Love Your Body Challenge – Day 11 9

Posted In Body Image

(Psssst! If you’re “late” to the challenge and just getting started, that’s OK too! Just go at your own pace! Start with this blog post and scroll to the bottom, and make sure you have what you need to complete the challenge and fill out the 10 questions you need to fill out before you get started. Then you can take it day by day at your own pace!)

Recap

Yesterday was Day 10 of the Love Your Body Challenge, and the reason to love your body was,

“Because you are (or should be) unapologetically strong.”

There was one transformation story in particular that really touched me:

“I‘ll admit that I am a bit surprised how this challenge has already changed me, since Day 1.

I went to a baby shower this weekend and was already faced with a compliment that normally causes my awkward to go into overdrive. Normally when someone notices my weight loss, I blush and blurt out something about how these skinny jeans must be doing their job, or how I still have a long way to go.

Not this time!

Someone said to me “Girl, you’ve lost weight! You look good!”

I smiled proudly and said “Thank you! I FEEL great. I’ve added rowing to my routine and I’m loving it.”

This led to a genuine conversation about what we’ve been trying that has us feeling good and strong. Another thing I noticed was my inner response to the improvements she has made since I last saw her…

I was honestly happy for her, not secretly jealous. I know that it is because I am finding new strength and pride and self-love each day. The more I’m loving myself, the more I’m loving others and my world around me. Something has clicked, and I’m not going to apologize for feeling fantastic about it.”

Wow! Big changes in this woman’s life are not only affecting her, but rippling and affecting those around her. So cool.

So let’s go! Onto Day 11.

Reason #11 To Love Your Body

11. Because it deserves it.

Have you ever thought of that? Loving your body simply because it deserves it? Because YOU deserve it? Because you’re worth it?

I was thinking about this recently when I was staying with a friend of a friend (who is now my friend!) and I was holding her sweet baby girl, Lily. Lily is 14 months old and as precious as she can be. She’s happy, sweet, lively, funny, and active.

Lily deserves love.

Sweet Ella

My sweet niece Ella is almost 5 years old, and she is funny, adorable, sweet, and precocious (not precious, although she is that — precocious. She was using the words tibia and fibula properly at 23 months).

Ella deserves love.

You. You are kind, strong, worthy, and smart. You are a daughter, sister, mother, friend, niece, spouse, lover, girlfriend, boss, employee, neighbor, and caretaker.

You deserve love. And so does your body.

Can you imagine looking into the eyes of a precious little girl and telling her that she’s not good enough? Or that she’s not pretty enough? Or that she’s fat?

I would hope not.

So at what point does it become OK to say these things to ourselves? At what age do we stop telling girls that they are wonderful and pretty and perfect and smart and that they can do anything they set their minds to?

We should never stop.

We should love our bodies because our bodies deserve love.

Mantra: “My body is worthy and beautiful and it deserves love.”

Repeat this (to yourself or out loud) 10 times right now, 10 times during your action step, and 10 times before bed.

Action step: Take 5 minutes and write down why your body deserves love (I hope the “reasons” from the last 10 days pop up in there somewhere!) Yes, these action steps and lists might be seeming a bit redundant, but that’s OK. We *must* be consistently reminded of why we are so wonderful if we are going to ingrain this idea not only into our heads, but our hearts.

First and foremost, you deserve love simply for being yourself. But you also deserve it for being loving, caring, strong, unique, a wonderful mother/teacher/business owner/nurse/provider, and so much more. Give yourself ALL of the credit you deserve in this moment.

Checklist:

1. Make sure you’ve signed up for my newsletter so you can get links to the new challenge every morning!
2. Make sure you’ve filled out the 10 questions at the bottom of this page (DO THIS BEFORE DAY 1) so you have your “starting point.”
3. Say your mantra 10 times immediately, during your action step, and before bed.
4. Complete your action step.
5. Check in with your accountability partner if you have one.
6. Check back tomorrow for more.

OH! 3 more things —

1. PLEASE post about what you’re doing on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtags #LoveYourBodyChallenge or #LYBC. This will allow you to connect with others doing the challenge, offer support and encouragement, and get ideas for your mantras and action steps.

2. PLEASE comment below and let us know what your mantra and your action steps are each day. Again, this helps build support and community as well as offers ideas to those who might need them.

3. If you’re so inclined, feel free to send me pictures of your amazingly beautiful selves and I’ll post them in my Facebook album. It’s essentially an album of pictures similar to what my fitness professional friends and I did on Day 1. It’s a picture that you might normally not want to post, but you post it anyway along with a short blurb about your journey. You can see the album here, and you can send pictures and your blurb to: 28DayLoveYourBodyChallenge@gmail.com It’s such a supportive community of women (and men) over there. It’s awesome!

That’s all for now.

See you tomorrow!

FIND DAY 10 HERE