For the love of a mom and her baby. Healing from the pain of body image issues.
Some love stories begin in the most unorthodox of ways. This is a story of self-love, relationships, and the child that inspired healing. Introducing Melanie Martinez. If you view only the surface you will see a stunningly fit woman with a family and fitness career. You would guess her life to be easy and you would guess wrong. Like many of us, what is beneath the surface is the truth to be honored.
Melanie has struggled her entire life with what she describes as “food and body image issues”. I am sure you are wondering with that physique how is such a thing possible? It is possible because it is our perception of ourselves that change our lives.
Everyday is a new opportunity and our journey can change in an instant. Or in Melanie’s case… two weeks. Melanie tells me about meeting a kind man named AJ. They fell for each other instantly. So instantly that within two weeks of meeting they were pregnant! They knew right away they wanted to get married. Not out of obligation, out of loving commitment they choose to make everyday.
After her son Harlan was born, Melanie’s emotional and physical challenges increased. She found herself with postpartum depression, unhappy with her body, unable to sleep, skin issues. IBS type symptoms and a plethora of other issues. Melanie tells me that her husband was “brave enough to get me to talk to someone”. Melanie began the hard road of dealing with the emotional pain yet hadn’t solved the physical symptoms until she was introduced to healing foods. She was intrigued and also confessed that she didn’t expect her focus to last. Yet, it has lasted and she began to learn that food is both medicine and delight.
Melanie began focusing on lean meats, healthy fats, and organic fruits and vegetables. She gave up gluten, refined sugar, and processed foods. She discovered that she was no longer on an endless diet. She wasn’t craving unhealthy foods. “It is so incredible what your body can tell you”, she states. Her depression lifted. Her digestion improved and her skin cleared up. She was sleeping through the night. Melanie began to realize for the first time that her focus “wasn’t about looks”. It was “feeling good about myself”. She began to love creating in the kitchen and even gave us her amazing recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake!
I asked Melanie what advice she would give to those battling the pain of self-image concerns. Her thoughts are clearly from the wisdom of a person that has been there.
- Reach out. Don’t hide. Talk to someone.
- Move everyday. Take a walk or a yoga class.
- Journal about gratitude. Start with three things everyday.
Melanie is proud to be an example to her son. She knows that she is a good mom and can live by example of self worth and healing. She looks forward to cooking with Harlan, teaching him the value of healthy food, and joyously exercising together. 
At the time of this writing, Melanie and AJ have another baby on the way. You can find her at Next Level Fitness Chicago or baking for her growing family.
