Something to think about...

I think all girls and women should see this video. We can't all look the same and fit into the perfect mold that magazines, actresses, and advertisements lead us to believe. It's nice to see people like J-Lo and Beyonce who are beautiful and not stick thin, and I loved it when Kelly Clarkson let everyone know that Shape had retouched her magazine cover. (That's a whole other post b/c Shape should be promoting healthy body image NOT cropping and editing her bottom.) We need to stop chasing after an idealistic perfect body/image/look/appearance that not even models these days can uphold.

Hollywood's Thin Obsession

The new 90210 is in the public eye for showing too much bone. What's new in Hollywood? I hate how beauty in today's society is perceived as being a stick figure and having absolutely zero percent body fat. Not only does this make people feel they have to strive to reach an unrealistic goal, but it puts extra pressure on those behind the camera. I heard just the other day on TV that people on the set are saying the magazine is just rumors and that the girls eat like horses. They just have super fast metabolisms. If this is true it makes me mad that the producers or whoever is in charge of hiring picked such thin girls for the show. What's wrong with showing a more realistic image of what teenagers really look like and not putting extra pressure on the females in society? I say stop trying to be something your not and what's wrong with a little curves and junk food now and then. Stop the weight obsessed frenzy of forcing your natural body type into a size zero. Not everyone was born to be that small naturally and I'm getting tired of seeing it in all of the magazines, on TV, and in movies.

Do you have a healthy body image?

I was at the pool today and I overheard two young girls (like 9 years old) talking about how fat their thighs were and how they need to lose weight. These girls were miniature and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I think as women we are attacked daily about not feeling pretty, thin, and/or young enough. Satan has really figured something out by getting us down about our body and self esteem he can keep us from building up the kingdom and serving others. Poor body images are starting younger and younger. There has to be something we can do. Hopefully this post will give everyone a few insights on their body image and ways to make it a better.

With a positive or healthy body image, a woman has a real perception of her size and shape, and she feels comfortable with her body. With a negative body image, a woman has a distorted perception of her shape and size, compares her body to others, and feels shame and anxiety about her body. Being unhappy with your body can affect how you think and feel about yourself as a person. A poor body image can also lead to emotional distress, low self-esteem, dieting, anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. Developing a positive body image and a healthy mental attitude is crucial to a woman's happiness.

If you think you have a negative body image you are not alone. Women in the U.S. are under pressure to measure up to a certain ideal of beauty, which can lead to poor body image. Women are constantly bombarded with perfect celebrities in movies, models on magazines, people on TV, the super slim coworker who looks amazing, etc. By presenting an ideal that is so difficult to achieve and maintain, the cosmetic and diet product industries are assured growth and profits.

We all want to look our best, but a healthy body is not always linked to appearance. In fact, healthy bodies come in all shapes and sizes! Changing your body image means changing the way you think about your body. At the same time, healthy lifestyle choices are also key to improving body image. Make lifestyle changes: eat right, exercise, sleep 8 hours, and just take care of yourself. If you do these things you're naturally going to feel better about yourself. Along with making lifestyle changes, try not to obsess about what size pants you're wearing or what number the scale reads. If you need to lose weight to be healthy and get back to your natural weight that's one thing, but if your trying to force your 150 pound frame to be 20 pounds lighter you are never going to be happy.

It's definitely a process to change one's body image. Keep working at it and take it a day at a time. Hopefully if we all keep working together and encourage our sisters, friends, daughters, etc. we can change so many people's negative body image mindset to a more positive one.