Here’s one of my favorite quotations: The most important thing a girl wears is her confidence.

I talk to so many women who are hoping that getting in shape will be the secret formula that unlocks greater confidence in them. While I feel that being more active can boost confidence–making you feel  stronger, more capable and more committed to your well-being–I’m a firm believer that true confidence is found on the inside. It has to do with who you are.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to wear nice clothes or improve your appearance and beauty. I’m the first to admit  I love retail therapy as much as exercise therapy.  And, I still love to put on makeup and do up my hair from time to time. But your beauty is not just how you look. I think the confidence that comes from appearance is a byproduct of a deeper confidence – one that’s related to how you feel.

True confidence is about defining your self-worth in a multidimensional way. It’s about you as a whole person—body, mind and spirit. And that sense of wholeness comes from loving yourself. I’m talking about loving your inner self, first, not necessarily just loving how your outer self looks, although that can certainly play a role in overall confidence too.

Self-confidence leads to success Self-confidence is the key to success in so many aspects of life, including with your health. It even fuels your desire to achieve your goals because it helps you set and stay committed to what you want in life, such as kick-starting an exercise routine or taking on a new fitness challenge. But gaining that confidence is a bit of a chicken-before-the-egg question, isn’t it? Let’s take working out and clean eating as an example. There’s a circular effect to confidence that comes from the hard work of healthy living: you exercise … you eat clean … you gain confidence … you gain motivation … you build healthy habits. Those behaviors and their positive results lead right back to a growing sense of self-confidence. One feeds off the other.

What can you do to build or strengthen your self-confidence starting now? Well, the very act of treating your body kindly with exercise and sensible eating helps. The more you do it, the more room you make for confidence to flourish. I believe confidence is the result of taking care of yourself and the catalyst to continual improvement. Once you start down this path, you’re sending a powerful message to yourself and others that you are a worthy, capable woman. And I’m here to support you all the way!

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