in how young girls grow up. As someone who loves food, it was hard to live being disappointed in myself for indulging in things I enjoyed because of my fear of gaining weight- something I still struggle with today. Especially during the beginning of this quarantine, I found myself eating constantly out of boredom, something that many people are going through also.

I was constantly feeling ashamed and out of place, until I realized that I was actually out of place. This quarantine was such an abrupt change that none of us were truly prepared for. Everything now is so different from how it was a couple months ago, so our bodies and mentalities need the time to change and adapt too. Now I’m not saying that you should eat ten ice cream bars in one sitting, but you shouldn’t feel ashamed for your body, for not being society’s idea of ¨attractive.¨ Our daily cycles were completely changed, so it’s not abnormal that our eating cycle changed too. And while I believe that we should try to maintain a healthy eating schedule, it’s okay if it takes a little longer to go back to normality in our eating habits. While we figure all of this out, we should accept our bodies regardless and the beauty within us.

Everyday I try to remind myself that I am beautiful, and I am constantly trying to get the idea that we should eat to be skinny out of my head, replacing it with the fact that we should eat to be healthy. Those food rules weren’t written to help us fit into society’s ideals, but to develop healthy eating habits. Although I am writing from a female perspective, this relates directly for the guys reading this too. You don’t have to have the superhero, muscular body that society deems ideal, your worth is not in how your body looks to other people.

I believe that knowing your worth and beauty is one of the most important things to our health. We are worthy regardless of a number on a scale. We are beautiful regardless of the media surrounding us today. There is so much beauty in us, and I am realizing that more and more everyday. There is beauty in your smile when you see someone you love. There is beauty in your eyes when they light up from enjoyment. There is beauty in your laugh when you hear a funny joke. There is beauty in your actions and words when you use them to empower, support, and build up yourself and others. There is beauty in your mind when you can accept all of this. This is the truth.

I’ve really used this quarantine time to build myself up, and I think you should too. Although not an easy task, I am constantly trying to build up my own self-confidence, trying to do what I love, trying to not compare myself to society’s standards of beautiful,  and trying to accept myself for who I am. So many people today are breaking ideals and standards of society, and you can too. So go bake those cookies you love. Dress up and take pictures. Wear that item that you’ve been too scared to wear.  Try things that are out of your comfort zone. Do what you love and makes you happy.