Better Happens – Guest post by Amy Jurrens

Sorry to break up the testosterone fest here, but in the interest of yin and yang, I felt it necessary to inject a little estrogen on this website. My thought processes aren’t what I’d consider typically female, but I may help you see the world through a different colored lens.

I’m not your typical woman in many ways. I’ve always marched to my own beat. When I encounter a challenge, I am energized. I love to see what I’m made of and if I can do what others, male or female, can do. In other words, female strength has always been important to me. In high school, I scored in the 95th percentile in the ASVAB test and had military recruiters beating down my door. I have my own Harley Davidson Softail Deluxe (that I drove to the Sturgis rally). I drink whiskey on the rocks. I can weld, operate heavy equipment, and lift heavy things.

I have done some activities typical of women. I have given birth. Twice. Without drugs. I enjoy many homemaking activities such as baking and decorating. I even like to put on makeup and get dressed up. The other activity I have in common with most other women is constantly comparing myself to others.

The Exhausting Script

Women have a nonstop script playing in their heads. “Am I fatter than her?” “Do I wear a larger size than her?” “Why can’t I look as good as her?” It’s exhausting. Really.

I know why we do it. Women are constantly evaluated on how we look. We are “sized” up whenever we encounter another woman. Ideal women are plastered everywhere. The pressure to look a certain way is overwhelming.

While men are also judged on their appearance, it isn’t that same. Society doesn’t expect men to look like the ripped up models in Calvin Klein ads. Also, men don’t generally worry or obsess over how their butt, stomach, or thighs size up compared to other men.

Men and Comparisons

Men compare themselves with each other in other ways. I see it all the time on fitness forums. Men want to move more weight than other men. “Can he deadlift more than I can?” “How much does he bench?” “How many 32kg snatches can he do in 10 minutes?” Is it that different?

I get the double whammy of comparing my appearance as well as how much weight I move to other women. “If she can press a 24 kg kettlebell, why can’t I?”

Well, that is, I did until a few months ago.

Biofeedback and Better

Through using biofeedback to become better, I’ve realized that all this comparison is a waste of time. I cannot measure myself against anyone else. The only measuring stick I can use to evaluate myself is whether or not I am getting better in the areas I need/want to improve. No other person on this planet can be a better Amy Jurrens than I can.

If I constantly try to be better than the next gal, I will fail.

If I constantly try to be better than I was yesterday, I will succeed.

Then better happens.

This is me in a swimsuit. I don’t look as good as other women do in their swimsuits, but you know what? I look better than I did a year ago. And the next time I’m brave enough to post a photo of me in a swimsuit, I will look better than I do here.

How do I know that? Because I get better every day. I am Amy. And I am The Movement.

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Tagged as: Amy Jurrens, biofeedback, female strength, guest posts, The Movement