February 19, 2024 • 26 mins
Embark on a transformative journey with us as we tackle the heavy burden society places on weight and body size, and how this singular focus can wreak havoc on our emotional well-being. Get ready to uncover the beauty of embracing body diversity and the importance of nurturing a positive relationship with food, as we chat with a renowned expert in the field. Together, we'll break down the walls of unrealistic beauty standards by cultivating a deeper understanding of self-acceptance and the celebration of inner beauty that transcends the superficial measures often glorified by the media.
This episode is a heartfelt guide along the path to developing a wholesome body image. We share insights on the power of media literacy, the strength drawn from a supportive community, and the profound influence of spirituality in honoring our bodies. Our conversation is an invitation to treat your body with the care it deserves, engaging in balanced nutrition and self-care practices that foster love and respect for the unique individual you are. Join us as we affirm the necessity of detaching self-worth from the scale and stepping into a world where health and happiness are defined on our terms, not by a number.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
All right.
So let's dive into the reasonswhy focusing solely on weight
and body size is going toperpetuate all these negative
patterns with food and bodyimage, all right.
The first reason why focusingon it is actually going to bring
us the opposite of what we'relooking for is because what
we're focusing on is unrealistic, unattainable, unsustainable
(00:26):
body image standards.
We know that society promotesthese unrealistic beauty
standards centered aroundthinness, centered around one
body ideal that's promoted andit leads individuals to
consistently strive for theseunrealistic, unattainable and
(00:47):
unsustainable and unhealthy bodyideals, these bodies that we
are not meant to be in Bodydiversity, body shapes.
We are all born to be in adifferent body and there are no
good and bad bodies, there areno right or wrong, and that is
not what's being sold to us.
(01:07):
So we're constantly feelingthis responsibility and pressure
to obtain this quote, unquoteideal body and when that happens
, we are in it for somethingthat's very unrealistic, very
unattainable, very unsustainableand very unhealthy.
Constantly pursuing theseideals are going to constantly
(01:27):
foster these feelings ofinadequacy, dissatisfaction,
negative body image and anegative relationship with food.
So, of course, of course, rightthere this, by focusing on our
weight and size, it's going toperpetuate all these negative
behaviors and all these negativefeelings when it comes to
healing our relationship withbody image.
(01:49):
All right, the next reasonfocusing on body size and shape
is going to keep us so stuck andgoing to bring us a lot of
negative is because of theemotional distress it brings
with trying to attain this idealbody image, with just
constantly focusing on weightand size, because it's just
(02:10):
really going to take a mentaland emotional toll, if it hasn't
already, and that just buildsand builds and builds.
This pressure to conform to thesocietal beauty standards are
going to, for sure, without adoubt, lead to anxiety,
depression, low self-esteem, andthat further exasperates these
negative patterns with food andbody image, where we don't trust
(02:34):
food, we don't know how theheck to eat, we don't trust our
body, we're constantly shamingit.
We're weight cycling, we areputting it through hell with the
diets and distorted eating andturning to body bashing and
diets for coping as well forthis emotional distress which
keeps us in this never endingcycle.
(02:55):
All right, the next reason whya focus on weight and size is
going to keep you stuck isbecause it is going to bring you
to a very unhealthyrelationship with food.
Obsessing overweight and bodysize is for sure going to.
I don't see how it can't get toyour relationship with food and
(03:19):
start affecting yourrelationship with food.
It's gonna distort yourrelationship with food, how you
eat.
It's going to lead todisordered eating behaviors,
including binge eating,emotional eating, restrictive
eating, and this is not onlygoing to negative impact your
relationship with body image,but it's also going to impact
your relationship with yourphysical health and it's going
(03:41):
to perpetuate these feelings ofguilt, shame, self-loathing,
reinforcing all of thesenegative patterns with food and
body image.
So again, if we're focusing, ifyou come to me and you say I
want a healthy relationship withfood that I can trust, now
let's focus on losing weight andlet's focus on body size and
shape Right there.
