Ah, summer. When I think of summer, I think about driving to sandy beaches, attending music festivals or simply sunbathing by the pool. Then, I think about bikinis, crop tops and short shorts. My mind wanders off to drinking green smoothies, cutting out junk food and running every day just to achieve the summer body that everyone talks about so much.

I’m not the only one who experiences this. Whenever summer arrives, I always see my Facebook Newsfeed fill up with “fitspiration” or “thinspiration” posts. Several friends post about their weight loss journey or share images that serve as self-motivation to get that summer bod they’ve been dreaming of.

Now, I’m not saying that people shouldn’t be proud of their weight loss journey. What I’m saying is that these “motivational” posts can reveal negative messages and glorify the idea of being thin. Some of these posts do not encourage body positivity, body acceptance and healthy self-image. Often, they promote that our size and weight defines who we are.

As a woman who has struggled with an eating disorder, I can definitely say that there is a difference between healthy and unhealthy weight loss. I still struggle with trying to figure out the difference between restricting and eating healthily. Every day, I have to work on ignoring the hateful comments I make about my body and focus on loving and accepting it for what it is. But seeing these posts on my Newsfeed can be extremely triggering.

Take a look at this example:

This post might be kind of funny to some people who are dieting because they might relate to a similar struggle. But this post is also problematic because it reveals the underlying message that you have to restrict in order to look good. Even if three burritos is an exaggeration, it's still showing that you must choose between eating what you want to eat or looking attractive - you can't have both.

Here's another example:

I've seen this post several times on social media. This might be motivational for some people because it encourages them to eat more fruits and vegetables. However, this image also portrays that heavier people who have fat on their stomachs instead of abs only eat unhealthy foods. It adds on to the negative stereotype that all fat people are lazy and have no control over their daily diet, making them unhealthy people. This is fat shaming. These types of stereotypes cause people to fear being fat and relate being skinny to being beautiful.

Here's one that relates to working out:

First off, if you are in pain while exercising, PLEASE take a break or just STOP your workout. You can try again another day when you are feeling better. This picture tells people that it's okay to punish yourself while working out because you will get the body that you want in the end. However, pictures such as these reinforce an unhealthy relationship with our bodies. If we end up quitting our workout or feeling that it wasn't as good as it could be, our self-esteem and confidence can go down and make us feel like failures. Instead of loving our bodies for the things that it can do, we punish ourselves for the things that it can't.

Rather than using images such as these, we should be sharing pictures that show love to all shapes and sizes and encourage a positive (instead of a negative and perfectionist) outlook on losing weight or living a healthier lifestyle.

This is what we should be telling ourselves:

Instead of beating ourselves up over getting a beach body or looking good, we should focus on more important things such as our emotional and mental states, our relationships with other people, our spiritual lives and loving ourselves at the end of the day.

Be wary of these "fitspiration" posts and think about body-positivity next time!