You Don't Have to Like Your Body to Love It!

[Guest guest]

You have permission to publish this article electronically

or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are

included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be

appreciated - send to lori.radun@....

Title: You Don't Have to Like Your Body to Love It!

Word Count: 968

Author: Lori Radun

Email: lori.radun@...

Article URL:

http://www.submityourarticle.com/articles/easypublish.php?art_id=1656

The article is preformatted to 60CPL.

You Don't Have to Like Your Body to Love It!

Copyright 2005 Lori Radun

I want you to think about your body as one of your children

or someone else you love dearly. When was the last time

this person did or said something that really made you mad?

In that moment, you might have been thinking “I really

don’t like this person right now.” However, did his

behavior cause you to stop loving him? Absolutely not! My

teenager regularly acts in a way that I do not like, but I

still love him. I will protect him, do what I think is

best for him, and give him what he needs.

Now let’s return to your body. How often do you look at

your body and think, “I do not like my legs, my hips, my

butt (or whatever)”? I admit it. I do not like my thicker

waist that came from my second child and being over 40.

Okay fine, so it also comes from sometimes eating too much

of the wrong foods and not exercising consistently. It’s

one thing to dislike your body. It’s something completely

different to have an attitude of hatred or disgust towards

your body. This attitude will cause you to mistreat your

body instead of loving and honoring your body.

Your body, with all its imperfections, is sacred. It is

the only body you have been given for your entire life.

Your body houses all the organs that keep you alive. It

gets you around from place to place. Your body pumps

oxygen to the brain that enables you to feel, think, create

and function. You need to take care of your body like any

relationship with a loved one. Loving and respecting your

body requires the same ingredients. So what can you give

to your body that you would give someone you love?

1. Daily Attention

To nurture a relationship, you need to pay attention to

what it needs. If you ignore your loved one for a long

period of time, what happens? The relationship begins to

die. In order to grow my relationship with my little guy,

he needs daily doses of conversation, playtime with me, and

cuddling. In order to thrive, your body needs adequate

sleep, proper nutrition, exercise, and plenty of water

everyday. You wouldn’t go for a week without talking to

your child or husband, so why would you go for a week

giving your body 4-5 hours of sleep a night or regularly

feeding your body foods with no nutrition? Love your body

by staying conscious about how you treat it on a daily

basis.

2. Spend Time and Listen

In order to get to know someone you love, you need to spend

time together. Your body is the same way. It will

communicate with you if you only listen. Your body will

tell you when it is hungry and when it is full. It will

tell you when it is tired and needs to relax. If you are

getting sick a lot, your body is screaming at you. It is

trying to get your attention. When you exercise, your body

will begin to hurt if you push too hard. Or maybe you are

short of breath from lack of exercise or being overweight.

That is your body’s way of communicating that it is working

too hard. Pay attention to the cues your body sends you.

Respond to them and see them as signs that something needs

to change. Someone I know says to people, “If you ignore

your health, it will leave you.” And so will your husband.

3. Special Treats

Sometimes you give your loved ones special treats to show

you love them. You don’t give them everyday because then

they wouldn’t be special. Your body needs special treats

too. Treat yourself to a massage, a facial, new clothes,

or a mocha latte every once in awhile. When I was a

teenager, my mom and I used to go running on the local

school track. Afterwards, we went to this awesome ice

cream shop and treated ourselves to a scrumptious sundae.

We didn’t overindulge all the time…just once in awhile.

Special treats help banish feelings of deprivation.

4. Grace

How many times does your loved one say “I’m sorry”? And

how many times do you forgive him or her? We all need

grace at times, and so do you when it comes to taking care

of your body. Maybe you do really well on your diet or

exercise plan for two weeks, and then you fall off the

wagon. For one whole week, you don’t exercise and you

don’t follow a healthy eating plan. That’s okay! Forgive

yourself and get back on track. You don’t have to

completely abandon your plan because you didn’t follow it

perfectly.

5. Have Fun!

Taking care of and loving your body doesn’t have to be

drudgery. Have fun! Find new low-fat recipes that contain

your favorite foods. Adjust your attitude toward your

health and your body. Exercise is only boring if you view

it that way. Find activities you love that exercise your

body. When I was in Las Vegas this past month, I was

taking a walk in a local family park. I watched a dad and

his two children having the time of their life. They were

riding their bikes and dad was leading the way. He created

an obstacle course that required the kids to ride in

circles, up and down ramps, over the grass, and around

various walkways. They were laughing and having a blast,

while exercising their body. This dad knew the value of

adding fun to a healthy routine.

So, here’s to good health and loving your body even if you

don’t like it!

About the Author:

Lori Radun, CEC - Certified Life Coach for moms. Lori

writes a FREE monthly ezine for moms who want coaching and

encouragement on living peaceful, balanced and fulfilling

lives. To subscribe, go to

http://www.true2youlifecoaching.com