(04:02):
Those two things do not gotogether and they cannot go
together Because if we'refocusing on size and weight,
that is, we're going to betaking efforts to change size
and weight, which are not thesame thing as working on having
a healthy relationship with foodand eating in a way that is
(04:23):
good for you, that's healthy foryou and promotes your physical
and mental health.
They're not the same thing andso we cannot focus on weight and
size to get a healthyrelationship with food okay, and
that's often something thatreally holds people back and
it's something really importantto assess for yourself and
understand.
(04:44):
All right, and the last reasonI'm going to go over today of
why focusing on size and weightare going to keep you stuck and
create a negative relationshipwith body rather than the
opposite, positive relationshipwith body, is because what
happens when you focus on bodyand body size and weight is that
you will ignore your individualneeds and then, in turn, your
(05:08):
health as well.
Okay, so ignoring individualneeds is what happens when we
focus on weight and body size.
We start to focus on that andthen not focus on our individual
, unique nutritional needs, ourpreferences, our health markers,
our values.
It overlooks the importance ofintuitive eating and listening
(05:29):
to your body, cues and learningfrom your body and being in as a
team with your body.
It leads individuals todisregard internal hunger,
society satiety signals in orderto favor these external dieting
rules and restrictions that arefocusing on obtaining a certain
body ideal.
So these are all focusing.
(05:52):
Ultimately, focusing on bodysize and body weight just does
not equate to and cannot bepartnered with truly looking
forward to find a healthyrelationship with body and food
that's sustainable, respectful,actually promotes your holistic
(06:12):
health and wellbeing and getsyou to a place where you're
confident, you're intuitive,you're respectful, you're
compassionate and you're feelingtrusting and like friends with
your body.
Okay, so those are the reasonswhy, when we focus on weight and
size, it's going to ultimatelykeep us stuck and take us way
(06:34):
further away from bodyconfidence, not to it?
Okay.
But then in turn, if we're notfocusing on body size and body
weight, let's talk about, thenthe research and let's talk
about the research behind whatbrings positive body image.
Why do some people have apositive body image while some
people don't?
Okay, why do two identicalsized people with same weight,
(06:59):
same size, same shape, why canthey ultimately have totally
different relationships withtheir body?
Right?
What does one person have thatthe other person doesn't?
And this is a complicated andcomplex answer, so we're not
going to dive super in depthwith all of them, but I do want
(07:20):
to touch on what the researchsays.
For what does create a positivebody image?
How can we get there?
What do we need to explore?
And before we do, I want toagain reiterate the research.
That research shows.
All the research on body imageshows that body having a
positive body image is notcorrelating with someone's body
(07:45):
size or someone's weight.
It does not say people with theideal quote, unquote body size
that's promoted to us, that thatthin body.
It does not show that they havea more positive relationship
with their body than people inlarger bodies.
That is not shown in theresearch, okay.
So if anything that shows youright there that if you're
(08:09):
trying to pursue a better, morepositive relationship with your
body, it is not going to be inpursuing this thin ideal, okay,
According to the research andyou know, bring your own
experience in it as well Allright.
So research has uncovereduncovered 10 distinct
characteristics of positive bodyimage and why some people have
(08:32):
a healthier relationship withtheir body and can maintain a
healthier relationship withtheir body than others.
And these characteristics, Ihope they really come to you and
serve as a beacon of hope andI'm holding so much hope for you
, but I hope it comes to you toillustrate that healing your
relationship with body is soindeed attainable Okay, although
(08:54):
challenging, it is attainable.
Whereas if we're focusing onbody size and shape and we are
dieting well, we're it's notgoing to be attainable a
positive relationship with ourbody.
However, these 10characteristics that I'm going
to explain to you from theresearch show that it is
attainable, even though it'schallenging.
So let's go ahead and embark onthis journey and explore these
(09:17):
10 characteristics and reflecton how they resonate with your
own experience.
Okay, all right, so the firstcharacteristic of people with a
positive body image is going tobe body appreciation.
Okay, body appreciation, ofcourse, goes.
All of these okay, I'm going topause.
