Skin is a weird and fascinating thing — for starters, it's so elastic that it stretches and grows as our bodies grow, both throughout life and when someone is pregnant.
But skin isn't like rubber...and we can't expect it to bounce back when our bodies quickly become smaller, through either weight loss or after having a child. That leaves many people who have lost a lot of weight or had a baby with loose skin.
For a long time, we've been told to hide imperfections like loose skin away, but women are now more vocal than ever about embracing their "flaws." So when fitness trainer Caleh Cristler hears people saying that they're too worried about their loose skin to do things such as wear a swimsuit or to the gym, she has some words for them.
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"Please do not let the fear of loose skin, stretch marks, cellulite, or anything else, stop you from reaching your goals," she wrote on a recent post on Instagram, in which she shows off the loose skin on her own belly. "What if you have loose skin? Girl, what if you uncover an amazing warrior who is the strongest mentally, physically, and emotionally that she has ever been? Are you going to let some jiggle stop you? Don't you dare. Don't you dare hold your potential hostage because you're worried what someone might say or think."
She took the opportunity to remind us that no one is perfectly happy with their body — but that we have the power to overcome our insecurities.
"You have the power to be more than your worries or anxiety," she wrote. "So, I'm here sharing my 4 month postpartum belly from my third baby girl and 2nd c-section, in the hopes that maybe you can begin to realize you are MORE. You are MORE than ENOUGH. Right now. Just as you are. So start believing in yourself and loving that body enough to be happy and healthy."
She makes a good point. When it comes down to it, skin is just skin — whether it's loose, or has stretch marks, or is scarred. Its purpose is to help us move through life. So why let a little bit of skin hold you back?
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