Let’s be honest; most people would like to change something about the way they look. Commercial weight loss services earned around $6.3 billion during 2016, which just goes to show that we’re willing to invest our money in changing the way we look.
However, the diet industry doesn’t tell you that hating the way you look won’t make you thinner. You can’t shame your way to skinny, and even if you make it there, you won’t be able to stay thin or be as happy as you want to be. The only way to be happy at a different size is to learn how to be happy now, exactly as you are.
We’ve all heard that we need to learn how to love our bodies, but many of us scoff at that sentiment. Love my body? Have you seen it? How do you just go from not wanting to look in the mirror or have photos taken of you to loving the way you look, and without changing yourself physically?
It’s not easy, but it is possible and incredibly helpful for confidence, happiness, and will even contribute to losing weight in the long run because you’ll be eating healthy out of love, rather than hate. If you want to learn how to love your body now, here are some important steps to take:
Creative a body positive bubble. You heard me right. You know all those social media accounts you follow of super fit women who just make you wish you looked like them? Yea, dump those. Find women who inspire you because of who they are and find women who inspire you because they love themselves and look like you. Seeing the beauty in them will help you see the beauty in yourself.
Think about the people you admire. Are there people in your life that have made a big impact on you? Are there men or women that you look up to and admire? Now think about this - do you care what their pant size is? Probably not. Remember that there is so much more to the impact you leave on this world than what you look like.
Do the things you’ve been waiting to do once you’ve lost weight. Have you been avoiding dating? Or trying out a fitness class? Going to the pool or the beach? You only get one life, stop putting off everything that you want to do just because you’re not at the size you envisioned. Live your life. Have fun. Experience joy.
Buy clothes that fit you now. Is your closet full of clothes that fit last year or a few years ago and you’re just wearing the few items that fit right now? Go shopping. Put those other clothes in storage or, better yet, give them away! Buy clothes that make you feel good and fit you right now, that way you won’t feel horrible every time you try to put on that dress or pair of jeans.
Focus on fitness ability, not weight loss. When all you’re thinking about is the scale, trying to lose weight can become incredibly stressful and make you feel bad about yourself when you don’t see the numbers going down. First and foremost, many people have water retention when they start something new. Secondly, if you’re building muscle, that will benefit your metabolism in the long run. So focus on other achievements, like how many pushups or burpees you can do in a minute, or how fast you can run a mile.
Quit the diet talk. We’ve become so accustomed to it we probably don’t even notice it anymore, but start paying attention to when you’re talking to yourself or amongst girlfriends about dieting, losing weight, good vs. bad foods, etc. This kind of talk only makes you feel worse about yourself, like you aren’t living up to some perfect idea. Keep your blinders on and do what’s best for you.