Everything I'm going to namehere has a lot of exploration to
(09:40):
do with each characteristic.
There's a lot to it.
There's a lot of practices,there's a lot of undoing and
redoing and rebuilding andunderstanding and assessment and
trying new behaviors andlearning about what that
category means and startimplementing it.
I just want to name that and Ialso want you to assess, as we
go through these categories whendo you think you fall in each
(10:04):
of these categories, and thenwe'll take it one step further.
I'm going to hopefully remember.
If I don't remember, I'm goingto name it now.
I do have a quiz.
If you go to jmrdcom, there isa quiz where you can go through
all of these differentcharacteristics and see where
you fall and get an overall.
You can get individual bodyimage scores for each category,
(10:26):
but also an overall body imagescore to see where you're at and
see where would be helpful tofocus on when it comes to your
relationship with your body.
And what I love about alsogoing through these
characteristics is that, to namethat, if you're struggling with
five of the 10, but three arereally strong and one you know
(10:51):
is workable and you are you canwork on that characteristic.
Then it just you can overallimprove your relationship with
your body as a whole by workingon the things that you're able
to access and that you feelready for at this moment to help
improve body image overall andthen also open doors to other
(11:13):
characteristics that might seema little bit more scary to look
into.
So anyways, with that caveat,let's get back to body
appreciation.
So body appreciation involvesacknowledging actually
acknowledging and feeling thehealth, features and functions
(11:34):
of your body.
Okay, so people with bodyappreciation that actively show
and practice and feel gratitudeand appreciation of the health,
of what their body can do, ofthe features and functions, of
what their body allows them todo in life, rather than dwelling
on these perceived flaws, havea better relationship with their
(11:54):
body.
And of course, that makes sense, right, if we think of this in
terms of a relationship withsomeone else.
If we're focusing on someone'sflaws rather than the gratitude
of what that relationship brings, it's going to impact our
relationship with that person.
Okay, so there's a lot of powerin this.
This acceptance and cultivationof body appreciation is really
(12:19):
gonna significantly and cansignificantly impact your
relationship with your body in apositive way, and research
supports that.
All right.
The next characteristic is bodyacceptance.
People with a positive bodyimage are shown that they have
body acceptance.
So, despite societal pressures,individuals with a positive
(12:41):
body image feel comfortable intheir bodies, choosing to accept
their body rather than activelytrying to achieve a different
body ideal.
And this acceptance is a very,very powerful tool in
cultivating a self-compassionate, resilient, respectful
(13:03):
relationship with your bodythat's very resilient against
all of the like.
That's very resilient againstnegative body image and negative
body image messaging okay.
The next characteristic thatpeople with positive body image
have is inner positivityinfluencing outer demeanor.
That true confidence radiatesfrom the work that you're doing
(13:26):
within and how you feel withyour relationship with yourself.
Those with positive body imageexude inner confidence and pride
which transcends that physicalappearance and all the pressures
around that as well.
Again, I know I'm quickly goingthrough this.
I hate to do it because there'sso much to explore in each of
(13:47):
them, but we're not gonna do a10 hour podcast episode.
I just wanna introduce this toyou and you can explore it more
in the quiz.
Okay, sorry, took a sip of mycoffee there, all right.
So broadly conceptualizingbeauty is the next item, and I
they're all so big, but this isbig.
This is one of the first thingsI work on with clients, and
(14:10):
that is really to work onunderstanding what and why you
conceptualize beauty the way youdo, in a narrow way, because
people who are able to broadlyconceptualize beauty and they
see beauty in diversity that's ahallmark of positive body image
.
People are able to embrace avariety of weights, shapes and
(14:32):
appearances in others and rejectthese narrow beauty standards
and celebrate the inherentbeauty within each person.
Game changer game changer noteasy.
Takes work, takes practicetakes new behaviors takes, but
game changer All right.
The next one is media literacyand those with positive body
(14:53):
image.
They're aware of the media'sinfluence on their body and they
choose to use it in a positiveway, while rejecting these
unrealistic portrayals on socialmedia and really safeguarding
their mental health.
