Women & Body Image | Motivation & Taking Control

Women & their body image often stems from a lack of body confidence & a struggle to find the motivation to change. Female body image is a minefield, one I have written about before… but this isn’t about the media, or the portrayal of perfect bodies. This is about YOU!

I hear from women who don’t like the way their body looks & feels, especially after having babies. Losing baby weight or pregnancy weight is why many women start, but actually it’s about more than just the tummy. They often find a lot more than their waistline along the way – the joy & empowerment of feeling strong & fit, renewed energy, sexual confidence & above all BODY CONFIDENCE. They learn to like their body a little bit more, & in turn they want to look after it better.

For many women, it’s not just about body image since pregnancy. Often it turns out they never liked their body very much. And the vicious circle when you don’t like something very much is that you have very little respect for it, probably no love for it & therefore… why take care of it? It’s ‘fat & ugly’, it doesn’t look good & it doesn’t make them feel good.  It doesn’t deserve healthy food or exercise to make it strong & fit. That’s for other people – skinny, ‘lucky’ people who have bodies that warrant looking after…

These same women “laugh” at themselves a lot. I use inverted commas because they don’t find it very funny really, but if they make cruel comments about themselves, then at least they said it first, right? 

You don’t have to do anything about it if you’re happy, & no woman should EVER judge another for wanting to change her body shape, or for not wanting to. If you’re happy & contented & satisfied & healthy then by all means stay as you are.

But if you’re NOT happy or contented – if you don’t like having your photo taken, you don’t feel sexually confident, you’re stressed & you’re eating crappy food that makes your body look & feel worse… then maybe its time to make a choice.

So, if this is how YOU feel, then maybe ask yourself : Do I really want to change this? Do I WANT to feel different?

If the answer is yes then the next vital step is to look at yourself in the mirror, look yourself in the eyes & decide that you deserve to feel different, & that you can take some control.

No one else controls what food goes into your body. No one else controls the choices you make.

Say it to yourself, & keep saying it, very morning, every hour, every time you can choose (& you can ALWAYS choose) to eat another biscuit or not. To walk faster, further, brisker & to make your heart work & your legs do what they were made to do… or to shuffle along, head down, hoping no one notices you.

There’s only one way to start. And that is just to start. TODAY, don’t eat crap food. Go for a walk, but walk twice as fast, stand up twice as tall, & go up twice as many hills as you usually do.  And that’s it! you’ve started!!

And you’ve done it TODAY. Not *tomorrow*, not after the holidays, or when your little one starts pre-school, or when it’s sunnier or when you’ve got more time (btw, you will never ‘have more time’ you can only choose how to spend it!).

Share you tips, your frustrations or your obstacles by leaving a comment below! If I can help I will & if you want to just rant or share or vent that’s fine too