"Defeat doesn't finish a man--quit does. A man is not finished when he'sdefeated. He's finished when he quits." - Richard M. Nixon -
Body image can be described as the mental picture you have of yourself…
Hey Friend,
Now, as the saying goes:
"I’ve got good news and then I’ve got not so good news."
The good news first...thanks, I appreciate the quality of your feedback and the questions you've been asking are spot on, so keep up the good work and I highly encourage you to post your comments after reading each lesson.
It just goes to show you're smart and wise with your time, you value good information and the opportunity to increase knowledge...find out more about your personal development.
I have to admit too, I can't get enough, it's a very fascinating and addictive subject, well worth diving deeper.
(And it sure pays to be a member of this newsletter)...wouldn't you agree!
How do you see and feel about your body image, size and shape?
Today I want to share with you what I’ve found are both good and not so good influential factors in body image and self-esteem and how this affects what you eat.
For starters, body image, self-esteem and food behavior plays an important role in young people's development…
And these days the push for the ideal body image for girls is to be slim, while for boys it’s to be lean, strong and muscular.
Many young people feel immense pressure to fit these body stereotypes and dieting, bodybuilding and abnormal eating patterns are common amongst young people today.
What’s of major importance is the impact this is having in particular the extremes some young people will go to achieve the ideal body image.
For example:
I was talking with an attractive young lady, her name is Jennifer Francine, and she told me as far back as she could remember, food has served as her security blanket.
Whenever she felt hurt, depressed, lonely, or stressed out about her body image, she'd use food to temporarily block out the negative emotion and anxiety, but over the years, the pounds kept piling on which made her feel worse about herself.
I asked Jennifer if she wanted to take control of her life, and said you know it is going to take much more than a quick-fix diet to solve your problem permanently.
Jennifer kind of looked sideways at me and smiled, so we got together and I showed her a better way to deal with her emotions in relation to food and within 2-3 weeks Jennifer said:
"I actually began noticing dramatic changes in my attutude, I felt totally relieved to finally be able to stop stuffing myself, even having a good laugh about feeling comfortable in eating smaller portions, and I'm actually in control of what I put in my mouth for a change."
"I noticed that I began feeling comfortably full and it was so easy leaving food on my plate on a regular basis and I was eating much smaller portions. Needless to say, the pounds are coming off quickly and it didn't involve a lot of effort on my part."
The not so good news...
Emotional eating isn't confined or an isolated case, I’ve spoken to many people and researched this subject for quite some time now and have found some very disturbing and alarming trends.It's shameful and irresponsible, there are websites out there actually supporting and promoting the virtues of severe dieting and eating disorders like anorexia and the use of steroids.
Body image can be described as the mental picture you’ve of your own body and how you feeling about the size and shape of your own body.
The way young people perceive their body can be influenced by feedback from others including peer groups, modeling, socio-cultural values, education about the body and the media.
Talk to young normal females and you’d be shocked to find very few are happy with their body shape, and will try to lose weight, even if they are already a healthy weight.
On the other side of the fence, younger males usually have a desire for muscles and height, and will go to the gym to bulk up and try protein supplements or even steroids.
Self-esteem can be described as one's feelings of high or low self-worth.
Self-esteem is linked to how comfortable you feel about your body shape.
Natural body shape is largely determined by genetics, and although it is hard to change your body type with exercise and healthy eating patterns, it is possible to re-shape it slightly.
Three main body shapes have been identified:
1. Endomorphs usually tend to have rounder body types, with more body fat and softer curves.
2. Ectomorph predominately are slim, less curvy, a little more angular.
3. Mesomorphs are muscular, with broad or wide shoulders and slim hips.
Suggestions on how to improve body image and self-esteem:
- Treat your mind, body with respect and love
- Make a list of your assets, talents and contributions.
- Relax and enjoy the unique characteristics you have to offer.
- Make friends with the person you see in the mirror.
- Learn to appreciate the many different sizes and shapes that human beings naturally come in.
- See that there is beauty and strength in all bodies.
- Wear clothes you enjoy and feel comfortable in.
- Go through your wardrobe and give away everything that doesn't fit.
- Appreciate what your body does for you, thank your legs for carrying you around and your arms for being able to embrace someone.
- Experience the joy of moving your body freely.
- Find physical activities you love doing, for example, dancing, gardening, walking or sports.
- Acknowledge your emotional needs and your right to have these met.
- Challenge negative comments about your body.
- Be critical of messages that say tell you that to be happy and successful, women need to be thin and men need to be muscular.
- Stand tall: watch your posture.
- Prepare assertive responses to negative comments from others.
- Pick something you've been putting off until you are 'perfect' and do it now!
- Be patient. Healing your relationship with your body takes time.
Don't forget that you are a unique individual.
Go with your gut, trust your instincts and focus on what's most important to you.
Move in the direction you feel will drive the right kind of reward and results you want.
Never make a decision that can lead to compromising your own authority, and values because the choice is always in your hands.
Take a chance and go with your heart but test it with your mind...and if you look closely and think hard enough, you'll realize...what's stopping you?
Unfortunately not many people realize, or are even aware of the existence of these secret methods which I'll be revealing in my next exciting episode.
Look out for it. It's going to be wildly fun for you.
Thanks for your valuable time and support...talk soon!
By the way, if you'd like more info on eating healthy and taking control of your weight problems, check out this recent article over at Living It Up In Fat Loss Utopia: Click here to check it out http://livingitupinfatlossutopia.blogspot.com/
Confidence self esteem
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