The next characteristic isunconditional acceptance from
others.
All right, so this is something.
(15:13):
This is a characteristic that'ssomewhat out of our control,
depending on your situation, andthat is how you experience
unconditional acceptance aroundyour body from others family,
friends, intimate relationships,peers, coworkers, just people
around you, those who feelvalued for their authentic
(15:34):
qualities really fosters a senseof belonging and acceptance.
So, of course, those who arenot bullied, those who are not
treated poorly or hear poor,horrible things about people
judging their size or castingtheir own beliefs and
insecurities when it comes tobody image onto others, of
(15:57):
course that's gonna reallyimpact.
So we have control and we don'thave control over this.
It really depends on thesituation, but there's
definitely could be wiggle roomwith who you're choosing to be
around, but positiverelationships based on genuine
connections are gonna reallybolster that self-esteem and
resilience against all thesesocietal pressures.
(16:18):
All right, the next one is thosewho have a positive body image
find others with a positive bodyimage, so they are able to keep
up a positive body imagebecause they're surrounding
themselves with individuals whoshare very similar values and
strive for a healthyrelationship with their body,
which then creates a supportiveenvironment.
All right, the next one isspirituality and religion.
(16:40):
For some, spirituality orreligious beliefs provide a
sense of purpose and meaning andit really transcends that
physical appearance and fostersself-acceptance.
All right, and I'm saving thebiggest one I don't know if I
should quantify, but for me andthe work I see needing to be
(17:01):
done to ultimately reallytransform your relationship with
your body, I mean, they're allreally, really important, but
this one is big and that islistening to and taking care of
your body, people with apositive body image and this is
really, really great news foryou all.
It really was really great newsfor me when I was working
(17:25):
through my relationship withfood and body, those with a
positive body image.
They have a positive body imagebecause they listen to and they
take care and respect theirbody.
They do not have disorderedeating, they do not diet, they
do not listen to those things.
They nurture their body withcompassion and respect, and this
(17:46):
is essential for cultivatingpositive body image.
Now, this comes in all forms ofself-care practices, from
physical to emotional well-being, well-being that promotes a
harmonious relationship withyour body.
So, of course, when we, when wecan think of all the ways from
the biggest one in our face,right is going to be food.
(18:06):
Your relationship with food,how you're treating yourself
with food, how are you treatingyourself with exercise?
Are you doing this in apunishing way?
Is your relationship withexercise punishing or is it
nourishing?
Additionally, your relationshipwith your body as far as how
you speak to it, your self-talk,how you're shaming it, how
you're manipulating it and thenit's going to come down to sleep
(18:30):
and how you take care of yourmental health and your
relationships.
Okay, so all there's so much tothis and a big portion of this
is that I find and work with asa dietician, of course is your
relationship with their body,and I see so many, so many
people's relationship with theirbody start to transform when
they start to work through theirrelationship with food and find
(18:52):
a respectful relationship withfood.
Now, if they're only doing thatand they're not navigating all
of these other pieces, it onlybrings them so far.
You have to look at body imageand not just your relationship
with food.
I believe and I have seen sowe'll go ahead and close up with
those characteristics, but Ijust want to say again it's
(19:14):
essential to recognize thatcultivating a positive body
image in these differentcharacteristics is a journey and
it's individual to you and it'simportant to go deep.
It's important to bring yourexperience and it's important to
leave no stone untermed, Allright.
So with that, if it's helpfulto go take that quiz, I highly
(19:37):
recommend it just to see whereyou're at.
Raising awareness for yourselfis key.
We do.
We cannot change what we do notknow.
Learning about ourself, lookinginto that is just going to be
huge for moving forward foryourself.
Now, if you found this helpfuland if you are really ready to
do things differently, give updieting, transform your
(19:59):
relationship with your body,dive into all of these things in
a very big way, get thatsupport.
I want you and I want to inviteyou to DM me the word freedom
on Instagram.
