Ways to Learn to Love Your Body
Here are some ways to make peace with and appreciate your wondrous physical being. I encourage you to take some time to contemplate each point and allow yourself to grow a new appreciation for your body.
-
We are born in love with our bodies. Watch an infant sucking their fingers and toes, not worrying about their body fat. Imagine being so in love with your body.
-
Don’t compare your self to others. We frequently feel that we can never measure up. Society makes matters worse by worshiping an elusive fantasy body. Almost no one likes “the equipment they have or the way it is arranged!” Appreciate the assortment of physiques that sprinkle the earth!
-
Look at family photos. Find the beauty, love, and values in those bodies and faces. Hold those close to your heart.
-
Be the expert on your body—challenge fashion magazines, cosmetics industry, or weight tables. Appreciate yourself, just as you are!
-
Think about your body as a tool. Create a list of all the things you can do with it. Celebrate the fact that your body has resisted your best attempt to kill it off and it still works!
-
Be aware of what your body does each day. It is the instrument of your life, not an ornament for other’s enjoyment. Try washing your teeth with your non-dominant hand. Try walking around your house with your eyes closed. What do you learn about your bodies many parts? Have your really appreciate your toes and fingers recently?
-
Create a list of people you admire who have contributed to your life, your community, or the world. Was their appearance important to their success?
-
Consider your body as a source of pleasure. Think of all the ways it makes you feel good. Enjoy your body: stretch, dance, walk, sing, take a bubble bath, get a massage, have a pedicure.
-
Affirm that your body is perfect just the way it is. “I love myself as I am and as I am becoming.”
-
Remember that the body was designed to move. Reconnect with your body. Find a method of exercise that you enjoy and do it regularly, not to lose weight, but just to feel good. A walk in nature is especially comforting, and nature is nonjudgmental. Do not force yourself to exercise; allow yourself the opportunity to move.
-
As you go about your daily activities, walk with your head high, with pride and confidence in yourself as a person, not a size.
-
Count your blessings, not your blemishes. Also use nurturing affirmations. They are a powerful way to change the way you feel about your body. Put up signs in the mirrors, like, “I’m beautiful, inside and out.” Find a part of your body that you like and accept. Write an affirmation about it. For instance, “I love the ways that my eyes sparkle.” Repeat the affirmation every day with enthusiasm. Believe it! After a few weeks, you will come to know that what you are saying is true. Then move on to another body part. Continue through all parts until you LOVE YOUR BODY!
-
Beauty is not just skin-deep. It is a reflection of your whole self. Love and enjoy the person who is inside of your skin.
-
Every evening when your go to bed, thank your body for what it has helped you do throughout the day.
Frolic around: Gratitude List! What Does It Look Like When Things Are Going Well?
|
Loving, Honoring, and Accepting the Body You Have
|