Why I Love My Body

Posted: May 29, 2010 at 6:00 pm

While I am off in a cabin in the woods mountains and enjoying a good time with friends, I decided to share a post about something I am always working on. It is no secret that I had some body image issues after my fitness competition when I had to put on weight in order to conceive our second child. I fought them and mostly appreciated my body, but I still had ups and downs. Even on the best of days, negative self-talk can make an appearance and we have to be mindful of it. One of the biggest ways I combat such negativity is to have a running list in my head on why I love my body and need to respect it. In no particular order, here are a few of those reasons.

1. It is strong. My body has taken a lot of beatings from me, both good (in the form of tough workouts) and bad (in not feeding it enough at times). Despite the many pounds it has lifted, the many miles it has racked up in various forms of cardio, and the fluctuations it has encountered in weight over the years, it still works properly and can make it through every day with energy and strength. That’s pretty impressive in my mind.

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2. It is smart. I don’t mean the “score a 1600 on your SAT” smart. I mean it is intuitive and knows what it needs. If I have a few days with more treats and less fruits and veggies my body will seek them out for awhile following that time. It tells me when it needs rest by a new pain or just pure fatigue. It doesn’t like being fed too much or too little and guides me to an appropriate food balance. It has instincts that can help keep me safe or drive me further.

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3. It is healthy. My body is currently free from illness, functions properly, and can move, walk, dance, and play. Health is something to be treasured and I am very thankful to my body for being a healthy one. Face an injury, illness, depression, or anything else that can hinder your health and I bet you gain a newfound respect for your body being healthy over it looking hot in a bikini. I fortunately have never had to face a huge health scare, but knowing others who have opens my eyes to appreciating my blessings and valuing my body for the health it gives me.

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4. It is alive. It is through my body that I am able to get up in the morning and go out and experience life. Without my body I would not be able to see God’s beauty, hear Makenzie laugh, feel the embrace of loved ones, or laugh at a good conversation. Without my body I would have no life. I love my life and therefore should love my body for giving me the means to live it.

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5. It is used to bring  life into this world. It is immensely fulfilling to know your body is capable of bringing a life into this world. Throughout pregnancy, the changes my body goes through are beautiful to me. They are all part of helping create life. And after the delivery, seeing that baby and knowing my body accomplished that makes it hard to hate it. Every day, seeing my  child is a reminder of the amazing things my body can do and I would not have my daughter without it. I love my body immensely for that.

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6. Lastly, and most importantly, my body was crafted by God. God took great care in making me. He had a plan for me from the first moment he formed me in my mother’s womb. He thinks I’m beautiful and part of his perfect creation. God can do no wrong. He made me. That means I am not wrong. It means I am perfect in God’s eyes. How can I argue with God? If he believes I am beautiful and worth loving, why should I deny that I am? God says my body is beautiful…and beautiful it is.

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  • Name at least one reason you think your body is beautiful. We ALL are beautiful so we all need a reason to believe so.
  • What is something your body has done for you that amazes you?
  • Please listen to this song. It is amazing and one of my favorites.

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20 Comments to “Why I Love My Body”
  1. My body amazes me that it carried my child. I have abused my body so much with eating disorders for countless years and yet it allowed me to carry my child and give birth to a healthy baby girl. It also allowed me to breastfeed her for an entire year and never rely on formula wich I was so greatful for. I hope this pregnancy turns out as great as the last and that I am able to nourish my new little one for at least a year as I did my daughter.

  2. Great post! I love the picture with #5! My body honestly amazes me anytime I run! I just used to seem so impossible and while I still have a lot of progress to make it’s exciting!

  3. Awesome post! I’m constantly amazed at what my body is able to do when it comes to running, especially b/c it’s gotten so much stronger in such a relatively short period of time. But even more than that, I’m just grateful that it is healthy enough to carry me through my everyday life. Every time I find myself thinking negative thoughts about my body, I want to remember the Isaiah verse you posted. Because how can I resent my body when I remember that it was handcrafted by God himself?