So jmrd underscore on Instagramand DM me the word freedom and
I can send you immediately overa two-day free mini course all
(20:23):
about how to transform yourrelationship with food and body
and finally ditch diets anddisordered eating and get to
ultimate food and body imageconfidence.
So, with that, I want to inviteyou there and also just say
thank you for listening.
I hope you were able to findsome nuggets in here that are
going to help you transform yourrelationship with food and body
to one that you really deserve.
(20:43):
Okay, until next time, staybrave, and I am very proud of
you all, as always.
All right.
So let's dive into the reasonswhy focusing solely on weight
and body size is going toperpetuate all these negative
patterns with food and bodyimage, all right.
The first reason why focusingon it is actually going to bring
us the opposite of what we'relooking for is because what
we're focusing on is unrealistic, unattainable, unsustainable
(00:26):
body image standards.
We know that society promotesthese unrealistic beauty
standards centered aroundthinness, centered around one
body ideal that's promoted andit leads individuals to
consistently strive for theseunrealistic, unattainable and
(00:47):
unsustainable and unhealthy bodyideals, these bodies that we
are not meant to be in Bodydiversity, body shapes.
We are all born to be in adifferent body and there are no
good and bad bodies, there areno right or wrong, and that is
not what's being sold to us.
(01:07):
So we're constantly feelingthis responsibility and pressure
to obtain this quote, unquoteideal body and when that happens
, we are in it for somethingthat's very unrealistic, very
unattainable, very unsustainableand very unhealthy.
Constantly pursuing theseideals are going to constantly
(01:27):
foster these feelings ofinadequacy, dissatisfaction,
negative body image and anegative relationship with food.
So, of course, of course, rightthere this, by focusing on our
weight and size, it's going toperpetuate all these negative
behaviors and all these negativefeelings when it comes to
healing our relationship withbody image.
(01:49):
All right, the next reasonfocusing on body size and shape
is going to keep us so stuck andgoing to bring us a lot of
negative is because of theemotional distress it brings
with trying to attain this idealbody image, with just
constantly focusing on weightand size, because it's just
(02:10):
really going to take a mentaland emotional toll, if it hasn't
already, and that just buildsand builds and builds.
This pressure to conform to thesocietal beauty standards are
going to, for sure, without adoubt, lead to anxiety,
depression, low self-esteem, andthat further exasperates these
negative patterns with food andbody image, where we don't trust
(02:34):
food, we don't know how theheck to eat, we don't trust our
body, we're constantly shamingit.
We're weight cycling, we areputting it through hell with the
diets and distorted eating andturning to body bashing and
diets for coping as well forthis emotional distress which
keeps us in this never endingcycle.
(02:55):
All right, the next reason whya focus on weight and size is
going to keep you stuck isbecause it is going to bring you
to a very unhealthyrelationship with food.
Obsessing overweight and bodysize is for sure going to.
I don't see how it can't get toyour relationship with food and
(03:19):
start affecting yourrelationship with food.
It's gonna distort yourrelationship with food, how you
eat.
It's going to lead todisordered eating behaviors,
including binge eating,emotional eating, restrictive
eating, and this is not onlygoing to negative impact your
relationship with body image,but it's also going to impact
your relationship with yourphysical health and it's going
(03:41):
to perpetuate these feelings ofguilt, shame, self-loathing,
reinforcing all of thesenegative patterns with food and
body image.
So again, if we're focusing, ifyou come to me and you say I
want a healthy relationship withfood that I can trust, now
let's focus on losing weight andlet's focus on body size and
shape Right there.
(04:02):
Those two things do not gotogether and they cannot go
together Because if we'refocusing on size and weight,
that is, we're going to betaking efforts to change size
and weight, which are not thesame thing as working on having
a healthy relationship with foodand eating in a way that is
(04:23):
good for you, that's healthy foryou and promotes your physical
and mental health.
They're not the same thing andso we cannot focus on weight and
size to get a healthyrelationship with food okay, and
that's often something thatreally holds people back and
it's something really importantto assess for yourself and
understand.
