Written by Nekeifa Sylvester
Image by @latto777
I have such great admiration for all the bona fide fabulous women that have graced social media feeds over the past few years. I’m talking about the empowered, confident, no apologies, run the show, bosses. The women that are excelling in careers, running businesses, investing in properties and themselves, surrounded by a team that’s ready to HYPE them up at the drop of a dime, and looking damn good while doing it. In a world that’s constantly attacking women, trying to control our bodies, it is absolutely refreshing to watch women stand in the face of it all and prioritise ourselves because we know our worth and will be damned if we’ll let anyone take that away.
Even with all my admiration, I think while it’s so easy to become enamoured with our daily lives or obsessed with the current slew of women that are growing their brands online, successfully juggling work and life or showing us how to travel in style, it is also important to honour the influential women that came before us. So many of us have watched women in our families tirelessly give and sacrifice themselves for the benefit of others. The matriarchs of our families, the mothers, aunties, and cousins that taught us everything we know. These are the women that encouraged us to be everything we wanted to be and taught us that if you want anything you should be able to give it to yourself two times over.
So, with that, it’s never too late to be your very best self. Once a baddie, always a baddie, and you should never let anyone convince you that you can’t be the woman of your dreams. For all the women out there looking to reclaim that their inner ‘It girl’, consider some of the following:
Fitness first
It’s no news that health must remain a top priority above all else and, I think we’ve proven by now that it’s not just about being skinny. You can give big bad gyal energy at any size but health is far more about being physically fit than fitting into your high school wardrobe. Running a mile without gasping for air and walk up a flight of steps without your knees snap, crackle, and popping are also important goals. One of the best ways to get yourself back to feeling your very best is to hit the gym. Hire a trainer personal trainer because, let’s be honest, you deserve the one-on-one attention! You are your biggest investment and the best way to show that is by taking the time and putting in the work to work on your health.
Therapy
Getting your mental health right is equally as important as those sweat sessions. While there has historically been mistrust among many communities in working with a therapist, I think we can all agree by now, when we are bombarded by stressful events of the world on a daily basis, the benefits of weekly sessions to speak our truth, learn to handle our stress, and chat about the details of our deepest desires is MORE than worth it.
Schedule a visit to the dermatologist
Yes, we all know that as we age, there are some things that all the time in the gym just can’t fix. Quite frankly, sometimes we just need to bring in the professionals because who are we to spend our precious and prized time trying to fight the laws of gravity? Do the very best you can and then run (don’t walk) right on over to your trusted dermatologist to help refine the rest. We all know that when you look good, you feel good, so let’s get you glowing!
Hit the spa
While doing the hard work is key to making progress and reinvesting in yourself, all work and no play is absolutely nothing more than a recipe for failure. Balance it all out with some time at the spa, schedule a bi-weekly massage or a monthly facial! Relaxation is key!
