Ok so here goes. I am admittedly another kale chomping, avocado smashing, coffee drinking millennial. I am guilty of ‘snapping’ and ‘gramming’ everything I do, and yes I will pick a venue based on its aesthetics. I am unable to go to for dinner or lunch or even a quick afternoon coffee without taking a snap. Much to my boyfriends annoyance. And YES, I am 100% guilty of letting the ‘instagrammable’ nature of a venue sway my choice, pink velvet chairs? big open windows? copper lights hanging from the ceiling? 1,2,3 *texting girls/boyfriend* “There’s this really cool new place I’ve found that we should totally try out, yep the menu looks AMAZING, I’ll book us a table.” GUILTY. Okay, glad I got that admission over. Now here is another for you… I can’t get myself into a gym, and it makes me feel less ‘cool’ than everyone else.
*Here are some photos for you*
There is definitely a lifestyle pressure that comes with being born any time after 1990. I feel I should be gymming, working on my booty, have a perfectly made up face every single day and walk around drinking the next best protein shake. A little introduction into the life of me, I spend my life in joggers or a dressing gown at home, my hair lives in a bun and although my makeup skills are good enough for me, I definitely won’t be calling myself an MUA anytime soon.
Every single day on Instagram I scroll through endless and endless photographs of perfectly toned girls, with perfectly painted eyebrows wearing perfectly sculpted gym wear. And yeah, it most definitely makes me feel inferior. I am naturally slim, so I am often painted with the gym goers brush, but in reality I am unable to convince myself to step foot in a gym. MY APARTMENT BUILDING HAS A GYM. IT IS 2 SECONDS AWAY FROM ME.
Some may call me lazy, but I think I am the product of a disillusioned generation, once you start trying to aim for perfection like those girls you see on Instagram, you have already set yourself up for a loss. Brutal reminder here- WAKE UP, Instagram is NOT real life. Yes these beautiful girls may well go to the gym, they may well have perfect eyebrows and wear gorgeous gym gear, but they will also sit there with a take away on a Saturday night or may go their second (third) day without washing their hair (will dry shampoo really save me again?). You just won’t see that documented on Instagram. Would you want the world to see your unwashed hair? Nope. Didn’t think so.
So a message to all you gorgeous girls (or guys!) reading this, there is nothing wrong with setting goals to improve your lifestyle. Whether that is growing out over plucked eyebrows or simply going to the gym once per week. Just remember to set achievable goals, if you don’t step foot in a gym, it is highly unlikely that you will suddenly start going every single morning at 6am. However, you may be find going to a 6pm class on a Monday, and working out on a Wednesday morning works for you. Start slowly, and build up gradually.
While I think Instagram creates a false illusion of how perfect peoples lives are, I also believe the health kick craze that has come as a bi-product of a social media generation is a good thing! Increasing exercise and healthy eating is great, just as long as you don’t beat yourself up about eating that entire pizza on a Saturday night or not having the toned body of that girl you’ve been following on Instagram.
I think my aim this year will be to start going to the gym or at least a few gym classes (Yes, I’m aware it’s March, the first two months are just trial months aren’t they?). I also want to try out lots of new meals, so I though perhaps in a future blog post I could write out my typical week meal plan with some recipes. *THESE WILL NOT ALL BE HEALTHY* but I promise they won’t be THAT bad, just super super yummy! Please feel free to comment below with any tips on how to motivate myself to go to the gym and also any recipes you love!
All my love,
A x
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