Urban Problems – When Fitness becomes a cause of bodyshaming !

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“Dude.. Are you a freaking doctor ?” 

One guy from the gym was way more excited about my future recognition than myself !

“Not at this moment, friend ! But after a few years I surely will.” I replied maintaining my usual calm tone.

“So, doctor saheb !! How can you handle all this reading stuff and gym at the same time ?” He continued , ” I mean, don’t you get tired after reading all the heavy books ? I can’t even read a pair of pages at once !!” 

“Nope, in fact, gymming is quite refreshing for me. And I can meet people like you who would share same hobby and help me getting through this hell kind of workout.” 

“But still, I haven’t seen fit doctors for a long time now . They all tell us to be in shape but they forget to look in their mirrors in morning. I think it’s because you are in college nowadays that’s why you are doing gym. Afterwards it will all be the same just like the other doctors we see.” 

He punched directly in the belly of doctor’s fraternity all at once !! And he was somewhere right in his quotation. Not just him but I think that the whole community was speaking then.

That was a mere part of what I actually hear when I converse with the local public. And those exctra praise I get in the gym is all because of some of my fellow doctors who have set a record in surprising people by their not-so-healthy outlook !

And I don’t blame here any of the doctors or persons who was a target of that bodybuilder. I understand it’s very hard nowadays to work all the day and the same time to look after yourself when your family and bosses are all after you !!

I am blaming here the fake idea of fitness who’s fixed like an old chewing gum in our society’s mind. 

If a person has his belly protruding out of his shirt or his cheeks are hanging down the jaw , people tag him as “fat”. No one actually spares a minute to see if he has the same beautiful smile as he was having before or not !! 

And to my surprise, the more gyms are opening day by day which is a good thing actually , the more body-shamers are being produced at the same rate which is more than worse !

Few months before I entered my college, I was like a 70-72 kg boy, looking like a “fat” boy as people call it !

And now after a three years of gape, I am a 60 kg guy, and perhaps in the best shape of my life , I can now tell what actually the word “fitness” means ! 

In earlier days, after being diagnosed with a slight high blood pressure, I started taking my health seriously. Before that , I was a happy go lucky person who hasn’t been giving shit to any of the people calling me fat or fluffy.

But when it comes to our own future, we have to make a move before the nature does it anyway ! 

So, being an avid learner, I searched out all the related stuff about fitness and joined some conversations online to make my first move. And from diet to exercise, weightlifting to steady-state cardio, HIIT to tabata workout and yoga to meditation, I tried and tasted everything I could possibly dream !

And after all these years, being messed up with so many things, the results are in my favour as I wanted them to be !

But was it because I wanted to be lean for the society’s sake ? Or was it because I felt an urge to feel the happiness that I actually deserved but never sought earlier ?

This post is an answer to the people who still think that having a shaped body and a gym membership is enough to tease other people who choose to remain on the contrary side .

Being on both the sides for a long time and after observing many people in that way, what I’ve learnt is that,

“Fitness is a constant feeling, not a mere shape !”

And having a muscular body has nothing to do with one’s confidence. It all comes from within when you choose yourself to be happy and healthy instead of judging others for not being the same !

Let the world be a wonderful place as it is by spreading only positive vibes ! Don’t choose to be fit because society thinks you should, Do it because you know you deserve that ! Aim to be in the best shape of your mind and respect others for their individual choices, too.