You might remember Ashlie Molstad, aka Foodie Girl Fitness, from her before-and-after pic that went viral last fall. In the first image, she stands tall, with a flat stomach. In the second, she's sitting down to show her belly rolls. "I say that the real magic happens when we embrace who we are, at every angle and size," Molstad wrote in the caption.
Now, the social media star and fitness coach is back with yet another powerful body-positive message: It's time to silence all the negative thoughts we have about our bodies—by turning them into positive ones.
Earlier this week Molstad posted a photo of herself rocking a black sports bra, underwear, and a beaming smile (not to mention, some gorgeous mermaid hair).
The beginning of her caption is a little jarring, since it seems like Molstad has totally abandoned her ideas about self-acceptance. She writes that her legs "aren't the least bit feminine" and her calves are "so large I can only fit them into wide-calf boots." She goes on to talk about her "belly jelly and a pooch that can't be hidden in tight clothes."
"I don't have toned arms," she continues. "My face is scarred from years of cystic acne. I have stretch marks on my thighs, breasts and butt. I don't like wearing jeans anymore because they don't always fit over my hips and if they do they generally cut into my stomach."
Sounds pretty negative, right? But then Molstad abruptly stops her stream of criticisms, and starts fresh.
In her revise, she mentions all the same body parts as before; but this time, she compliments each one. Starting with her legs, she writes that they're strong and capable of taking her anywhere she needs to go, and have even "walked me across several half-marathon finish lines, danced like crazy on some of my favorite evenings, and swam in the ocean under the sun as I've traveled to see parts of this world."
She points out that, yes, her stomach might be soft, "but it's the place that my deepest belly laughs come from." Plus, she says, it's also super strong: "It holds me up, protects my back, and propels me through basically any movement I choose."
Continuing to describe her body, Molstad writes, "My arms have allowed me to hug my favorite people on this planet, high-fived some serious rockstars, and I can do like, 15 pushups on my toes with their strength!"
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She also notes that while she may have some scars and stretch marks, her skin isn't what determines her beauty. In fact, those marks are "just rad little lightning strikes to remind me I am a force of nature."
Molstad's takeaway: If you fall into a spiral of self-criticism about your body—or anything else—step back and refocus that energy on building yourself up instead.
"Don't ever forget my loves that your value isn't in the circumference of your thighs, the softness of your belly, the marks on your body… your value is INFINITE," Molstad says to her more than 47 thousand followers. "You don't have to change your body, you just need to change your thoughts."