BUILDING A BETTER RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR BODY
Learning to appreciate your body for more than what it looks like
BUILDING A BETTER RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR BODY
Learning to appreciate your body for more than what it looks like
Co-author: Julianne Béliveau, doctoral student in psychology, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières
Have you ever felt pressure to be thinner or more muscular? Do you ever compare yourself to beauty standards and doubt your own worth? If your answer to these questions is yes, you’re not alone: 54% of teenagers in Quebec feel that their physical appearance has an impact on their self-esteem.1
Adolescence can be a particularly difficult time for body image (your perception of your own body). During this time, your body is going through all kinds of changes and you may feel different or even inadequate in comparison to other people (especially idealized bodies you see on social media). All this emphasis on physical appearance can quickly become frustrating, discouraging, and intrusive. So why not change your focus? After all, the human body is more than just an object to be admired—it’s an amazing machine!
Here are a few tips and tricks to help you appreciate your body’s unique strengths and everything it allows you to do on a daily basis (beyond its appearance).
👀Below, you’ll find a downloadable graphic to help you practise gratitude towards your body through a series of positive affirmations!
Where do beauty standards come from?
The human body has been the subject of ever-changing beauty standards since long before the invention of social media or fashion magazines. Throughout history, society has considered a wide range of body shapes as indicators of beauty, health, and success.
👉 During the Renaissance, women with generous curves were seen as more fertile, healthy, and rich, while the 1980s and 1990s were marked by a strong preference for slimness and the “supermodel” body type.2 Not only have beauty standards changed over time, but they also vary from culture to culture. For instance, many African countries consider a larger body to be the ideal of beauty and health, while in North America, the opposite is true.
There is no single universal beauty standard. The “ideal body” changes based on a number of factors, like the time period, fashion, and culture.
Remember that your body doesn’t know or care about external beauty standards. It’s a finely-tuned biological machine designed to keep you alive and healthy. All your body wants is for you to listen to it and meet its needs so that it can give you the support you need every day. 💪
Learning to appreciate what your body allows you to do
💭 Think of a time when you felt proud of what your body allowed you to do.
.. Did you think of something related to your appearance or your body’s physical capabilities?
Body appreciation is all about respecting and celebrating your body’s physical capabilities, which is to say everything your body allows you to do and feel, rather than just what it looks like. For example, your body allows you to breathe, laugh, move, explore, create, eat, enjoy time with friends and family, feel emotions, interact with the world in an infinite number of ways, and so on.
Appreciating your body means seeing it as a machine that’s constantly in motion, rather than a work of art that needs constant refining. Think of it like a car. Cars need gas and mechanical maintenance to keep running smoothly and get you to your destination. Your body is much the same!
Appreciating your body can take many forms, such as:
- Eating foods that give your body the energy it needs to perform at your hockey game
- Saying to yourself, “Wow, I’m so lucky to be healthy!”
- Wearing comfortable, well-fitted clothes because you respect your body (👋 Say goodbye to tight jeans that irritate you all day or leave marks on your stomach)
- Surrounding yourself with friends who accept you and make you feel good about your body
👉 At the same time, remember that it’s possible to both appreciate what your body allows you to do AND be dissatisfied with certain aspects of your physical appearance.3 For example:
- You can think that your arms are too soft AND be grateful that they allow you to hug your loved ones.
- You can wish you had a six pack like your favourite Instagram influencer AND listen to your body’s hunger signals and give it the fuel it needs when it needs it.
Positive affirmations to remind me to appreciate my body and everything it can do
It’s normal not to be completely satisfied with your body’s physical appearance. External beauty standards are constantly evolving and often unattainable! But remember, your body is your friend, not your enemy! It wants what’s best for you, and it needs you to take care of it in return. 💙
🤸♂️ This downloadable sheet of positive affirmations will help you practise expressing gratitude towards your body for everything it does for you. You can save it on your phone or print it out and keep it in your bedroom.
Download sheetAdditional resources
Accepting your body despite external pressure
Tips to help you develop a positive and expanded vision of the body and the notion of beauty.
Watch video
Teen toolkit
All our body image tools: podcasts, articles, fact sheets, videos, and more.
Learn more
Help line, chat, and resources
ANEB is a community organization whose goal is to help you – be it for you, a friend, or a member of your family. They support those who suffer from an eating disorder and their loved ones. ANEB is there, whether to answer your questions, to listen to you or to give you advice!
Learn moreNeed to talk about what you're going through?
Talk to a Tel-Jeunes worker: it’s anonymous, free, and available 24/7
Sources
1 Léger for ÉquiLibre. (2023) Préoccupations envers le poids, l’alimentation et la pratique d’activité physique. Survey of 1,803 Quebecers aged 14 and over conducted from October 2 to 11, 2023.
2 Beaudry, Ariane (2019, June 2). “Les standards de beauté féminine, d’une époque à l’autre“. Bien avec mon corps.
3 Tylka, T. L., and N.L. Wood-Barcalow (2015). “What is and what is not positive body image? Conceptual foundations and construct definition”. Body image, vol. 14, pp. 118–129.