Fake insta “transformations” be like... The final pose is probably one of the most common poses you might scroll past, it’s a pose that shrinks the waist AND emphasises the glutes! I remember when I first saw images of influencers posing like this, it would make me feel so BAD about my body and the progress I was making. No matter how hard I trained, I didn’t look like them. I thought I would NEVER look like these women, it didn’t even enter my mind for a second that they were just POSING, that this wasn’t their reality! The more muscle I built, the more I realised if I CONTORTED my body, I could make the same shapes they were. Not only that, I realised how incredibly PAINFUL these poses were. Fitness influences rely heavily on their ability to strike a pose and create shapes. Some people even have POSING COACHES to help them with this! Hours, days and WEEKS will go into perfecting their poses, especially if they are competing. Each pose is designed to EMPHASISE parts of their body and MINIMISE others. Understanding the process behind these poses truly helped me shift my focus BACK to myself, to my progress and my own journey! We should NEVER feel bad for striking that pose, working that angle, that lighting, and taking a moment to embrace a body we have struggled to accept. However, it’s important we are MINDFUL that whether it’s our posed or unposed reality, our body is still worthy, and our body is still strong! Don’t forget, the people who we love will see us in ALL of our gorgeous angles, ALL of our lighting, and ALL of our poses, yet their adoration for us never changes! There is only one of you, and that truly is your strength ♥️