Skip to main content

20 Ways to Love Your Body

Compiled by Margo Maine, Ph.D.

Sometimes it is hard to appreciate our bodies. We really need to take care to treat our physical vessel well. No matter how we feel about how our bodies function or look, they are spectacular for what they do for us! Let's be nice to our bodies and let's not compare it to others because it is the best one we are going to have.

1. Your body is extraordinary--begin to respect and appreciate it.

2. Create a list of all the things your body lets you do. Read it and add to it often.

3. Become aware of what your body can do each day. Remember it is the instrument of your life, not just an ornament.

4. Create a list of people you admire: people who have contributed to your life, your community, or the world. Consider whether their appearance was important to their success and accomplishments.

5. Walk with your head held high, supported by pride and confidence in yourself as a person.

6. Don't let your weight or shape keep you from activities that you enjoy

7. Wear comfortable clothes that you like and that feel good to your body.

8. Count your blessings, not your blemishes.

9. Think about all the things you could accomplish with the time and energy you currently spend worrying about your body and appearance. Try one!

10. Be your body's friend and supporter, not its enemy.

11. Consider this: your skin replaces itself once a month, your stomach lining every five days, your liver every six weeks, and your skeleton every three months.

12. Every morning when you wake up, thank your body for resting and rejuvenating itself so you can enjoy the day.

13. Every evening when you go to bed, tell your body how much you appreciate what it has allowed you to do throughout the day.

14. Find a method of exercise that you enjoy and do it regularly. Don't exercise to lose weight or to fight your body. Do it to make your body healthy and strong and because it makes you feel good.

15. Think back to a time in your life when you felt good about your body. Tell yourself you can feel like that again, even in this body at this age.

16. Keep a list of 10 positive things about yourself--without mentioning your appearance. Add to it!

17. Put a sign on each of your mirrors saying, "I'm beautiful inside and out."

18. Choose to find the beauty in the world and in yourself.

19. Start saying to yourself, "Life is too short to waste my time hating my body this way."

20. Eat when you are hungry. Rest when you are tired. Surround yourself with people that remind you of your inner strength and beauty.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Mindful Eating

Here is an exercise in mindful eating I found on NPR. It is a good exercise for you to try and it could help you slow down your eating which will translate to satisfaction sooner which means less calories consumed! If you're curious to know what mindful eating looks like in practice, here's one exercise, excerpted from a review written by Stephanie Vangsness of Brigham and Women's Hospital. She writes: "Do this exercise with a friend. You will need one small slice of an apple for each person. One person reads the instructions listed below while the other person completes the exercise. 1.Take one bite of an apple slice and then close your eyes. Do not begin chewing yet. 2.Try not to pay attention to the ideas running through your mind, just focus on the apple. Notice anything that comes to mind about taste, texture, temperature and sensation going on in your mouth. 3.Begin chewing now. Chew slowly, just noticing what it feels like. It's normal that your mind will w...

Buy the cheap stinky onions!

Oddly enough the hot stinky cheap onions have more cancer fighting vitamins than those really sweet ones! Here is a good way to cook them to make them sweet and delicious! In fact, when cooked they are always sweeter. The sweet varieties are best eaten raw because when cooked they are less sweet. Peel and core (with your apple corer) a large onion - don't poke the corer all the way through. Place the onion on a sheet of foil. Put a bullion cube in the core, top with a 1/2 teaspoon of a butter substitute, sprinkle with thyme and pepper. Pour a teaspoon of dry sherry over all and grill for 45 minutes or until completely soft. Open and enjoy - it will taste like sweet French Onion Soup! Make one for each person because you won't want to share!

PICKLED EGGS

This is an old fashioned snack that fits into lots of current diet plans. It makes a good protein snack and is easy to keep on hand. I like to eat a few peppers with an egg. This is especially good when I pop into the house after being out and feeling hungry. Pickled Eggs Ingredients 1 (12 ounce) jar hot yellow peppers with brine 1 1/2 cups water 1 cup white wine vinegar 2 tablespoons pickling spice (see mix below) 1 tablespoon white sugar 2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon ground turmeric 12 hard-boiled eggs, peeled Directions Stir peppers and brine, water, vinegar, pickling spice, sugar, salt, and turmeric together in a 1/2 gallon container with lid. Add eggs to pepper mixture and seal container. Refrigerate for at least 2 days. Pickling Spice Mix (adjust the amount made to meet your needs) 1/4 cup mustard seeds 1/4 cup dill seed 1/4 cup coriander seeds 2 Tbsp. crushed chili peppers 2 Tbsp. crushed bay leaves 1 Tbsp. celery seeds 1 Tbsp. white...