When we try to define beauty with language that goes beyond aesthetic we use words like:

confident

strong

resilient

kind

vibrant

graceful

powerful

loving

wise

And all these things may be true and good, but these attributes are mostly focused on the power of the individual, overlook an incredibly beautiful attribute:

humility.

There is something deeply beautiful about humility.

When I speak of this beautiful humility I speak of the ability to admit that we are powerless.

I never believed myself to be beautiful. Nine years my life was dominated by the lie that I wasn't good enough, keeping me trapped in a battle with bulimia. It was not until I admitted I was powerless against the lie that I was able to be free from its grasp. This is the first step in the Twelve Step program: admitting you are powerless. It is counter intuitive: If I want to control my behavior shouldn't I have power over it? Isn't admitting I am powerless a sign of weakness?

Quite the opposite is true. It is in the humility of admitting you are powerless that you find strength in the truth. The truth for me was that I could be more than what I had been reduced to by the lies that told me I wasn't good enough. The truth was that I am enough. I am beautiful. In order for that truth to stick. To really become my new way of thinking I needed help. It was the admission that, "I can't do it on my own" that enable me to come to the place of freedom I now know.

There is strength in admitting that we need help to realize the truth about ourselves; that we need help to believe we are enough, to overcome anxiety, to leave behind past hurt, to see our true self worth, to see that we are BEAUTIFUL.

Which is why I am partnering with Fitfluential and Under Armour in the sponsored campaign What's Beautiful. We all need each others help and that is the strength behind Under Armour's What's Beautiful campaign. The campaign is not about hundreds of women trying to show the world that they are perfectly powerful, strong and confident. No. It is about redefining the female athlete. It is about challenging the perception of how the female athlete should look or perform. It's about women sharing their goals--difficult, seemingly impossible goals--and asking others for support. It's all of us admitting that we are POWERLESS when faced with the hugeness of our goals and the negative voices in our head. It's all of us asking for each others help so that we can truly be powerful, strong and confident.

It is HUMILITY.

And that is

WHAT'S BEAUTIFUL.

There is freedom and the opportunity to for real relationships in humility. Connecting with other women in real ways that impact the way we think about ourselves and others: that is beautiful.

So will you join me and so many other women in the What's Beautiful campaign. Will you set a goal that seems impossible? Will you open yourself up to the help of others? Will you offer help to others?

I WILL.

WILL YOU?

To join the campaign:

Go to What's Beautiful Website and create a profile.
Declare a goal. It doesn't have to be related to exercise. Perhaps you want to change the way you think about yourself. Or maybe you want to make it a goal to encourage others. My goal is to raise $5000 for the CHaD Hero Half Marathon in October and to finish in the top five women, which means shaving at least 10 minutes off my half marathon PR.
Interact with other participants. Encourage each other. Help each other. It's what this is all about!
Join a team. I've created TEAM BE A HERO. For those who want to make it a goal to run, race or walk for a purpose. But there are a many other teams each with different goals: like the PR Chasers a team encouraging each other to chase a PR or Team Joy, which seeks to find joy in each workout.