Learning how to embrace and love your body exactly as it is when you're really struggling with body image is far from easy.
And even with the whole body positive movement that's become mainstream, it's not as simple as the campaigns we see all over social media make it out to be.
Flipping the script from telling yourself that you hate your body to something more positive and encouraging requires conscious effort, consistency, and understanding that it doesn't happen over night.
Finding body love *especially when you're so used to telling yourself how much you hate your body* takes a lot of work and dedication, but it IS POSSIBLE and it's SO worth every ounce of effort you put in.
Don't waste another second of your life hating your body. You deserve to love your body as it is TODAY, so if you're struggling with it, you are NOT alone & here's a few tips and strategies to help you develop a much better relationship with your *beautiful* body:
Commit to the change
You have to do some self-reflection & be totally honest with yourself. Once you acknowledge that you have a negative relationship with your body, and you want to create a positive one, you’ve already made huge progress.
That can be half the battle—because tons of people are so in denial about how they truly internally perceive themselves.
Tell yourself that you want to create a positive body-love relationship and make sure you mean it!
Ditch the idea that getting your 'dream body' will make you happy
Goals are great. They give us something to work toward, and having aesthetic goals is totally fine. But if you don’t love yourself & the body that is yours TODAY, that’s not going to change once you lose the 10 pounds or fit into the jeans.
You’ll crave more & more.
‘Well, maybe I can lose 5 more pounds’; ‘I got myself down to a size 4, so maybe I can shed a few more inches and get into a 2’.
…and on goes the vicious self-deprecating cycle.
Usually we have these goals because we think that people will like us better, or that we’ll like ourselves better…and a lot of that comes from how many times we’ve been sold the idea that looking a certain way will bring us all the good things in life—love, acceptance, admiration, etc., but it’s all bullshit.
Look at how many famous people that we think ‘have it all’ and aspire to be like are freaking miserable behind the scenes.
Everyone goes through pain & suffering and has good and bad days, so once we begin to accept that and understand that happiness comes from within ourselves, the better we become at letting go of the BS idea that looking a certain way will make us any happier.
Stop comparing yourself to others
Every single person is unique and there is only one you—we know that; so stop comparing yourself to someone else. The comparison is irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.
Own your uniqueness and let that shit shine.
Unfollow anyone that makes you feel like shit
If you’re following people that you wish you looked like and you notice you instantly start ripping yourself apart gawking at their polished photos, hit that unfollow button!
…it’s one thing to follow someone that INSPIRES you to work on yourself and become a better version of YOU, but it’s a whole other beast when you’re following accounts that instantly make you feel like crap about yourself when you’re scrolling.
Take control over the pictures and comments you let into your brain.
& let's not forget that social media is a HIGHLIGHT REEL and more often than not, the pictures and videos you're consuming are being enhanced with filters and other editing tools.
Fill your feed with inspiration
After you unfollow the accounts that bring you all the negative feels, go follow the accounts that bring you joy!
If you’re really struggling with any form of body love, following people that are of a similar build to you that radiate body love & happiness can be SO helpful & inspirational.
Seeing someone with a similar body type that’s always giving out good vibes and enjoying life can help you see that IT IS possible to be happy with the body you have right now!
Try searching hashtags like #bodylove #bodypositive #bodypositivty …that’s a great place to start!
Stop judging the bodies of other people
To love your own body, you NEED to quit it with the judgement.
Stop judging others based on their bodies. It’s so shallow and we all know that there’s WAY more to a person than their physical appearance.
You deserve to be loved and valued in your own body, and so does everyone else.
Lean into valuing personality over appearance.
Do something everyday that makes you FEEL good
Love to read? Write? Bake? Meditate? Pet your dog?
Do it.
Doing at least one thing that feels good to you every day builds a habit of self appreciation.
It’ll make you feel good and feeling good makes us happy—simple as that!
Exercise—but make sure it’s something you ENJOY
There’s a reason it’s well known across all boards that exercise reduces anxiety, depression, stress, etc.—all the bad feelings.
So try to exercise for 30 minutes, at least, every day. It doesn’t have to be intense workouts—it can be as simple as going for a walk.
That boosts your happy hormones—so why wouldn’t you want to?!
Keep going.
Don’t give up if you notice that you're picking yourself apart.
Catch yourself in the act and instead of letting the acknowledgment of it take you down even further, use that as an opportunity to point out some things that you love about your body.
Like with anything else, consistency is key and it doesn’t happen over night.
Put in the work, make conscious efforts, do it every day, & it’ll pay off tenfold.
xo Mackenzie.