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My best body image days.

Rewind 5 years and my best body image days were the ones I felt the skinniest.  For years I would say my best body image days were just that.  If I felt thin, that was good.  I was good.  But these days, things are different.

my best body image days | immaEATthat.com

These days my best body image days are the ones where I…
wake up
eat breakfast
go to work
eat lunch & snacks
do work
maybe move my body in some way if there is time
eat dinner
do something for selfcare – time with Andrew, evening walk, painting, journaling, Netflix
have a snack
shower
get in bed
fall asleep
…and not once think about the size of my body.

I really do feel like I have rewired my brain in terms of body image.  It’s taken me a while to accept where my body has ended up (and there are days it’s still hard…society is a bitch with it’s expectations for bodies.  The goal is to be healthy, not to conform to society.).  But I have learned that having fat on my body does not mean I am overeating.  Having some level of fat on my body means I’m taking care of myself.  

I do still have bad body image days.  They are far less frequent than they used to be (I mean, they used to be every single day of my life).  But I now recognize that on these days there is something going on inside that I don’t know how to process at the moment and an easy way for me to deal with it is to pretend the problem is with my body’s size.  On those days, I take time to ask myself, “what do you need?”  

I feel like bullies are bullies because they have some internal struggle that they can’t process, so they pick on others as a way to cope.  I was a bully to my body for years, but now I know if I’m beating up on my body, there is something going on inside that I need to take time to connect with and process.

One of my favorite sayings is: I didn’t come this far to only come this far.  I will continue taking care of my body and being kind to it.  I hope you will do the same for your body :)

Other posts on this: 

How to be okay gaining weight

The positive affirmations that helped me most

my best body image days | immaEATthat.com

16 comments

  1. After years of anorexia, I finally don’t think about my body everyday.  As you said, there are still days that I struggle with it but my body never ruins my day like it used to.  My best body image days are actually while I’m pregnant.  I’m hoping that once this pregancy is over, I can remember that there is so much more to me than what my body looks like.  Our family will soon be complete and I won’t be pregnant again, but I hope I can always feel as comfortable as I do when I’m growing a baby!  

    “I didn’t come this far to only come this far” really resonated with me!

  2. Self care is huge!! Also I love to remind myself of the times I feel really good in my body that have nothing to do with the scale, like you mentioned. I love crushing a Workout.. I love climbing the stairs at work.. I love the muscles in my shoulders and quads!

    Great message, thanks!

  3. I adore that first photo – you look amazing, and your happiness is what stands out most. It is infectious and something I have grown to realize is one of the best attributes a person can have. If we can give others happiness, then we are giving something wonderful. This is far more important than being “perfect” for society. You rock for spreading this message and empowering others (such as myself) to fully embrace it and share it as well.

  4. “I didn’t come this far to only come this far. I will continue taking care of my body and being kind to it.”

    LOVE THIS! Thanks for sharing!

  5. Thank you so much for this post and your blog. I’ve been struggling a lot with my self image lately.

  6. I love this post so much, I’m on the slow road to recovery from what many refer to as orthorexia. I still find myself on the scales too often and celebrating the days I look thinner, but I’m also finding myself immersed in good food and eating without as much worry. Thank you so much for sharing.

  7. ?????? as always! Thank you!

  8. “But I now recognize that on these days there is something going on inside that I don’t know how to process at the moment and an easy way for me to deal with it is to pretend the problem is with my body’s size. On those days, I take time to ask myself, “what do you need?””
    Thank you Kylie. Thank you. I am a dietitian who is new to the body positivity/HAES/intuitive eating movement and I love your way of explaining how to connect with your body, and how to love it no matter what size it is. Thank you for your wise words this morning. I needed them today. We so often use body bashing (or restricting, over-exercising, or bingeing) as a way to hide our true feelings from ourselves and not deal with what is actually going on. Thank you for putting it so eloquently.

  9. Totally. The less I focus on my body, the more content I am. Putting pressure on myself to look a certain way or feel a certain way never works. I have much better luck just focusing on other things.

  10. Such an important post for me to read. I’ve found that living by myself allows me to focus MORE on my body, which I hate, but I’m doing my best to combat it. Like Kate said, the less I focus on my body, the more content I am. It’s hard when I’m feeling bloated or something, but I know that “this too shall pass” and everything will be okay. :) The size of my heart is more important than the size of my pants!

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  14. I totally agree with this! The less you think and worry about your body the better. I am in recovery from anorexia and currently trying to gain weight, so right now ignoring the mirror and doing things that help distract me from my thinking about my body are really key. Thanks for this post!

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