beauty of exercise

One of my clients has been working really hard over the past nine months to get in shape. She's never really been active at all, ever, but started pilates to get in shape for her wedding.

The first four months were really about laying a solid foundation and building new movement patterns. She's gone from two sessions a week to four (one session a week outside, making use of San Francisco's terrain to get in hills, stairs and soak up some natural beauty) and has blown my mind with her commitment.

Yesterday, after her session we were talking about where she wants to get to and where she has come from so far. She said that working out has made her strong and that she has stopped hating specific parts of her body and instead, loving the way that she feels: strong.

This is the true beauty of exercise, I think. You begin to understand your body as one, you inhabit it and begin to love what you can do in it, rather than hate on fat thighs or shapeless arms or whatever it is that has been bugging you.