"I am obsessed with becoming a woman comfortable in her skin."

                                                         
The second that I saw this quote on Pinterest I just knew that I would base a blog post around it. This really hits home with me because like most girls and young women, I am constantly bombarded with images of "perfection" that comes in the form of thigh gaps and breast implants. While in the back of our heads we know that these pictures aren't real representations of the women in them (thanks to the wonderful invention of Photoshop), we still can't help feeling a little down on ourselves when Wednesday comes around and the same faces/bodies pop up on our Instagram timeline for "Woman Crush Wednesday."

Recently I have started a journey that involves me getting up at 5:45 a.m. each morning, getting in Lola (my car), and driving the few miles to the gym. By no means am I overweight but there is definitely room for improvement. With every change that I see, my excitement and obsession grows more and more. I hit the snooze button one less time. I stay at the gym so long that I leave myself little time to get ready for my internship when I finally get back to the apartment. These little "wins" make each day better and each glance of myself in the mirror a little bit longer.

My journey is extremely similar to millions of other girls around the world of all shapes and sizes. What's not similar to most of these other journeys is the purpose of doing all of this hard work: "I am obsessed with becoming a woman comfortable in her skin." Of course I have my insecurities and of course they won't all disappear if my legs are toned or if I develop a rock hard six-pack. Taking control of my health is my first step in being comfortable with myself. I have tons of other things that I would love to change such as my skin (which is a whole 'nother story), but the first step is getting my health and body under control.

I'm going to start sharing my successes and failures within my journey with you guys every Tuesday. Through my journey I hope that I can inspire you to start your own journey to becoming more comfortable with yourselves. But most of all I hope that I can inspire you to start your journey because of you. Not for anyone else, and sure as hell not for a "Woman Crush Wednesday."

Smooches,
The College Natural