Accepting Your Body Does Not Mean Forgetting About Your Body
Not long ago, I was out walking with a friend of mine. After she spent a good ten minutes telling me all of the things she hated about her body, I stopped her in her tracks and gave her a little, “now you listen here…” type of lecture. In years past, whenever we would go walking, I was one to join in on the “body bashing” conversations and spent a great deal of time telling her all of the things I hated about my body as well. (Yeah - we were a pretty pathetic pair.)
Anyway, because I have so drastically changed my ways and since I now feel so strongly that us women should never bash our bodies, (no matter what size we are), she got an earful from me! I spent the remainder of our walk, telling her all of the reasons she needs to be more kind to herself and that she shouldn’t say such negative things about her body. I went on to tell her how she needs to be more accepting of herself and to be grateful just how she is.
She listened intently for a while, agreeing with what I was saying, and finally said, “But, I’m afraid that if I accept my body, I will just let myself just go and end up being totally out of shape and overweight.”
I completely understood how she felt. That was a major concern of mine when I began changing my thinking toward my physical self. The thing I have realized however is this: If you can finally come to a place where you accept your body completely and you are grateful for what your body can do and how it serves you, you will naturally WANT to take care of it. You will WANT to feed it nutritiously and give it exercise.
Here’s an example: If you were in need of a car and was given an old beater-upper… and if you didn’t appreciate that car because you were embarrassed to be seen in it, most likely, you wouldn’t treat it very well. You probably wouldn’t make it a priority to get the oil changed right on schedule and if it got in a fender bender you would probably just ignore the big dent and let it start to rust.
On the other hand. If you were given an old beater-upper car and felt gratitude for that car… and if you appreciated that it could get you from point A to point B and if you were glad that it had an awesome sound system in it, and nice, comfy seats, you would naturally have a desire to treat it well. You would WANT it to last you a long time and continue to be dependable, so you would get the oil changed when needed, you would rotate the tires when due, etc. Heck - you may even decide to get it a new paint job to make it look refreshed and cared for.
If you relate this car scenario to how we treat our bodies, you will see that if we are GRATEFUL for our body and appreciate the GOOD things about it, we will WANT to treat it well. We won’t want to ignore it and let it go down hill. We will want to keep it running smoothly by feeding it well and exercising it often.
So, if you are one who struggles with accepting your body and if you think that continually picking your body apart will get you motivated to be healthier or thinner or whatever - know this: Being GRATEFUL for your body, finding things you like and appreciate about your body are the methods that will help you be healthier, be at a normal weight and be more satisfied with yourself. It is those types of thought patterns and belief systems that will naturally make you want to treat your body better and the result will be a happier, healthier YOU.
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5 Responses to “Accepting Your Body Does Not Mean Forgetting About Your Body”
Lily Wheatfill
July 13th, 2008
What great tips! Do you have any tips for pregnant ladies?
Ashley
July 13th, 2008
Hi Liz,
Do you have any good healthy snack ideas for little kids (ages 4 & 1 1/2)? I have a hard time coming up with snacks they’ll like, but are really healthy.
Amber
July 14th, 2008
I’ve been a fan of yours for year (with your KMA idea books). I’m sorry you have gotten out of the scrapbook business, but now you are inspiring me to get into better shape. After 4 children, my body won’t probably ever be bikini ready again. But I do need to shed about 10 pounds or so. Today I’m drinking water, which is VERY hard for me! I’d rather grab a coke, but today refraining and trying just water. I’m carrying a large bottle around with me and hopefully I can get just this ONE drank, and work my way up to three.
Thanks for all the inspiration!
jennye
July 14th, 2008
Lily - I checked out your blog and think you and your family are adorable! I totally understand the whole postpartum body thing, and I’ll be posting some ideas here and there that may help with that…but be patient…I used to always tell myself that it took me nine months to get all big and pregnant, it should take at least that to lose it all. Even still, it’s hard to be patient and I completely understand how you feel! 
With all that exercising you’re doing though, I’m sure you are looking awesome and will just continue to shrink back to where you want to be. It’s amazing that with your baby and your other kids, you are still able to fit in that much exercising…you should be proud of yourself.
Ashley - Oooh Yes! I do have some ideas for pregnant ladies…I’ll post something about that soon. Thanks for the suggestion.
Amber - I’m glad you asked about healthy snack ideas for kids. I have lots of things I have tried with my kids that they gobble up, so I’ll post them here soon. That’s one of those things that is so hard as a parent…making sure our kids are eating healthy…but it’s possible! (At least most of the time!) ha ha!
Jennye - YAY! I’m happy to hear you are lugging around a water bottle and shoving that soda aside! You go girl! Don’t give up on that water - even though it can be so tasteless sometimes, you will find that the more water you drink, the more you will crave.
Liz Rosenbaum
July 15th, 2008
Love the site. I went to High school with you- I am about 2 years younger than you. Anyhow, I admit I check your blog sometimes, and I love hearing about your personal training and all the things you have been doing with that. I am big into exercise and fitness and have been for a long time. I had a baby last November and this time I am not seeing much postpartum weight loss. So it was good for me to read this tonight. It was a great reminder for me to watch what I am putting into my mouth during the day. I run every morning and lift weights a few times a week but I still seem to be struggling getting my waist line back. I will keep checking in on your site. It’s kind of like a personal pep talk for me
Lily Wheatfill