Kids are very honest. For instance, a little girl I used to nanny for came up to me one day and started hitting my legs singing “chubby, chubby, chubby legs, chubby, chubby, chubby legs, chubby, chubby, chubby…” Well, you get the point.
Needless to say that day sucked.
I remember going to my dorm in Jester and looking at myself in the mirror for hours, trying to stand at different angles to see if my legs would look any better from the right, left or back… After awhile I realized that this wasn’t a new problem I had, growing up I was always self-conscious of how my legs looked. No matter what I did, I always had thicker legs than my friends. I only wore sweatpants (and if you don’t believe me, here’s proof.)
I have always been told by women that “everyone has something they want to fix.” For some women it might be their nose, or their stomach, or the distance between their eyes. For the longest time I accepted the fact that my legs were going to be my “issue area” and that I would just learn to live with them. The opposite is true; I shouldn’t have to learn how to just live with them, I should learn how to love them. Once I realized that, I also began to truly believe in the peace that body acceptance and self-love bring to my life.
There’s a verse I love written by a very wise man named Solomon. It states “Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting…” I anchor my life on this. The idea that in order to be desirable or loved, one has to follow “thigh gap” trends and no carb diets is ridiculous. I’m not going to lie, I love putting on heels and red lipstick and feeling fine, but I know that those moments are fleeting. I want to feel strong and desirable and loved even when I’m wearing leggings and a shirt that hasn’t been washed for a week (don’t lie, you’ve been there too.)
My confidence comes not from a comparison to who I think I should look like, but from the truth that I am dearly loved for who I am. I also remember that there is a purpose for every single part of me. While I may have chubbier legs than most, I have come to love them because they are strong, they allow me to stand and climb and run and hike – things that I take for granted.
This month HerCampus is partnering with the “Real Beauty” campaign to empower women and encourage inner beauty and self-discovery at UT! My hope is that this month we can focus on the “chubby legs” that make us unique and dearly loved by those who surround us, so send us your thoughts! Tweet us a pic and tag it with #HerCampusRealBeauty to show us how you celebrate you and how you celebrate your body!