The pressure we face to look 'perfect' at all times is perhaps more immense now than it ever has been before.
No longer just the fodder of glossy magazine covers, unrealistic beauty standards are so pervasive in our lives now that it can feel impossible to avoid them.
One scroll through Instagram is enough to remind us that someone, somewhere is currently in the gym, posing on a beach, or advertising charcoal toothpaste with improbably white teeth.
Watch as model Iskra Lawrence shows off her post-baby body in this bikini video:That's why movements like Grombre and the body positivity movement are so important - to remind us to embrace the skin we're in and practice self-love.
And now, fitness blogger Anjuli Mack has taken to Instagram to share two images she says were taken mere seconds apart, as a pertinent reminder of the fiction of misleading body image pictures.
She wrote:
"✖️ This is not a before and after ✖️
Although it wouldn't surprise me if fad diet, keto detoxes and random overseas supplement companies use it to promote their own agenda ? IT HAPPENS ALL THE TIME. Companies prey on people desperate for a quick fix but in reality this is just puffing out & then sucking in. Seconds apart as seen on my video post yesterday ?
"When I sit down I have rolls, how do I get rid of them?" "At the end of the day my tummy looks bloated. Why?" "I have been working so hard but I still have rolls." The list of things I get in the dms goes on ? I never get tired if educating all of you, I am here to help as much as possible ?
"So a few key things I wish I knew when I started & what I want all of you to know is...
1️⃣ You cannot outwork your nutrition. In order to lose fat from anywhere you need to be in a caloric deficit (eating less calories than your body requires to maintain) ✔️
2️⃣ Carbs are not the enemy. You can eat bread and pasta ?? But the key is in moderation & alignment with your goals.
3️⃣ Social media & magazines are NOT real life. It is curated to what someone wants you to see ? You will never see 100% of someone's life online.
4️⃣ Focus on YOU. Don't try to copy XYZ, fad diets or waste money on juice detoxes. Just get a plan in place & stick to it ?? Trust your coach & the process. I wish I had got a coach from day one.
5️⃣ Be kind to yourself! Years from now you won't care aboht the occassional night you "fell off your diet" with friends or the holiday with family where you felt bad for eating at the breakfast buffet ? You want to remember the life time memories made with loved ones ♥️
Anjuli ✌?
XO"
Anjuli Mack often shares tips and reminders such as this with her followers. You can see her Instagram page here.