Through the Looking Glass: Ava Connolly’s Journey of Physical Self-Acceptance
Am I happy with how I look? This is a question we all have asked ourselves at one point. What differs now is that the response is becoming radically different for the youth today than any generation before it, a fact that is compounded for women. A study done by the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty in 2006 reported 90 percent of girls 15 to 17 years want to change at least one aspect of their physical appearance, with body weight ranking the highest. What is even more alarming is that more than one in ten girls acknowledged that they had an eating disorder.
When Ava Connolly was 17 she was a living example of this statistic. “I was dating someone who was emotionally abusive so I fed off that energy. I had a disordered view of food and didn’t eat for two weeks to make someone happy,” she explains. She realized she needed to make a change, both physically and mentally. This was not the first health struggle she had faced in her life—previously, she was on the other side of the spectrum of dieting. “I was 25 to 30 pounds overweight in middle school,” she said. Her first step to changing that was working up the determination to run a single mile on her school’s track. It took her over fifteen minutes. “It was one of the hardest things I’ve done, mentally…trying to make such a significant lifestyle change,” said Ava. She used this experience as a reminder to take the steps to get out of the unhealthy relationship she was currently in. “I ended the relationship and decided that wasn’t a healthy way to live. I started focusing on myself first and foremost and that’s when I started gaining confidence.”
Three years later, her confidence has carried her a great distance. Ava, now a 20 year old sophomore studying Business at the University of Oregon has become a fitness guru, although she humbly shied away from that title as soon as it was suggested. Her current task? Her first NPC Bikini competition. And her training is not for the faint-hearted: she goes to the gym at 7 am to do high interval training (H.I.T) cardio and is back to shower and make a healthy breakfast before many of her fellow students wake up; she returns to the gym later that day to for weightlifting, focusing on key parts of her body to maximize her gains. She’ll alter her workout when it comes closer to competition time to cut the little excess fat she may have. Every move she makes is carefully calculated. Conversely, there is a balance that all of her experiences have helped her find. “I decided to take 12 credits so I didn’t overload myself and could focus on being successful on the endeavors that I do take on,” said Ava.
That is not to say she does not have to make difficult decisions. Ava joined the ROTC as a freshman and continued with it until the end of her fall term when she decided it was not for her. However, it was when the goal in front of her was removed she pushed her self to undertake the Bikini Competition, which she learned about through twitter soon after. In fact, social media has benefitted her in a variety of ways—not just inspiring her, but letting her inspire others. Ava Connolly runs a blog, http://cgfitspirations.blogspot.com, which has received more than 5,000 views since its inception. She decided that she wanted to start a fitness blog after several of her friends started asking her for advice in creating healthier habits in their own life.
One of the most significant lifestyle changes Ava was able to be a part of was helping a friend *Sarah fight her anorexia through proper dieting, which she is quick to point out does not always mean cutting food, but sometimes actually adding it, and exercise. She recently received a three month update picture and the difference is night and day. She encourages others to take those first, difficult steps no matter their fitness level, stating that, “The reaction is positive when people see you pushing yourself.”
Despite her seemingly unparalleled successes at her age, she has yet to develop a coat of unflinching armor; she still compares herself to other girls that she sees at the gym. “I see girls doing certain things and it’s hard not to compare yourself to them, especially when it comes so easy for some girls. I really have to work at it.” However, her response when these thoughts start to crowd her head is to look in the mirror and remind herself that she is beautiful. This is about her, in the most noble of selfish ways. Then she gets back to work.