How to Feel Great About Your Body

Body image is a delicate relationship between your spiritual life and your physical life. It is less about losing weight and more about having a harmony with your body and understanding what it needs. Here are a few tips to cultivate a healthy and happy body image.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Surround yourself with positive relationships. If your friends or significant other makes negative comments about your body, tell them how you feel. If they don't take steps to make you feel more confident, it might be time to find new relationships that will help encourage your positive body image.
2. Exercise. Seriously, even if you don't have to lose weight, getting some good old fashioned physical activity will make you feel more healthy and help you become more in-tune with your body. It could be as simple as taking a dance class or a yoga class, or going for a stroll through the park once in a while.
3. Wear clothes that flatter your figure. This may take some research and some extra shopping, but even on a budget you can find clothes that flatter your best parts. If you can look good and feel comfortable at the same time, this will only improve your confidence.
4. Eat healthy but still indulge. Add some healthy foods into your diet, such as vegetables and fruits, but still allow yourself the foods you love. Denying yourself completely only feels like a punishment.
5. Educate yourself and familiarize yourself with your body and how it functions. This could range from reading about basic anatomy and nutrition, to actually being naked in front of a mirror and looking at parts you like to pretend aren't there. Think of your body as an old friend you haven't seen for a while, and now is the time to catch up.
6. Define what beauty means to you. If you had to be completely honest with yourself, what is true Beauty in your eyes? Don't think about the Hollywood images, but about the people you know in your own life who you consider to be "beautiful." Think about their confidence, their poise and they way they treat their own bodies. How can you learn from them?

Tips & Warnings

• Don't fall for fad or crash diets. They will only harm your body and your body image.
• Don't use the Hollywood body stereotype as your definition for your own body and confidence. Find your own definition from what is important in your own life.
• Control your portions. Be careful not to overindulge. Do not keep eating when you are full. This will not only help control calorie intake, but will keep you from feeling bloated, heavy and uncomfortable.