Poll: How satisfied are you with your fitness level?

It seems that very few of us are ever satisfied with our bodies or current level of fitness. I am interested to hear from members of the board: are you satisfied with your current level of fitness? If not, what would it take for you to become comfortable with it?

I am very happy with my current size, though I am still trying to lose 10-15 lbs to get rid of some fat deposits from my "problem area"--my outer thighs. Unfortunately, I will also lose some more from my waist and boobs--two places I don't want to lose!

According to the weight charts I am 10 lbs overweight, even though I am American size 10 now, which is quite nice.

I am not satisfied with my flabbiness, but I am working on that with exercise. That will come in time.

In the past, I was never satisfied, remaining self-critical no matter how much I weighed or how small the size. And I always re-gained lost weight! This time around, I am learning to be satisfied with the way I look and feel TODAY. Flab and all! I think that's part of the key to success. Being hypercritical made me eat!

Thanks for sharing your personal stuff, it helps to learn how others think and feel about these things.

Elissa

I didn't mean to be so verbose. Overall, I am satisfied. Very!

Hi,

Great question. On a scale of 1-10 I would say that I am at about a 9.5 in terms of satisfied. I realize that I could always be thinner or better toned etc but I am accepting of where I am. If time or life permits, I know that I always have my own permission to re-evaluate my status of body/health/tone, but for now, I don't stress about it. :-)

By the way, I spent many years learning to be accepting of all inner/outer parts of me and to face and acknowledge the one day at a time Universal truths....so for me after a life long struggle, I am in a very good place. :-)

Thank you Elissa for being verbose. It is my favorite thing in life to do myself. LOL.

Best wishes,
Karen

Good question. I do tend to beat myself up for not exercising enough and not being fit enough. I also don't feel that satified with my body at times. Especially when I am shopping for jeans, which I hate.

Karen,

That's the sound of true wisdom I'm hearing from you, without a doubt.

Seems like so many of us women spend our teens, 20's and early 30's kicking our own asses all over the place (especially when buying jeans-- to Bratty). I'm going to be 37 in a few weeks. It's taken me all of this time to realize what a huge waste of energy that was. And how counterproductive!

I keep telling my younger friends that it wasn't until I started treating myself like a goddess that I really started to feel like one. I mean treating myself with all of the love, compassion and acceptance that I would give to my very best friend. Since I started doing this, my whole life turned around.

One of the things that drives me batty is that when I was in my teens and 20's, I beat myself up for being too fat at size 8, size 10, size 12--etc. I was never satisfied! That is so crazy. Those are small sizes. So what if I wasn't model-perfect? Perfectionism is a disease I tell you. Anyone who strives for it will pretty much always be disappointed.

Treat yourself as you'd treat your best friend and you won't go wrong (assuming you know how to be a wonderful friend).

Btw, I stopped reading Cosmo and Glamour. Now I read Marie Claire (GREAT for hair, beauty and fashion) and Redbook. Much better for the self esteem.

More verbosity, ah heck

Elissa
Who is probably verbose because I'm trapped in this one room of my house for 8 hours today while the rest of my place is being re-carpeted. I am SO bored!!!

To be hung up about our flesh and blood bodies is all to do with the complexities of being a human being, with a 2-way vision.

One vision is where you see your body from the outside-in. You judge yourself according to social/cultural standards (or should I say Ideals).

The other vision is where you experience your body form the inside-out. Are you balanced, do you have energy, are you supple and strong, do you sleep well, etc.

Personally, I put my body under a lot of stress because I abandon caring for it in favour of creative, mental or emotional activities.
It is surviving despite my attempts to undermine it.


With respect to fitness, I love hill-walking and deep breathing and try to do this every week. Not to lose weight or gain stregth, but just to get the internal systems moving.

