The truth is, if you can’t accept your body you can’t change.
Before you close me because you’re appalled at my opening hear me out….
Body acceptance doesn’t mean you cannot change quite the opposite.
Body acceptance is defined as accepting one's body regardless of not being completely satisfied with all aspects of it (Tylka 2011).
Body acceptance is not the belief that one's body is perfect or highly physically attractive, nor is it the belief that one's body cannot be changed at all (Tylka and Wood-Barcalow 2015).
In essence body acceptance reminds us that our value doesn't just lie in our shape or size, and no one has a say in our worth but ourselves.
It’s knowing that you offer more to the world than just a decoration, that you’re more than your body.
Why am I telling you this? In essence most of you want fat loss, and maybe even for the summer, but you will never attain sustainable fat loss without acceptance.
“When I can accept myself as I am, then I can change” - Carl Rogers
What happens when life throws a curve ball and you have to adapt?
You shame yourself because you ate something “bad”
What happens when you go out for food and eat something more calorie dense?
You feel guilty and punish yourself.
What happens when you miss a gym session?
You are pissed off with yourself and spiral into self criticism.
What happens when you’re bloated because of hormones?
You body monitor and talk to yourself as if you’re the devil.
What happens when you’re poorly and need to rest?
You hate on yourself and get angry at your body for simply trying to recover.
Relate?
And with all of these, we see an increase in disordered eating behaviours.
Overeating -> Over restricting.
Self criticism -> Excessive body checking
One of the big reasons is you’re dieting from a place of shame, you cannot accept yourself so everything that happens becomes something that is your fault….
You take on every problem as being a “you” thing, and then criticise yourself.
It’s not a you problem at all,
It’s a lack of acceptance and therefore resilience.
It’s a combination of beliefs that have come from cultural myths that smaller is better, more superior and that in order to be accepted you must be a certain shape and size.
The challenge is that subscribing to such beliefs actually halts you. You have the breaks locked whilst trying to move forward. You keep finding yourself back at square one, and that’s impacting your self esteem, confidence even more.
In order to change, things have to change, and that first change should be acceptance.
The acceptance supports you adapting, the open, growth mindset, to respond rather than react. It’s the piece of the puzzle you need, and luckily for you we have a new episode of the podcast out today to begin your acceptance;
Let me know how you get on, share your favourite parts and remember I am here for any questions.
Have a beautiful day,
Rebecca x
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