Kate, a blogger from Australia, is one of these users. She shared a post with photos of, at first glimpse, two different girls: the girl on the left is obviously a gym lover with a lean body, while the girl on the right looks curvier. Surprisingly, the two "different" girls in the photos are the same person, Kate herself. The blogger showed her before-and-after photos, one from 2014 and another from 2020.
"I find it so hard to look at old photos and remember being that girl," Kate wrote about her 2014 photo.
She noted that she is not trying to compare her body, but rather express regret over her "obsession."
"Not because I wish I still looked like that or because I compare my body. But because it reminds me of how obsessed I was," she added.
The girl said that while chasing the perfect body, as considered by society, she missed a lot of important moments in her life: Kate skipped social events so as to avoid eating out, and lost time with her nearest and dearest because she "chose the gym above everything."
"It reminds me of daily weigh ins, secret binges and constantly wanting to be less. And you know what, it reminds me of sadness, being self conscious and never feeling like I was good enough," the blogger said.
By embracing her natural, full figure in a bikini, Kate wanted to show that she is finally comfortable with herself, preferring to be happy and free rather than "obsessed" like she once was.
"Long term happiness, fulfillment and purpose doesn’t come from short term weight loss. I know that I would much rather be curvier/bigger/thicker, be free from diet culture and have freedom around food, than be “lean” and consumed by weighing less, seeing those numbers go down every day and counting the calories in my lettuce leaves.," the girl said.
Посмотреть эту публикацию в Instagram
Посмотреть эту публикацию в Instagram
Посмотреть эту публикацию в Instagram
Kate finished her post by stating that "sometimes gaining weight is simply a side effect of living your best life", adding that "healthy" looks different on every body.
Her words hit home with netizens, as most of them praised her choice.
"I actually prefer the After," said one user.
"Thank you thank you thank you from the bottom of my heart for this post," said another one.
"Love your message and what you stand for! Keep on spreading your positivity, happiness looks good on you," said another user.
However, not all Instagram users supported the girl, with some of them accusing her of promoting unhealthy behaviour.
"Diabetes is so 2020," one user said.
"LOL teaching girls to be unhealthy and not care. What a joke," another user said.
"Enjoy your treatment for high blood pressure, diabetes and many other illnesses related to obesity. You truly are a delusional individual trying to rationalize your failure," said another.
