After an exceptionally long winter, warmer temperatures, sunshine, and beach days are definitely something to get excited about. But the dreaded onslaught of articles about how to attain "the perfect beach body" has also arrived. The pressure to get "in shape" for summer undoubtedly affects millions of women — but it can be a particularly triggering time for individuals who are recovering from eating disorders.
Body positive YouTuber Kenzie Brenna, who can also be found on Instagram as omgkenzieee, uses social media to document her recovery from an eating disorder. As the dreaded "thigh gap" topic gains summertime traction, Brenna took to Instagram to a post photo of her thighs. In doing so, she sent the powerful message that no one needs to take up less space in the world in order to be valued.
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"You don't need negative space to be valued," Brenna wrote in the caption. "Turns out my body isn't made out of plastic parts and I couldn't transfer fat from my thighs to my boobs or ass."
She concluded her post with five powerful statements that apply to all women, not just those who are recovering from eating disorders.
"You're allowed to take up space in the world. You're allowed to have knocked knees and big thighs. You're allowed to gain weight. You're allowed to not just have weight gain in the 'acceptable' places. You're allowed to not fit into the status quo and still feel fly as fuck."
The thigh gap is a totally antiquated concept that just won't seem to go away but with empowering voices like Brenna's, hopefully it'll become a thing of the past sooner rather than later.