Feel Great In Any Body Size.

I am what the French will call ‘petite’. I like the way I am and feel good about it. That was until one of my FB friends who saw my picture online said to me,

 ‘Oh you look so small.’

 I answered.  ‘Is that a problem?’  I then added jokingly, ‘Don’t forget big things come in small packages.’

‘No o, it’s just that I was expecting someone bigger.’

‘Oh, really?’

‘Yes. From your commanding posts. And in any case most of us men like our women big in the right places.’

‘Excuse me?’

‘Don’t mean to offend you.’

‘No you haven’t offended me.’ 

I went on to explain to him gently that women, and men, come in different shapes and sizes. This is the way I am, and am quite comfortable with it. 

Are you accepting your body at any size?

I had to open with my experience which I’m sure many people will identify with at one time or the other – irrespective of the size. The truth is that being comfortable in your own skin, whether you’re a size 8, 10 or 24, or a triple X large, is your choice.  Sometimes it can be difficult in a society that worships unrealistic figures – be it massive boobs and bums, a model waif-like figure, or a macho Arnold Schwarzenegger.  Notwithstanding, it’s still possible to appreciate who you are, and that starts with your mirror image.

One of the first rules of achieving a healthy and delightful body image is to prevent a negative comment from getting you down a la my FB friend.  Appreciate what you see in the mirror. That’s who you are. Now if you’re overweight and want to reduce, that’s your choice.  If you’re slim and want to add a couple of pounds, that’s should equally be your choice and nobody else’s.

Refrain from jumping on society’s body stereotypes. Tell yourself you’re awesome. The main goal is to train your brain to think positively about your mirror image and your body. With time, accepting your awesome-self will block negative thoughts and help you develop a more positive attitude towards your image. To quicken the process, you may want to post notes with positive images on your mirror about your good qualities. These notes may be about your personality, and not necessarily about your looks.

Be kind to yourself

Stop self-criticisms. Abandon things in your life that erode your self-confidence, whether its fault finding friends, fashion magazines with supermodels, or TV programmes that showcase men and women in an unrealistic, sexist way.

Weighing scales don’t matter

People of all sizes frequently get preoccupied with what the weighing scale says, rather than paying attention to how healthy they feel. This doesn't help. Focus more on how you feel in the morning or when you climb the office stairs. Also pay attention to other health issues like blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure, which are likely to tell you more about your health status that your weight alone.

If your goal is to lose weight, exchange weight loss for fitness, such as keeping tab on your cholesterol level or training for a long distance run.  Choose an exercise you love and you’ll be more likely to keep faith with it, so that when the objectives are fun and stress reduction oriented, your weight naturally reduces.

Be flexible with your goals

If you want to lose weight, forget rigid rules. Don’t label any food as bad or good as this will only make you feel worse when you eat the so called ‘bad’ food.  Instead focus on the bigger picture and give yourself kudos for the healthy choices you make.

You are unique

Being healthy comes in all shapes and sizes. Your body is unique so don’t resort to unhealthy measures, like eating or drinking potentially dangerous supplements, or resorting to cosmetic surgery, just to be what society expects a healthy body to look like. However, you may need to check out with your doctor when negative thoughts about your body become too much for you, or you’re finding it hard to give up your perfectionist’s habits about food, weight, or exercise.

Photo Credit: Creative Commons