Me Without Makeup: A Post About Loving Yourself

In the midst of all the concealers, cleansers, treatments, and creams I sometimes lose sight of what is truly important: loving myself without any of the additions. Loving my skin blemishes, freckles, moles and all. So drumroll please...here I am in all my bare-skinned glory.

As all of you must know by now, I love beauty products. I stroll down the aisles of Target looking for the newest skincare treatments hoping that I will find a life changing product to end any and all skin issues for the rest of eternity. Because that will change the world--kidding! Recently I've been thinking about the kind of person I am and the kind of person I hope to be. I want to inspire, motivate, and instill hope in future generations (or really anyone!). I want to be someone people can look up to. I want to, dare I say, change the world. And although talking about beauty products can't change the world, perhaps I can inspire just one person to be confident and love herself. No one is perfect, no one looks flawless all the time, and everyone has bad days.

I've always looked up to strong female athletes like Angela Ruggiero, Cammi Granato, and Wilma Rudolph because they're strong and fearless and have paved the way for women in sports. To be as successful as they have been they had to be confident and love themselves every step of the way. I'm sure there were times they didn't feel beautiful or confident, but guess what? They went out and fought tough battles and are now legends.

I want to be like these strong women who are beautiful and passionate and happy with their bodies and their lives. I've never been unhappy with my body, but as a girl I do sometimes feel pressure to look a certain way. I've hidden behind concealer for years and it's time to stop. I'm almost 21 years old and it's time to feel proud and beautiful and happy with who I am when nothing is covered up. I've picked at blemishes leaving scars, another issue I'm currently working on. I'm no where near cured of this habit, but I've gotten exponentially better. I have finally realized that most people will not notice if I forgo the makeup for a day. If I don't wear concealer to cover up my imperfections, the world does not end. As much as I love makeup and the way I look all done up, I've come to love myself not wearing makeup as well.

I dare you to go a few days without any makeup at all! It's scary and it's revealing, but I promise you'll feel more confident and love yourself just a little bit more!

Motivation Monday - May 13

Finals week is quickly approaching and I thought it'd be nice to dedicate a post to motivation and inspiration. There's only one week of school left and I might as well go out with a bang! Here are some quotes that leave me feeling like I can take on the world.

This really speaks to me during finals because I've been battling with a math class (I'm a writer not a mathematician!) and I will not give up. This quote can fit into so many situations that I think it will always hold meaning for me. 

Mondays are an easy excuse to follow the crowd and just ignore the urge to go out and be something. So forget about the easy way today and make your voice be heard. You have something meaningful and important to say to the world, so go out there and say it.

As summer is quickly approaching, quite a few people may be out exploring new places even if you're in the next town over. You're still adventuring! Take it all in and enjoy life for all the beautiful things we take for granted every day.

And finally, this one is particularly special to me because I'll be heading back to my beloved Wisconsin in just a few short days! This is my reminder that I get to spend a glorious summer at home with my friends and family. But first I must ace those finals! So I better get back to studying...

Meeting Laila Ali

I had the incredible opportunity to hear Laila Ali speak at my school this week. She's a legend and she's only in her 30s! Obviously, her father is a boxing legacy, but she has accomplished so much on her own that she will be a legacy as well.

From a very young age, Laila decided she didn't want to be known as Muhammad Ali's daughter, she wanted to be independent. She spoke about her inspirations, her training regime, and how a healthy lifestyle wasn't always a part of her plan.

Her outlook really resonated with me as an athlete because there I was sitting in the audience listening to a 24-0 world champion. I know to be successful in anything I need to be motivated and inspired by people like her. When asked about staying motivated in the gym she replied, "If I'm lagging or dogging it and not doing my best, I ask myself, 'Why am I here?'" This is true of all things in life. Why do something if you're only going to do it halfway? Do everything 110% to be successful.

Laila Ali is tough, beautiful, and inspiring. I want to be like her because she's a member of the Women's Sports Foundation working to motivate and get young girls excited about sports. This is an organization that is special to me because I've had such great experiences in sports growing up and I want to share that with others. I wouldn't change it for the world and being an athlete has sculpted me into the woman I am today. She a fighter, a role model, and a beautiful person. I hope I can be as successful as she is someday.

My Love For Pilates Rant

So here's another little fitness bit for all of you out there. I know Pilates and yoga are a big fitness trend right now, which is obviously why I am writing about it at all, but this is more than just a trend. Pilates and yoga have both been around for years and people all over the world have been reaping the benefits that these exercises provide.

I have practiced yoga on and off for about two years now and can attest to the inner body/mind changes that you can attain from doing yoga. It is extremely relaxing and one of my main stress relievers, it provides me with exercises that target my very tight hamstrings and hips, and it can be practiced at all skill levels. Everyone knows about yoga, but Pilates is still growing and gaining its following. I was introduced to Pilates when I wanted to sign up for a fitness class at my university. I wasn't sure what to expect other than it was similar to yoga, but my goodness, was I wrong! STOTT Pilates, the version of Pilates taught at my school, focuses on breathing, hip and pelvis placement, and spinal alignment. A lot of the movements are not like yoga at all, but instead more like one long abdominal workout! The movements may look easy if you were to stick your head into the Pilates studio, but we are all working our deep abdominals through the breathing and positioning.

KT Tape on my feet during the summer to help with my plantar fasciitis (photo credit to Sarah Rinke)

I've been dealing with plantar fasciitis, inflammation of a thick tissue on the bottom of the foot called the plantar fascia connecting the heel bone to the toes and that creates the arch of the foot. I believe this developed from running on very hard ground in cleats all summer and then continuing my training and running into the fall and winter. With just five weeks of Pilates under my belt I'm already noticing a change. I feel like it has improved my situation and I feel less daily pain. My Pilates instructor informed me that this is a result of strengthening opposing muscle groups. Pilates works deep core muscles and helps to work muscles that are not usually worked as often. Not to mention, my midsection has become quite toned (and as a girl, who is going to complain about that!). After just 10 classes (two each week) that's what I call results!

Sassy sleeping boots for plantar fasciitis!

Due to the dramatic personal results I've noticed, I have been recommending Pilates to everyone I talk to. I've even thought about becoming certified as a Pilates instructor so I can help others learn Pilates and share my love of fitness! So, I recommend Pilates to all of you! You could check out blogilates.com or merrithew.com for some Pilates workouts and more information about the benefits because I'm just a girl ranting about how much she loves Pilates!

Conquering Defeat

Here's yet another post about something completely different than any of the others. This one is about being strong enough to get back up after you've been knocked down.

Something Inspiring

Ok, not to get too deep on you guys on only my second post, but this is such an inspiring and moving video. Cool part for me is that it was filmed on my campus! Neil Gaiman was at my school! How cool is that? If only I would have known before filming. My inner fourth grader would have come out and fangirled at him for writing Coraline. Amazing, inspiring, and just so gosh darn cool.