(04:44):
All right, and the last reasonI'm going to go over today of
why focusing on size and weightare going to keep you stuck and
create a negative relationshipwith body rather than the
opposite, positive relationshipwith body, is because what
happens when you focus on bodyand body size and weight is that
you will ignore your individualneeds and then, in turn, your
(05:08):
health as well.
Okay, so ignoring individualneeds is what happens when we
focus on weight and body size.
We start to focus on that andthen not focus on our individual
, unique nutritional needs, ourpreferences, our health markers,
our values.
It overlooks the importance ofintuitive eating and listening
(05:29):
to your body, cues and learningfrom your body and being in as a
team with your body.
It leads individuals todisregard internal hunger,
society satiety signals in orderto favor these external dieting
rules and restrictions that arefocusing on obtaining a certain
body ideal.
So these are all focusing.
(05:52):
Ultimately, focusing on bodysize and body weight just does
not equate to and cannot bepartnered with truly looking
forward to find a healthyrelationship with body and food
that's sustainable, respectful,actually promotes your holistic
(06:12):
health and wellbeing and getsyou to a place where you're
confident, you're intuitive,you're respectful, you're
compassionate and you're feelingtrusting and like friends with
your body.
Okay, so those are the reasonswhy, when we focus on weight and
size, it's going to ultimatelykeep us stuck and take us way
(06:34):
further away from bodyconfidence, not to it?
Okay.
But then in turn, if we're notfocusing on body size and body
weight, let's talk about, thenthe research and let's talk
about the research behind whatbrings positive body image.
Why do some people have apositive body image while some
people don't?
Okay, why do two identicalsized people with same weight,
(06:59):
same size, same shape, why canthey ultimately have totally
different relationships withtheir body?
Right?
What does one person have thatthe other person doesn't?
And this is a complicated andcomplex answer, so we're not
going to dive super in depthwith all of them, but I do want
(07:20):
to touch on what the researchsays.
For what does create a positivebody image?
How can we get there?
What do we need to explore?
And before we do, I want toagain reiterate the research.
That research shows.
All the research on body imageshows that body having a
positive body image is notcorrelating with someone's body
(07:45):
size or someone's weight.
It does not say people with theideal quote, unquote body size
that's promoted to us, that thatthin body.
It does not show that they havea more positive relationship
with their body than people inlarger bodies.
That is not shown in theresearch, okay.
So if anything that shows youright there that if you're
(08:09):
trying to pursue a better, morepositive relationship with your
body, it is not going to be inpursuing this thin ideal, okay,
According to the research andyou know, bring your own
experience in it as well Allright.
So research has uncovereduncovered 10 distinct
characteristics of positive bodyimage and why some people have
(08:32):
a healthier relationship withtheir body and can maintain a
healthier relationship withtheir body than others.
And these characteristics, Ihope they really come to you and
serve as a beacon of hope andI'm holding so much hope for you
, but I hope it comes to you toillustrate that healing your
relationship with body is soindeed attainable Okay, although
(08:54):
challenging, it is attainable.
Whereas if we're focusing onbody size and shape and we are
dieting well, we're it's notgoing to be attainable a
positive relationship with ourbody.
However, these 10characteristics that I'm going
to explain to you from theresearch show that it is
attainable, even though it'schallenging.
So let's go ahead and embark onthis journey and explore these
(09:17):
10 characteristics and reflecton how they resonate with your
own experience.
Okay, all right, so the firstcharacteristic of people with a
positive body image is going tobe body appreciation.
Okay, body appreciation, ofcourse, goes.
All of these okay, I'm going topause.
Everything I'm going to namehere has a lot of exploration to
(09:40):
do with each characteristic.
There's a lot to it.
There's a lot of practices,there's a lot of undoing and
redoing and rebuilding andunderstanding and assessment and
trying new behaviors andlearning about what that
category means and startimplementing it.
I just want to name that and Ialso want you to assess, as we
go through these categories whendo you think you fall in each
(10:04):
of these categories, and thenwe'll take it one step further.
I'm going to hopefully remember.
