Woman looking in mirror

4 Ways to Practice Body Positivity

By Sarah Robinson, Rachel Myrer

One way you can improve your body image is to practice body positivity. The main goal of body positivity is to increase your acceptance, appreciation, and love for your body (O’Hara et al., 2021). There are many ways to become more positive about your body.

Some ideas are listed below:

Ways to Practice Body Positivity
  • Correct negative self-talk. If you have a negative thought about yourself or your body, that’s okay, but take the time to correct it. For example, if you have the thought, “My legs are so ugly and fat,” immediately think, “No, I’m glad that my legs are strong, and that they allow me to walk, run, and jump.” Be patient with yourself. Change doesn’t happen instantly, but try to correct your negative thoughts with positive thoughts every time and it will get easier.
  • Use body-positive affirmations. Some examples of body-positive affirmations include, “I accept my body as it is,” “I appreciate my body as it is,” and “I love my body as it is.” Other examples are, “My body is good,” “My body is strong,” and, “My body is good enough.”
  • Attend a body-positive yoga class (Diers et al., 2020). These classes may be available in person in your local area. If not, you can find online classes, or follow along with some free videos on Youtube.
  • Be body-positive on social media. Social media (especially when it is image focused  like Instagram) can lead you to compare your body negatively to other people’s bodies (Stewart & Ogden, 2019; Stevens & Griffiths, 2020). This is not healthy and will only make you feel bad about your body. Instead,
    • Follow body-positive people and feeds on social media, those that make you feel good and happy about your body and encourage you to love yourself as you are.
    • Start sharing what you love about your body on social media and encourage others to do the same. Watch the body positivity movement take off!

Practicing body positivity every day (or as often as you can) will improve your body image, self-esteem, and physical and mental health. Try one of these ideas today to start your journey to a healthier, more positive you!

References

  • Diers, L., Rydell, S. A., Watts, A., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2020). A yoga-based therapy program designed to improve body image among an outpatient eating disordered population: Program description and results from a mixed-methods pilot study. Eating Disorders, 28(4), 476–493. doi: 10.1080/10640266.2020.1740912
  • O'Hara, L., Ahmed, H., & Elashie, S. (2021). Evaluating the impact of a brief Health at Every Size-informed health promotion activity on body positivity and internalized weight-based oppression. Body Image, 37, 225–237. doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2021.02.006
  • Stewart, S. F., & Ogden, J. (2019). The role of BMI group on the impact of weight bias versus body positivity terminology on behavioral intentions and beliefs: An experimental study. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 634. doi: 0.3389/fpsyg.2019.00634
  • Stevens, A., & Griffiths, S. (2020). Body Positivity (#BoPo) in everyday life: An ecological momentary assessment study showing potential benefits to individuals’ body image and emotional wellbeing. Body Image, 35, 181–191. doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.09.003