Our culture is swimming with the message that certain bodies are not okay. That, if you don't look a certain way (usually a completely unrealistic standard), then you need to change yourself, often by dieting.
The process of letting go of diets and the unrealistic idea that we should all have the same body type usually opens the door to acceptance of your body. Some people hear body acceptance as indifference toward your body or giving up on being healthy. That's not what body acceptance is. Body acceptance is acknowledging that not everyone looks the same and taking care of yourself as you are rather than striving to be or look like someone else.
I also don't think body acceptance means loving your body. That can seem like a tall order and you may never get to that place. But, body acceptance does mean choosing to take care of your body as it is instead of punishing it. Your body deserves care, just as you would care for a plant or a pet or someone close to you.
You are so much more than a number on the scale or your pant size or what you just ate. Do you value your friends and family because they run fast or lift a lot of weight at the gym or weigh a certain amount? Or do you value them because of who they are as a person? Why would you value yourself any differently?
Some practical ways you might move toward body acceptance are to ditch your scale, revamp your social media feed with more positive messages, buy clothes that fit (there's nothing like a poorly fitting pair of pants to constantly remind you all day that you don't accept your body at its current size; you deserve comfortable, well-fitting clothes), take time to appreciate all that your body does for you, and do the basic things like get enough sleep and feed yourself satisfying, nourishing food.
What is something you could start doing to take care of your body where it is?