If I don't remember, I'm goingto name it now.
I do have a quiz.
If you go to jmrdcom, there isa quiz where you can go through
all of these differentcharacteristics and see where
you fall and get an overall.
You can get individual bodyimage scores for each category,
(10:26):
but also an overall body imagescore to see where you're at and
see where would be helpful tofocus on when it comes to your
relationship with your body.
And what I love about alsogoing through these
characteristics is that, to namethat, if you're struggling with
five of the 10, but three arereally strong and one you know
(10:51):
is workable and you are you canwork on that characteristic.
Then it just you can overallimprove your relationship with
your body as a whole by workingon the things that you're able
to access and that you feelready for at this moment to help
improve body image overall andthen also open doors to other
(11:13):
characteristics that might seema little bit more scary to look
into.
So anyways, with that caveat,let's get back to body
appreciation.
So body appreciation involvesacknowledging actually
acknowledging and feeling thehealth, features and functions
(11:34):
of your body.
Okay, so people with bodyappreciation that actively show
and practice and feel gratitudeand appreciation of the health,
of what their body can do, ofthe features and functions, of
what their body allows them todo in life, rather than dwelling
on these perceived flaws, havea better relationship with their
(11:54):
body.
And of course, that makes sense, right, if we think of this in
terms of a relationship withsomeone else.
If we're focusing on someone'sflaws rather than the gratitude
of what that relationship brings, it's going to impact our
relationship with that person.
Okay, so there's a lot of powerin this.
This acceptance and cultivationof body appreciation is really
(12:19):
gonna significantly and cansignificantly impact your
relationship with your body in apositive way, and research
supports that.
All right.
The next characteristic is bodyacceptance.
People with a positive bodyimage are shown that they have
body acceptance.
So, despite societal pressures,individuals with a positive
(12:41):
body image feel comfortable intheir bodies, choosing to accept
their body rather than activelytrying to achieve a different
body ideal.
And this acceptance is a very,very powerful tool in
cultivating a self-compassionate, resilient, respectful
(13:03):
relationship with your bodythat's very resilient against
all of the like.
That's very resilient againstnegative body image and negative
body image messaging okay.
The next characteristic thatpeople with positive body image
have is inner positivityinfluencing outer demeanor.
That true confidence radiatesfrom the work that you're doing
(13:26):
within and how you feel withyour relationship with yourself.
Those with positive body imageexude inner confidence and pride
which transcends that physicalappearance and all the pressures
around that as well.
Again, I know I'm quickly goingthrough this.
I hate to do it because there'sso much to explore in each of
(13:47):
them, but we're not gonna do a10 hour podcast episode.
I just wanna introduce this toyou and you can explore it more
in the quiz.
Okay, sorry, took a sip of mycoffee there, all right.
So broadly conceptualizingbeauty is the next item, and I
they're all so big, but this isbig.
This is one of the first thingsI work on with clients, and
(14:10):
that is really to work onunderstanding what and why you
conceptualize beauty the way youdo, in a narrow way, because
people who are able to broadlyconceptualize beauty and they
see beauty in diversity that's ahallmark of positive body image
.
People are able to embrace avariety of weights, shapes and
(14:32):
appearances in others and rejectthese narrow beauty standards
and celebrate the inherentbeauty within each person.
Game changer game changer noteasy.
Takes work, takes practicetakes new behaviors takes, but
game changer All right.
The next one is media literacyand those with positive body
(14:53):
image.
They're aware of the media'sinfluence on their body and they
choose to use it in a positiveway, while rejecting these
unrealistic portrayals on socialmedia and really safeguarding
their mental health.
The next characteristic isunconditional acceptance from
others.
All right, so this is something.
(15:13):
This is a characteristic that'ssomewhat out of our control,
depending on your situation, andthat is how you experience
unconditional acceptance aroundyour body from others family,
friends, intimate relationships,peers, coworkers, just people
around you, those who feelvalued for their authentic
(15:34):
qualities really fosters a senseof belonging and acceptance.
