Don't assume...

Hi there, my name is Steph and I'm an anomaly.

This is me:

A typical teenage girl. But don't assume.

Don't assume for a second that I'm 'typical'. Don't look at my appearance and make a judgement on who I am.

I don't wear make up.
I don't fan girl over boy bands.
I don't obsess over materialistic things like clothes, shoes and handbags.
On that note- I can't even walk in high heels (I can barely walk in trainers!)
I can't seem to stay up past 9:00pm.
I also can't sleep in past 6:30am.
I enjoy exercising bright and early in the morning.
I cook my breakfast lunch and dinner and grocery shop for myself each week.

So the only teenage-girl stereotype I fit into is my age. Oh- and gender!

Hence why you should never assume anything of a person before you've met them. I know I do this all the time and so thinking back on myself and the assumptions people would make of me from just looking...makes me want to rid myself of this habit once and for all.

But I think it goes further than this. Especially for teenage girls. I think too often we make assumptions about people's diet without seeing the full picture. This is another thing I struggle with.

Y'all know I like my food- and I eat a lot of it! And it's fine for me to say that because I know I need it- I know what I eat is nourishing for my body, and is enough to sustain me and my everyday activities. So, why then, can someone who has not been with me for the past 24 hours where I have gone for a run + walked around + played with the dog + studied for 756 upcoming exams + organised blog posts + cooked 3 plus different meals + whatever else I did that day, make an assumption that I eat so much.. or even too much?

Friends, family, peers... strangers!- you name it, they've said it.

'Wow, you're really going to eat all that?'

 I think it's comments like this that really drive the insecurities we as teenage girls feel over food. It's the comments that are meant as nothing more than a quick judgement or joke that unintentionally accumulates and spreads throughout our brains. And replays over and over again.

 'Am I eating way too much?'
'No body else eats as much as me.'
These are just a few of the negative thoughts I know I've experienced in the past.

No matter how good natured the comment was, it's all in the recipient as to how they react and in turn how they are affected by it.

Jumping back to how I am definitely not a typical teenage girl- this has probably been my saving grace to all those comments from people that have no idea what/ how much I should be eating.

From the research and knowledge and understanding I have gained from my love of nutrition and healthy living, I know that as a growing teenager; I need to be eating enough food to sustain this period of rapid growth. that as vegetarian I need to fill up on the less kilojoule dense veggies and as an endurance runner I simply need to eat more to sustain my level of activity.

As a result, when I'm presented with such a comment as 'You eat a lot!' I can just smile and nod and move on with life because I know that I don't eat a lot, I eat enough- for me. The funniest thing from that whole scenario is that I might be sitting there with a massive bowl of veggies and the person making the comment might have a small pie or sausage roll and be consuming just as man kilojoules (maybe more) as me. But I feel like I should just be quiet on that one. ;)

Unfortunately not ever teenage girl is an anomaly (unfortunately? ;) and many can take ignorant comments about the food they're eating (and should be eating!) and twist them into a criticism on themselves, making them feel worthless and wrong and could ultimately lead to many different eating disorders and problems surrounding food that could have been avoided if we all just stuck to our own business.

In a nutshell? Don't make assumptions.

Don't be a quidnunc!

And eat lots of good nourishing foods. Your body needs it!

 Ahh, Julia Child- you speak with so much wisdom ;)

Your turn:
Do you struggle with making assumptions before knowing someone?
Do you get annoyed when people make assumptions about you?
Do you also eat a lot? :)

That's it from me today folks- I guess I just needed to get that off my chest! Make sure you have a fabulous day, as always- eat something great! And... smile :) Bye! :D