I'm quite happy with the way the body is bearing up as I head towards my 40s.

good topic i would say on a scale of 1 to 10 i would say an 8.5 to a 9 depending what i'm wearing. i'm tiny as you can see in my pictures. i'm only 4'11 and i weigh 94 pds. i have a little pooch in my stomach. it bugs me but sometimes i'm not motivated enough to exercise all the time especially the stomach exercises.
people use to make my really self concious about my weight. that i was too SKINNY. i needed to get meat on my bones when in fact i do eat a lot. it's funny in society it's not proper to call people ''fat'' to there face. but people can tell people how'''skinny'' they are to there face.

Hi Elissa,

Ahhhh yes. I often say that if I could have my current brain in my 30 year old body I would have the world by the tail. :-) At 30 I had so much pure physical energy and could stay up all night and not feel it in the least. Now I can't. I noticed as I went into my 40s that my body could no longer take my normal lifestyle abuse and so I had to adjust my priorities. It used to be that I felt sleep was an inconvenience and time robber. Now I absolutely know that I need to get a minimum of 6 hours.

So it really is true, with age comes wisdom...if you are willing to stop and listen and pay attention. :-)

I love your reference Elissa to becoming a goddess. That is such a wonderful commentary. I think that is just a great way to show other women, your friends and others, to only worry about how they feel about themselves.

This is a great topic and I want to say Elissa that I am really enjoying this new board thread. You are doing a great job.

Best wishes to all - have a wonderful weekend.

Karen

Thanks Karen, I am enjoying this section very much. It really helps reinforce things for me and I learn so much from other members.

I want to add to this discussion that we have only recently been hearing more and more that men go through much of the same stuff we do regarding body image and feeling bad about their body sizes. They are affected by their own media messages and Hollywood pressures. I use the word "goddess" and discuss my experiences as a woman, but I don't mean to exclude men. Men have much to offer in these discussions, and I hope male members of this board are not put off by some of the thoughts and terminology and (that more of them) do join us.

Thanks for all of the participation and sharing, everyone.

Elissa

I am very satisfied with my fitness level. My BMI is just perfect. I do exercise regularly - both cardio and weights. I'm into yoga and Pilates. They have both helped. It's not about being thin or perfection, it's about how one feels inside. Since I've kept an exercise regime, I feel better and am also much healthier.

im okay with the way i am, jus i realllllly would like to lose 5-10 pounds by the beginning of summer. i vowed that i will NOT wear shorts if i don't lose at least 5 pounds. I kno i'm crazy, but in my society, if u can't fit in a 0, or 1, it's supposedly a bad thing, maybe its because all my friends are zeros ones or 3s, i feel very pressured to lose weight
anyone have any idea on losing weight quickly? yes its unhealthy and what not...

Fitting a size zero is unrealistic to expect from anyone. Bleh, no wonder so many teen girls go anorexic, if that's what they feel they have to live up to :-P .
I'm not happy with my current fitness level because I've gotten beyond lazy about it since the treadmill broke. . . ages ago. . . and hasn't been fixed yet. If I can make myself do some exercise almost every day, whether it's walking or workout videos or whatever, I feel a lot better about my overall fitness, even if there's not much change in how my clothes fit.
Although, I do wish I could manage to lose some weight :-P . I'm not asking to be a size zero or anything, just I'd like to notice some results. It's really frustrating to exercise almost daily for months and see no change at all in measurements or the way clothes fit. Bleh. It's enough to ruin anyone's motivation.

Well, I haven't ever liked my body, even when I should have. I hated it when it was 20 and even 30 pounds lighter. I felt like I was huge! And it is weird but I don't feel any more huge now even though I am a lot bigger. I was never anorexic or bulemic but I do believe I have body dysmorphic disorder. Don't know how to make it go away though. It has been with me as long as I can remember (probably the first time some kid made a mean comment).

I am grateful for glowing good health and physical strength though.

I'm not dissatisfied with my weight, but my fitness level. my best friend and i weigh the exact same and are the exact same height, yet i look so much bigger than her. Alas, that's life.

Satisfied...Never- but then I am never satisfied! LOL! Debbie