Disclaimer: Everything that is written in the test and the challenge is based on my own experience, no matter the test result please take it with a light heart.
Body Image is not only how we look at our bodies, but also how we act towards it - our emotions, perceptions, actions are major factors when it comes to our health and just overall well-being. If you have a strong negative perception of your body, you are going to act negatively towards it and the result will affect your mental and physical health. There are some serious illnesses linked to having a negative body image that everyone should be aware of. When it comes to positive body image it’s a different story. Take the test and see if you have a negative or positive body image, or if you are on the journey towards positive body image.
If you are interested in improving your body image and work on your confidence I recommend you to try out the 7-Day Positive Body Image Challenge. Everything that is included in this challenge is based on my personal experience that helped me to become more confident in myself and my body.
7-Day Positivity Challenge.
Goal: To start your journey towards a positive body image and to bring more positivity into your life.
Day 1 - Get to the root of the problem.
Stand in front of the mirror and deeply look at yourself. Ask yourself:
What are the things I am insecure about in terms of my body and appearance?
Where do these insecurities come from? Do I feel insecure about myself because someone says negative comments about my body or is it because of what I have seen on social media?
Write it all down! By finding the reason behind your insecurities you are already stepping ahead to resolve them.
After that, write every positive aspect of yourself:
What do you personally like about yourself? (your appearance and personality);
What are the positive things you have done to yourself/others?
When you have written it all down, start focusing on the positive things you have done and take action towards resolving the negatives.
Day 2 - Start your day with a positive affirmation and stick to it.
Start your day with ‘’Today I am going to be confident in myself and my actions’’. Adapt this persona as if this whole day would be a movie that you have to be a part of. If you truly do that you will be surprised how much it can affect your day and the way how you feel.
By being able to act like a confident person it will only prove to you how capable you actually are and the plot twist of it is that the confidence is already in you.
This task is inspired by one of Kalyn Nicholson’s podcasts, unfortunately, I don't remember which one, because I listened to it a long time ago, but here is the link to all her podcasts https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/coffee-talk-2.
Use this as a way to get out of your comfort zone and do something you have always wanted to do or try, but you haven’t felt confident enough to go for it. Don’t overthink, just start it.
Day 3 - Wear something you have always wanted to wear or try.
Wear something you've always wanted to wear, but you haven’t because you have been scared of being judged. I think it’s so easy to be influenced by other people’s opinions speaking of choosing what to wear. We tend to ask ‘’How does it look like’’ to those around us whenever we buy something new or when we just improvise with the clothes we already had in our closet. There is nothing majorly wrong with that, but why do we feel like we have to receive some kind of approval from someone else rather than from ourselves. Well not anymore. If you like clothes and you feel comfortable in them - wear them, simple as that.
Or wear your favorite clothing, yes even if you are staying at home (which is very important that we all do at this time of crisis).
Day 4 - Give compliments to yourself and those around you.
Raise positive vibrations by giving compliments to yourself and your loved ones or even to strangers on social media.
Day 5 - Make your social media platform consist of positive content.
To see more content of people that promote positive lifestyles and positive body image you have to let the algorithm know by:
Unfollowing people/brands that promote beauty standards,
Looking for positive body image advocates/pages in that way you will let Instagram know that you are interested in that kind of content, so they will show you content based on that on your explore page.
Day 6 - Talk to yourself only positively.
Give yourself some credit for the things you are doing, even an activity like getting up instead of lying all day in bed is a success. Even if you are laying all day in bed because you feel very tired or you are going through some stuff, give yourself some positive self-talk too, instead of criticism.
If at any moment you get a negative thought about yourself or your body, immediately change it to positive thoughts and say positive things about yourself.
Day 7 - Reflect and implement what worked for you in your daily life.
On the final day, reflect on the previous days and decide what worked for you best and what didn’t. Be honest with yourself, if just one thing made you feel better and more positive then my recommendation for you is to implement it into your life.
I hope this challenge was helpful and made some positive improvements speaking of your body image and mindset.
Please, Use the hashtag #positivitychallenge💛, if you have joined the challenge and let me know how it went.
