Real talk: It took me a while to find the words I wanted to share with this photo. So here goes... ⬇️
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Figure Skating is not an easy sport. There is an unnecessary and exuberant amount of pressure placed on the aesthetic of our bodies with an unequal importance placed on the health and performance abilities of our bodies. Comments can be demoralizing and downright unhealthy, and so many skaters are made to feel like their body is not their vehicle but only an image.
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For many years I spent my time as a skater feeling like I was constantly trying to prove that I was the “right” size to be successful in our sport. And for many years I didn’t have the team of people that I am lucky to have around me now to know that resorting to unhealthy behaviors is never the answer to appeasing the demands of our sport.
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I look at this picture today and I feel incredibly proud, not for the way I look, but for committing to always prioritizing my health and choosing to embrace my body for what it is and loving that body, my one and only home, unconditionally.
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Please know that you are never alone in this sport, and that you should never be made to feel anything other than beautiful, strong, and capable.