I was recently at the gym. It's been awhile - I hate that I make progress on muscles and better time on the treadmill, and with a couple of terrible weeks it's back to square one. I've been sick this last week, a cough, perfect reason to roll over when the alarm goes off.
So, I'm on Tread walking briskly, so as to avoid an embarrassing lost lung episode, when I notice a skinny armed woman on the stairs. I can never do the stairs because I get uncoordinated. One wrong move and doom. I noticed her skinny arms because I want skinny arms. Don't we always notice that in other people? But a second look at her and I noticed her arms weren't just skinny, they were bony. The more I watched her the more concerned I became. I noticed her tiny thin legs and her bony shoulders. It wasn't until she got off the stairs, over to the wall, where she put her head between her legs, that I realized she was text book anorexic. My heart felt for her as she looked at herself in the mirror. How did she see herself? Did she notice her bony frame when she saw her reflection - or were there flaws and flabby skin; did her face look too round? What was more concerning was that after her short break she got back on the stair machine... and kept climbing. I prayed for her, that God would comfort her and her quest and that He would help her see her beauty.
So, I'm on Tread walking briskly, so as to avoid an embarrassing lost lung episode, when I notice a skinny armed woman on the stairs. I can never do the stairs because I get uncoordinated. One wrong move and doom. I noticed her skinny arms because I want skinny arms. Don't we always notice that in other people? But a second look at her and I noticed her arms weren't just skinny, they were bony. The more I watched her the more concerned I became. I noticed her tiny thin legs and her bony shoulders. It wasn't until she got off the stairs, over to the wall, where she put her head between her legs, that I realized she was text book anorexic. My heart felt for her as she looked at herself in the mirror. How did she see herself? Did she notice her bony frame when she saw her reflection - or were there flaws and flabby skin; did her face look too round? What was more concerning was that after her short break she got back on the stair machine... and kept climbing. I prayed for her, that God would comfort her and her quest and that He would help her see her beauty.
I felt kind of ashamed for my time with Tread - I wonder if I'd be at risk for being like her, if only I was more self-disciplined. Exercise is good for the body, mental health and mind, but when it comes down to it, my motivations are the same as skinny-armed chick, the desire to look in the mirror and see something else.
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