Meet @summerginther sharing her #yogasavedmylife story with us. These are her words 💚
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. "I remember being aware of my body at a really young age. My parents both struggled with their weight and negative self talk was common in my household. I went on my first diet when I was 10. When most kids didn’t even know what a calorie was, I was tracking every one. I told myself at first it was just to be healthy. Once I was a healthy weight I would be happy. The more weight I lost, though, the more I hated how I looked
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By high school it was a full on war with my body. My weight would fluctuate up or down 30 pounds within only a few month time period. I would restrict, binge, and purge. The cycle was continuous. I stopped going out to eat with friends,I was working out hours every day. Eating foods outside of my “allotted calories” put my in a spiral of anxiety. At first, I thought my eating disorder gave me a sense of power and control over my body. I soon realized that I wasn’t actually in control at all
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When I first went to yoga I saw it as another workout. I quickly learned that yoga was different. There was talk about observing our body without judgment, accepting our body for where it was that moment. I started focusing on what my body does for me versus how it looks. It was the first time I felt at peace with who I was. I gradually started to love myself more. I started to realize that I am so much more than this physical body. I didn’t need to obsess over every single calorie or pound
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Before yoga, I had lost all of my confidence. I didn’t like anything about myself. I was scared to try new things or put myself out there. This year I flew to Costa Rica by myself to become a Certified Yoga Teacher, something I would have never done a year ago. Yoga showed me how to love myself again. Yoga has helped me to be at peace with my body and no longer at war with food. I will forever be grateful for this practice and this community 🙏
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Summer "
