what freedom is

this afternoon, i fulfilled a lifelong desire. the desire to run is planted deep in my soul; my body aches for movement in the sunshine. but there are always limitations. time is almost always a factor - in the morning, always something else to get to, to get the run over for. breath - if you run out, there's just not much you can do about it. aches in my stomach and legs factor into the distance, and then there's weather. morning runs in the summer are glorious, but eventually it just gets too darn hot. winter, the tolerance is only so long, and the remaining two seasons tend to be fairly unpredictable. it's hard to run in rain and snow if you're dressed for warm sunshine.

all those factors hold me back at times. but the treatment i give my body holds me back most.

deep in my bones, i want to feel the call of the sunshine and dirt, have the time and physical capacity to run until i'm satisfied without any restraints. freedom. that's what the desire speaks of.


this afternoon, i set out to the gym with my love. it's been unusually cold lately. the gym has been a refuge for the two of us who less-than-love the icy wind. as we pulled into the parking lot, we noticed the sun come out and start to warm the air around us. it was 5:00 pm, the gym's busiest time, which for different reasons isn't particularly good for either of us.

a moment's contemplation and we pulled away and headed for the running trail. we set off at a brisk walk only, hand in hand. the sun warmed and awakened my heart. big, empty sky in all directions, pale spring blue.

the changing air called my soul to stay as long as i could and with most of the afternoon free, we found ourselves on an unexpected 4 mile run.

freedom, that's what it felt like.


two years ago, i would have been sick afterward and my body would have protested every step. but i still forced myself through sometimes, and i felt like a captive: forcing my body to burn off the calories whether my body liked it or not. i've run 7 miles before - that's the furthest i've ever gone. i remember building up to it. sometimes feeling elated, sometimes weak and dizzy. my body didn't know what to expect because i was starving it, gorging myself, running every day some weeks and some months going without any exercise at all.

my treatment of my physical self was unpredictable at best. self-abusive is probably a better description, and i'm not just talking about the eating disorder. i'm talking about the way i looked at myself in the mirror, the things i put my body through, the mistrust and control i exerted. and in return, i was a prisoner in my body. contained in a physical form that i hated for its limitations. it bound me. i had to fast and cleanse, exercise for an hour every single day and eat nothing but the purest, healthiest food the earth would give me...otherwise i would gain weight, be completely out of control, feel terrible because of all the piling-up health problems and ultimately would be worthless.

i was wrong.

almost a year ago now, on a day in the middle of may, i gave up the battle. i dropped the rope that bound me to my tearful tug-of-war with my body and walked away from it. i decided that it wasn't worth it.

i was sick of being terrified of gaining 5 pounds, sick of the guilt for eating an extra handful of chocolate chips. i wanted to be more than my battle with my body, desperately. i didn't want to look back at my life and see that the biggest theme was that i was always trying to lose weight and be healthier. there are more important things than this! my soul screamed.

so i decided to stop. i decided i would stop trying to lose weight - that i wasn't allowed to try to lose weight or entertain thoughts about it for a year. the time frame was important to me. i was terrified, first of all. terrified that the decision would mean my weight would sky-rocket and my discomfortl with my body would go with it. a time frame gave me a point at which i could say enough...if i needed to.

the alternative was simple: i would eat when i was hungry, building a practice of mindfulness so i could hear my body tell me when i was hungry and full. i would exercise consistently, but never push my body past what felt good. it sounds simple; it felt revolutionary.

i wanted to respect my body and build a relationship of trust with the physical form i inhabit. i wanted my body to trust me - really trust that it could tell me something and i would listen and act. this also meant no more beating my body down. (if you want a strong relationship with a friend, do you constantly tell them they aren't good enough? why, then, do we do this to ourselves if we want a strong, healthy body?)

it'll be a year in a little over a month. i was terrified at first, but now it's become more of a manifesto, a standard i've committed to live my life by. i didn't gain weight, by the way, but instead am in the best shape of my life. but it wouldn't have mattered. the point is that now i'm free - free to think of things other than weight and calories and ingredient labels. i'm free to wear whatever i want everyday instead of basing my clothing choices on how fat i felt and how big i thought my stomach was. the bare truth is, if you treat your body well consistently it becomes consistent. it trusts you.


this is all to say, today i went on a glorious 4 mile run in the sunshine and it meant more than i could have imagined. my body trusted that i wouldn't run myself into the ground, so it let go and really let me run comfortably. i'd been eating what felt good, so i had the energy and nutrients my body needed. i had build up my exercise consistently, slowly. built a strong base from which i could explore.

it felt like freedom. tangible and sweet. warm like the spring sun on my face. i wasn't caring about how many calories i was burning or the exact milage i was putting in for the week. i was expending some extra energy my body had because it asked me to, it called to me to run a little further. it felt glorious.

freedom.

freedom to eat when i feel like it, whatever i feel like. freedom to run whenever i want to - as long or as little as i want.

freedom to not worry about my weight. to keep a broken scale in the bathroom and not care to replace it.

freedom to live and think about things that matter more than 5 pounds. things that matter desperately more than 5 pounds, or 10 pounds or 40 pounds.

this afternoon, i felt that freedom, felt it real and tangibly surrounding me. and it is more beautiful than i could have ever expected when i made the decision a year ago to simply give up and let go of the battle.

i gave up and found that real life is sweet. i discovered that when i'm not worrying about weight and calories and how healthy my lunch is or isn't, i have space to breath, space for serenity and love. i discovered that self-hatred and criticism can't coexist with real health. it's just not possible to tell your body it isn't enough and expect it to give you a good physical experience.

i learned that i can love myself no matter what my weight and i learned that losing weight doens't improve your self esteem and never will. i learned love and peace and acceptance. i learned how to trust and respect myself. in return, i've been given freedom. freedom that i think most women haven't yet tasted. and i'm afraid many won't choose to.

and honestly, that freedom is the sweetest gift on earth i feel a woman can receive.

i am grateful for that gift, for that freedom.