I used to cringe at the phrase ‘Love Your Body’.

Every anti-narcissism bone in my body reacted to this as a statement I thought of as ego-based and overtly focused on appearance.

But I’ve been thinking about what it might mean to really love your body and I’ve changed my mind. Love after all, is about care. It’s about kindness, respect, and a deep affection and appreciation.

Love is not about seeking perfection, nor is it about surface level impressions of appearance. When we really love someone we value who they are – on the inside.

So I’ve changed my mind and I’m now the first to encourage you to LOVE YOUR BODY. Love it, nurture it, respect it, be kind to it, be grateful for it, celebrate it’s strengths, and befriend it… every teensy little bit of it.

I read this phrase recently (I cant remember where so apologies to the author) which really got me thinking about this idea of loving your body:

“Exercise because you love your body, not because you don’t”.

Imagine that!

Imagine if we made decisions about our body out of love. Not out of dissatisfaction, despair, defeat, or even at worst self-hatred.

Imagine if we exercised out of a deep sense of appreciation and care for our body, if we made food choices based on an intention to nourish our body, because we love it! If we spoke to ourselves in our own minds the way we might speak to a friend about their body.

Imagine if we woke every morning with an intention to treat our body well, and we went to sleep each night in gratitude for the strengths, abilities, and wonders of our body.

So lets try it, lets give it a go. Get out there and love your body.