Eating disorders affect about 30 million people in the US (2:1, women:men), and
factors like poor body image, low self-esteem, fat-shaming, and dieting fads that often contribute to the development of eating disorders, affect just about everyone. This year’s National Eating Disorder Awareness Week falls from February 21st to March 1st, with the goal of focusing on the steps it takes to accept oneself and others. In honor of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, here are my top 8 ways to increase body positivity and improve on your own body image!
- Focus on what your body can accomplish and be proud of it!
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We often take for granted how lucky we are to have healthy, well-functioning bodies that are able to withstand everything we endure. The parts of ourselves that we so often critique or dislike serve a purpose much greater than just to look skinny or perfect; the thighs that you pick apart and loathe can squat 100 pounds, and the self-proclaimed ‘flabby arms’ can beat your brother in an arm wrestling match. Taking the time to appreciate all of the little things that our bodies are capable of will make our overall outlooks more healthy and positive!
- Get in touch with your body.
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Performing calming activities, like yoga or meditation, help us reconnect with our bodies and increase our self-awareness; we can feel every sense, movement, and breath more clearly. These practices enable us to feel a sense of openness and newfound abilities to move our bodies in ways that even we are unaware we can do. Reconnecting with ourselves also means taking a break every once in a while and checking in with our own bodies. It is important not to push ourselves to the point of overtraining and, rather, letting our bodies recover to prevent damage or injury to our bodies.
- Focus less on the number that appears on the scale and more on how you feel.
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The arbitrary number that appears on the scale often has too much weight over our self-worth and image because of the unrealistic weight goals that fail to consider one’s height, muscle mass, or overall build. I have found that not weighing myself and, instead, measuring my progress based on how I feel about myself and my strength has been incredibly beneficial to my own self-image.
- Mentally reframe your flaws as marks of beauty and positivity.
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It is easy to critique ourselves for bodily features that we cannot control: stretch marks, height, the size of our butt and breasts. Instead of hating these features, it is important to recognize what they do for you. A six-foot woman can reach the top shelf in the pantry, a woman with a AA bra cup can lay on her stomach easily in bed, and a woman with stretch marks carried a human being.
- Learn to take a compliment.
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I have always struggled with accepting compliments, especially saying “thank you.” Because of the high, often unrealistic, standard to which I hold myself, teaching myself to respond to compliments with a simple “thank you,” rather than with negative bargaining, has been, and still is, a tedious process. As difficult as it may be, it is an essential practice in working towards self-acceptance and love.
- Don’t define yourself in terms of looks; you are worth much more than that!
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It is often easy to define ourselves based on physical appearance because it is the first thing that everyone else sees, making it easy for other people to judge in that manner. In regards to self-perception, however, it is important that we prioritize the aspects of personality, upbringing, and relationships that make us who we are separate from how we look.
- Set goals not in relation to your appearance.
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Instead of trying to lose weight or inches, set goals for yourself that have little or nothing to do with physicality. Changing your mindset from “I want to lose 20 pounds” to “I am going to hit a new bench PR this week” can make a world of difference in terms of positive motivation and health.
- Forget the comparison.
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In this social media based society with instagram models and influencers, it is so easy to compare ourselves to other people. Rather than envying others and belittling ourselves because we do not look like the sculpted, perfectly-angled, and edited posts that appear on our social media feed, we should take pride in ourselves and our bodies and be confident and unapologetic about who we are.