What is Body Image?
Body image is how you see yourself when
you look in the mirror or picture yourself in your mind. It is
what you believe about your own appearance (including your memories,
assumptions, and generalizations), how you feel about your body
(including your height, shape, and weight), and how you sense
your body as you move. Body image can be influenced by family,
friends, coaches, teammates, culture/ethnicity, groups/organizations,
and the media.
Negative body image is . . . A distorted perception
of your shape, perceiving parts of your body in a skewed or exaggerated
way. People with negative body image have a greater likelihood
of developing an eating disorder and are more likely to suffer
from feelings of depression, isolation, low self-esteem, and obsessions
with weight loss.
Positive body image is . . .A clear perception
of your shape, perceiving the various parts of your body as they
really are, which leads to feeling comfortable and confident in
your body. This is associated with feeling proud and accepting
of your unique body and refusing to spend an unreasonable amount
of time worrying about food, weight, and calories.
We all may have our days when we feel awkward or uncomfortable
in our bodies, but the key to developing positive body image is
to recognize and respect our natural shape.
How to Love Your Body
1. Keep a top-10 list of things you like about yourself -- things
that aren’t related to how much you weigh or what you look
like.
2. Appreciate all that your body can do- celebrate its ability
to help you dream, laugh, breath, dance and exercise.
3. Remind yourself that “true beauty” is not simply
skin-deep. Beauty is a state of mind, not a state of your body.
Put a sign on each of your mirrors saying, “I’m beautiful
inside and out.”
4. Look at yourself as a whole person. When you see yourself in
a mirror or in your mind, choose not to focus on specific body
parts.
5. Eat when you are hungry. Rest when you are tired. Surround
yourself with people that remind you of your inner strength and
beauty.
6. Shut down those voices in your head that tell you your body
is not “right” or that you are a “bad”
person. You can overpower those negative thoughts with positive
ones. Start saying to yourself, “Life is too short to waste
my time hating my body this way.”
7. Wear clothes that are comfortable and that make you feel good
about your body.
8. Become a critical viewer of social and media messages. Pay
attention to images, slogans, or attitudes that make you feel
bad about yourself or your body. Protest these messages: write
a letter to the advertiser or talk back to the image or message._
9. Do something nice for yourself -- something that lets your
body know you appreciate it. Take a bubble bath, make time for
a nap, do some yoga or find a peaceful place outside to relax._
10. Use the time and energy that you might have spent worrying
about food, calories, and your weight to do something to help
others.
