As someone who falls for the clickbait of the Internet with glee, I often find myself reading articles written by inspiring young women who want to stress the importance of body positivity. My immediate response is, “Hell yeah!” But as I embark on the daily activities of my life and try to incorporate the kick-ass attitude of these empowered women, I find it difficult to actually be positive about my body. Because let’s be real, what does it really mean to be “body positive”? Through my own trials and tribulations with flabbiness and bloating, I have crafted my formula for achieving the enlightened realm of body positivity.
First and foremost, body positivity includes absolutely ZERO body shaming – of yourself or anyone else.
- If you need to put down someone else’s size by calling them any sort of extreme (fat or skinny) to feel better about your own size, you are doing it wrong.
Body positivity doesn’t mean you can’t have health goals.
- We are all well aware of the occasional crap we put into our mouths and the days -- or weeks or months -- we go without exercise. It is never a bad thing to want to be more active or to eat healthier. These actions simply must be done with truly healthy goals in mind – no extremes, no absolutes.
Body positivity requires an understanding of your body.
- I thought body positivity meant ignoring the things I disliked about myself. Now I realize you have to be aware of who you are in order to like who you are. Pay attention to yourself so you know what makes you feel good and what doesn’t. This extends to knowing the foods that cause you to bloat and knowing which clothes you feel confident in. The more you know about your body, the more in control you will feel about how it looks.
Dress to accentuate, not to hide.
- I want to reiterate the importance of feeling good in the clothes you wear. Get to know what you look good in. Sure, a large sweater hides the stomach rolls (and is super comfy) but a crop top and high-waisted pants can do the same thing with a much hotter result. Don’t worry about the size. If you want to know why, read this and find the clothes that hug you right.
Body positivity is about all about confidence.
- Loving your body means wearing it proudly. The hardest part about body positivity is determining what it is that makes you feel amazing. But once you have figured it out -- hopefully the above information can help with this -- run with it!! Go forth and be hot as hell. Be confident and be proud to be you.