  4. Hayley says:

    GREAT post Tina!!! It’s such a great way of forcing us to think positively about our bodies – something I’m sure many of us don’t do often enough!

    I know my body is very strong – even at 5.5 months pregnant I can do push-ups, pull-ups, planks, squats, rows, shoulder presses, run 5 miles, teaching energetic Jazzercise classes…I’m blessed to have my health and fitness abilities! Thanks for reminding me to remember that.. 🙂

  5. Denise says:

    There is nothing more amazing than God’s creations and we are part of that. Respect what HE has given you and love yourself and your bodies. HE did not mean for us to be perfect in any way, that was only meant for HIS SON!!!

    Sorry, I got a little preachy.

  6. homecookedem says:

    Beautiful, beautiful post!! Health is so easy to take for granted… until it is lost. Thank you for reminding us all that being healthy is way more important than having a perfect bikini body. You are soooooooo very wise!!

  7. This is amazing – thanks for such a great post! #5 and #6 really drove it in for me. Obviously I know that women have babies, but I never really stop and pair it down to that simple [and beautiful] truth – we bring LIFE into the world! Something so complex is going on inside of you during pregnancy, that miraculously results in a child. WOWWW. Haha it seems so obvious, but we don’t really think that way! Or at least I don’t.

    And #6… I don’t even need to say more. You said it beautifully.

  8. My body is beautiful because it is strong. I was born a preemie, and I’ve come a long way..

    My body has fought many sicknesses and fainting spells…

    My faves were #4,5,and six. Especially number six! 🙂 I love that song and it’s on my blog too, but disneyfied! In fact, it’s on lots of blogs I follow…

    I just added you to my blogroll, just to let you know..

    Amanda

  9. Katie says:

    Beautiful post! I love that song…it ministers to my heart EVERY time I hear it! xoxo
    Your posts are amazing! 🙂

  10. As always, a great, thoughtful post. I love my body b/c it is strong and it allowed me to run a race yesterday. It was strong enough to get me to the finish as the 2nd overall female. There was a time when I didn’t think my body was capable of something like that.

  11. I love my body because it conceived a child, even after chemotherapy destroyed it.

  12. #5 . All the way. I totally agree and I once read a tshirt that said “what’s your superpower? I grow humans.”
    Amen.

    And I nursed Skylar for 3+ yrs after many things would have prevented me “on paper” from doing so. I I am proud to have grown a human and nursed her for a biological normative amount of time, even if that’s in direct contrast with current societal norms.

    Standing up for what I believe in, my brain and my thoughts, that is what I am also proud of 🙂

    Happy Mem Day and love this post, Tina!

  13. Kendel says:

    This is one of my favorite posts you’ve written. So true.

  14. Really great post….we all need to remember how amazing our bodies really are!

  15. Holly says:

    Beautiful post!
    Have a nice time on your vacation 🙂

  16. […] book. It is the one I feel most strongly about as well – Respecting Your Body. Yesterday I had a post about why I love my body and mentioned the importance of each of us loving our own. We need to understand that our bodies […]

  17. Lindsay says:

    The one thing that amazes me about my body is that… even though I starved it for so long because of an eating disorder… it has recovered and allows me to be active daily, have beautiful hair again, and be able to have children in the future if I want them. (I lost my period while severely underweight, but it recently returned) 🙂

  18. ellie says:

    amazing post 😀 I LOVE this list and just posted that song on facebook…awesome!

    I love my body because it lets me travel and go places. I am so thankful that it has put up with the abuse I have given it over the years as well as it has 🙂

  19. I absolutely love that song by Johnny Diaz. I could listen to it all day long!

  20. Jess says:

    LOVE LOVE LOVE this song! I’d never heard it before! Totally gave me tingles! I also love your list of things you love about your body – it’s very similar to my list. Above all – I am eternally grateful that I am healthy fit and strong and can be as active as I am. It’s a blessing and I don’t take it for granted at all!

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