So, of course, those who arenot bullied, those who are not
treated poorly or hear poor,horrible things about people
judging their size or castingtheir own beliefs and
insecurities when it comes tobody image onto others, of
(15:57):
course that's gonna reallyimpact.
So we have control and we don'thave control over this.
It really depends on thesituation, but there's
definitely could be wiggle roomwith who you're choosing to be
around, but positiverelationships based on genuine
connections are gonna reallybolster that self-esteem and
resilience against all thesesocietal pressures.
(16:18):
All right, the next one is thosewho have a positive body image
find others with a positive bodyimage, so they are able to keep
up a positive body imagebecause they're surrounding
themselves with individuals whoshare very similar values and
strive for a healthyrelationship with their body,
which then creates a supportiveenvironment.
All right, the next one isspirituality and religion.
(16:40):
For some, spirituality orreligious beliefs provide a
sense of purpose and meaning andit really transcends that
physical appearance and fostersself-acceptance.
All right, and I'm saving thebiggest one I don't know if I
should quantify, but for me andthe work I see needing to be
(17:01):
done to ultimately reallytransform your relationship with
your body, I mean, they're allreally, really important, but
this one is big and that islistening to and taking care of
your body, people with apositive body image and this is
really, really great news foryou all.
It really was really great newsfor me when I was working
(17:25):
through my relationship withfood and body, those with a
positive body image.
They have a positive body imagebecause they listen to and they
take care and respect theirbody.
They do not have disorderedeating, they do not diet, they
do not listen to those things.
They nurture their body withcompassion and respect, and this
(17:46):
is essential for cultivatingpositive body image.
Now, this comes in all forms ofself-care practices, from
physical to emotional well-being, well-being that promotes a
harmonious relationship withyour body.
So, of course, when we, when wecan think of all the ways from
the biggest one in our face,right is going to be food.
(18:06):
Your relationship with food,how you're treating yourself
with food, how are you treatingyourself with exercise?
Are you doing this in apunishing way?
Is your relationship withexercise punishing or is it
nourishing?
Additionally, your relationshipwith your body as far as how
you speak to it, your self-talk,how you're shaming it, how
you're manipulating it and thenit's going to come down to sleep
(18:30):
and how you take care of yourmental health and your
relationships.
Okay, so all there's so much tothis and a big portion of this
is that I find and work with asa dietician, of course is your
relationship with their body,and I see so many, so many
people's relationship with theirbody start to transform when
they start to work through theirrelationship with food and find
(18:52):
a respectful relationship withfood.
Now, if they're only doing thatand they're not navigating all
of these other pieces, it onlybrings them so far.
You have to look at body imageand not just your relationship
with food.
I believe and I have seen sowe'll go ahead and close up with
those characteristics, but Ijust want to say again it's
(19:14):
essential to recognize thatcultivating a positive body
image in these differentcharacteristics is a journey and
it's individual to you and it'simportant to go deep.
It's important to bring yourexperience and it's important to
leave no stone untermed, Allright.
So with that, if it's helpfulto go take that quiz, I highly
(19:37):
recommend it just to see whereyou're at.
Raising awareness for yourselfis key.
We do.
We cannot change what we do notknow.
Learning about ourself, lookinginto that is just going to be
huge for moving forward foryourself.
Now, if you found this helpfuland if you are really ready to
do things differently, give updieting, transform your
(19:59):
relationship with your body,dive into all of these things in
a very big way, get thatsupport.
I want you and I want to inviteyou to DM me the word freedom
on Instagram.
So jmrd underscore on Instagramand DM me the word freedom and
I can send you immediately overa two-day free mini course all
(20:23):
about how to transform yourrelationship with food and body
and finally ditch diets anddisordered eating and get to
ultimate food and body imageconfidence.
So, with that, I want to inviteyou there and also just say
thank you for listening.
I hope you were able to findsome nuggets in here that are
going to help you transform yourrelationship with food and body
to one that you really deserve.
(20:43):
Okay, until next time, staybrave, and I am very proud of
you all, as always.
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