Warning: naughty language ahead! 

She approached me after class and asked the question I never, ever thought I’d hear:

“Dave, how did you get such ripped abs? Is it the yoga?”

I couldn’t tell if she was being serious.

She had fancy workout gear, a fantastic yoga practice, and breasts whose architecture could hold their own in the Dubai skyline.

And then she said, “Just kidding!”

As she walked into the Power Hour class, I looked down at my core, leaner than it used to be, but still showing evidence of late night adventures to South Brooklyn Pizza.

So be it—I have learned to be f*cking proud of what I got!

Over the past few years, we have seen a proliferation of elite wellness on social media.

Maybe you’ve seen the pictures on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook like:

“Here I am in a one-handed handstand. Practice makes Perfect. #handstand #werkIt!”

“Crow Pose while surfing this sick wave on the Big Island.” #108inthe808 #GratitudePrincess #workNEVER

“Green Juice Throwdown! #30LBSin30Days”

This is a form of wellness for people with a certain type of a body, a certain type of income and a certain amount of free time.

Should something as important as wellness be so exclusive?

Maybe it’s just me but a scroll through my Instagram newsfeed makes me feel hairy in the all the wrong places. (I know I know I know what the self-helpers are saying right now: “Dave you are projecting.”)

I’ll tell you what I’m projecting: A new type of wellness that is inclusive of the other 95 percent of the population.

Here’s a shout out to anyone who, like me, feels like a Ford F-150 on the yoga mat and doesn’t care about doing fancy poses.

Here’s a call to action for anyone who wants to embrace wellness but just can’t stomach green juice.

Here’s a rally cry for those of you who can’t make the trip to Hawaii (work, kids, money) but are all for a trip to your Inner Hawaii.

If you, like me, are part of the other 95 percent, let’s be honest with ourselves. Wellness does not come when we can balance on our hands or bare our belly on the beach—

—but when we can find someone to hug (or high five).

—when we can perceive beauty as a feeling (not a look).

—when we can smile because we have surrendered (not dominated).

Try this on for size: happy is the new Healthy!

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Editor: Catherine Monkman

{Photo: Flickr.}