Whenever I enlighten someone I have met with the fact that I compete in pageants, certain subjects usually come up. They ask how I prepare for competition, what all it involves, etc. I tell them the categories that the actual competition involves and they pause on the Swimsuit part. "Do you work out a lot?" "Oh, do you have to go on a diet?" "I would never be able to give up (insert favorite food here)..."
So here's the down low... at least for me, I can't speak for everyone.
The swimsuit part of competition is officially called "Lifestyle and Fitness". And it has that name in this system for a reason. For me, competing onstage in a swimsuit is not just get-as-skinny-as-you-can-before-June. It's a concrete goal that I can work towards, to not just get in the best shape possible for a competition, but to build a healthy lifestyle and healthy habits.
For anyone who knows me, I am as un-athletic as they come, not to mention uncoordinated. I tried swimming, soccer, and basketball when I was younger, but to this day, I could throw a ball at the ground and miss. So getting in to the gym was hard for me. But I will admit - before I started getting in shape under the guise of the swimsuit competition, I would get winded walking up even a flight of stairs. In addition to that, I am addicted to Coca-Cola. I didn't think it was possible, but now I definitely do. Coke is my weakness. So are Cheezits. So are greasy burgers. My diet was terrible.
I have been blessed with a slender figure ever since I grew above 2 feet tall. You could have definitely called me "scrawny" or "boney" for a while there in my tweeny-bopper years. But that couldn't be blamed on anything but preteen awkwardness. Then I matured and filled out. I did not gain the Freshman Fifteen even though I worked in the dining hall and got free food all the time. But here's the deal - I do not want to alter my body type. I don't believe anyone should. We are all different shapes and sizes with different curves and angles. There are ways to be fit and healthy for every body in the book that do not involve smashing yourself into a cookie cutter mold.
But anyway, I compete in pageants and I have to go onstage for a whopping 20 seconds in a bikini, so thin is good right? Well sure... but I don't want to be skinny for the sake of being skinny. I want to be healthy. I want my skin to glow, not from a tan, but from the water that I drink and the foods I fill myself with. It's important to me to learn how to nourish my body and take care of it now so that it doesn't kick me in the butt later. Same thing with working out - yes, there is the factor that I'm onstage in front of who-knows-how-many people in minimal clothing coverage... but this is a habit building regimen and something I want to continue past my pageant career. I workout with a few of my friends who hold me to high standards and are teaching me routines that I can later carry out by myself.
All that being said, I will not pass up on a good burger. I treat myself to a soda every so often. The Hot Box Cookie shop in Lawrence sees my face a few times a month. And Cheezits are still the best study food out there. Regardless, I am taking steps forward that are helping me cultivate a healthy lifestyle that will hopefully progress with age.
The care that we take of our bodies now will effect us later in life. I'm learning this... slowly but surely. It's very difficult to entirely reroute the foods I'm used to eating but it is a lifestyle that I want to take part in so that I can have a long and healthy life ahead of me. So I don't diet or workout just for pageants... I don't diet at all actually, because diets are normally in a set time span. But having the goal of a pageant to work towards definitely helps motivate these lifestyle changes that I intend to keep up with.
...And that's my two cents for the day.
- Annika Wooton
Miss Butler County 2014
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