Body Image & Positive Self Talk

A year and a half ago when I started my weight loss journey there was nothing I could find positive about my body. Positive self talk was non-existent and my relationship with food was as far as you can get from healthy. Waking up went like this….

Work Day: Ew, I look terrible today… at least i’m working at the hospital and we get to wear scrub so no one can see what I really look like.

Non work day: Ugh what should I wear today?! Tries on 10 different cute outfits and hates them all. Throws on the oversized black shirt with black jeans and a sweater.

Needless to say winter was my favorite time of year, as I could cover up anything I was uncomfortable with and socially get away with wearing all black. Summertime is when the real panic set it. Going to the lake, the pool or anything that involved the water and a bathing suit was the last thing I needed for a confidence booster. It’s not a secret than my husband and I hangout with a lot of really fit people. You’d find me there, in a bathing suit hating everything about it. I managed to suck in my stomach, cover it with my arms but trying to not make my arms look fat while doing that, keep my shorts on to try and not show too much of my legs all while trying to have fun. Shocker, I did not have fun at all. I wasn’t living. I was letting all the negative thoughts I had about my body take over whatever situation I was in. What’s the point of even going anywhere if your going to try and hide yourself the whole time.

When I started my journey, I had to start with that positive self talk. If I continued to see myself that way, and continue to hide myself i was completely defeating the purpose. What a lot of people don’t realize is no matter how healthy, fit or great you end up looking, you will never actually be happy. I have talked to people who have bodies I would kill for and listen to their insecurities about how they don’t like this or wish they could look like that. EVERYONE has body image issues. You have to learn how to utilize positive self talk to help tone those negative thoughts down (though they will still exist), and that is where the real transformation will happen.

Action steps:

1. Develop a plan to get your nutrition, lifestyle and habits in check
2. While you are working on that, LOVE YOURSELF
3. Wake up and list one thing you love about yourself, and as time goes on and changes begin to happen name two then three, ect.
4. Do not associate eating one bad thing as a hindrance in getting the body you want, ex: If I eat this cupcake I need to workout twice tomorrow, because I probably gained 5 lbs… instead think I really wanted this cupcake, i’m going to eat one and enjoy it and get back on track tomorrow. Everyone has heard the saying “eating one salad never made anyone skinny and eating one donut never made anyone fat”. Consistency is key!
5. Eat what your craving and get back on track
6. When you start to feel negatively about yourself practice more positive self talk, do a workout you love, go buy a cute outfit you look good in, meal prep for the next week so you can be set up for success

There are more days than not it’s hard to find something I love about myself, but I always try because starting off the day with something positive versus something negative will determine how you go about your day, week, month and even bigger, your life!

There are some people I love to follow on instagram who focus on positive self talk…

@paloeomg

@fedandfit

@eattoperform

@realheidipowell

@the_fitness_dietitian

@confessionsofadietitian

@leahpetersfitness

Of course my hubby @justinmurphynutrition

Hope you enjoyed by blog (not the best at writing, my husband has been begging me to blog for him lol)

xoxo- Alex Murphy