10 Tips to be Body Positive

The Body Positivity movement is in full swing. The days of beating yourself up to drop two sizes or get those buns of steel are over. Today it’s all about loving yourself – flaws and all. Of course if you’re like most women on this planet, but in the US specifically, you know body positivity is a lot easier said than done. Being positive about your body can be a constant struggle especially if you were raised on images of size 0 supermodels gracing the cover of every magazine in every doctor’s office, dentist office, convenience store and probably your own living room. We’ve become so desensitized to these images that we forget that most of them have been altered beyond anything that is even remotely obtainable. That’s why the body positivity movement is so powerful.

Love yourself.

That’s it. That’s all you have to do.

“But how do I do that?”, you might ask. Here are some helpful body positivity tips I’ve found to be extremely helpful over the years.

10 Tips to be Body Positive

1. Treat yourself like a friend would – You’d probably never tell your best friend that her butt is too big or her arms are too flabby so why would you tell yourself that? Stop criticizing yourself. Be as kind to yourself as you would to your best friend, because if you aren’t your own best friend you should be.
2. Own your flaws – Got stretch marks from pregnancy? Wonderful, that means you created life! Wear those stretch marks as a badge of honor rather than hide them or be ashamed of them. They are proof positive that you brought life into this world and that is a glorious thing. Be proud of your flaws, they mean you’ve grown in one way or another.
3. Accept compliments – If you’re like many of us you have a hard time accepting compliments almost as much as criticism. For whatever reason, accepting a compliment can be an awkward social exchange. All you have to do is say “thank you” when someone compliments you. That’s it, “thank you”. You are under no obligation to minimize the compliment and you don’t even have to compliment the other person back. Just smile, say “thank you” and move the conversation forward. Easy peasy.
4. Exercise to feel better, not look better – Exercise has so many benefits, the least of which is to look good. A good cardio workout gets your heart pumping and that gets those endorphins going which make you feel great. Feeling good makes everything else in life just a little (okay, sometimes a lot) better. In addition to the physical benefits the psychological benefits are pretty profound too. A good workout can clear your head which allows you to think through problems with ease.
5. Stop comparing yourself to others – No two people are alike so stop trying to compare yourself to everyone else. We’re all different and we’re all wonderful. That’s all you need worry about. If someone has better hair than you, a better body than you or better feet than you – smile, compliment them on it and don’t believe for one second that you’re less than because you don’t have the same fill-in-the-blank. We’re all different, and we’re all lovely.
6. Don’t compare yourself to your old self either – Our bodies change throughout our lives. If you’re fighting to get back into a skirt you wore in 1997 then just give it up (and why would you want to dress like it was 1997 anyway, go get some new clothes!). Many people find that as they age they get better even if they don’t look as good as they may have 20 years ago.
7. Write it down – If you’re having trouble loving yourself then take pen to paper and write down what is great about you. Doesn’t matter what – great toes, lovely ears, perfect nose? All good, write it down. The simple act of putting it on paper makes it real. Appreciate what you have, because you have a lot.
8. Relax – If you’re not feeling good about your body maybe it’s because you haven’t treated it well. Take a bubble bath, get a massage, grab your BFF and spend the afternoon getting mani/pedis. Do something to pamper your wonderful body and it will pamper you right back.
9. It’s okay if you slip up – Even the best of us forget about all of the above and end up giving that little voice more credence than it should get. It’s okay if you fall off the wagon, just get up, shake yourself off and get back on the body positive train. Don’t kick yourself for screwing up now and again.
10. Understand that it’s all in your head – Positive self worth doesn’t happen because you’re a size two, it happens because you surround yourself with people who love you and themselves. Want to see proof, then watch this commercial from JCP and see for yourself.