How to appreciate your body

There are so many women and men for that matter that do not appreciate their body and what it can do for you.  I hear it quite a bit from people that they do not think they are the right shape, they want their old body back, they wish they didn't have a lack of energy, and an overall disdain for their body.  I am going to reference a line from the Sunscreen Song by Sun Tan for those of you who train with me or have done a bootcamp with me you might know this song.  The song is talking to seniors who just graduated high school in 1999 and they are giving life advice to these seniors.  A few of the lines talk about their body and beauty of your youth saying appreciate the beauty and body that you have at this age you will look back at those years and realize how good you actually looked.  I feel this is true for everyone no matter their age.  Every year we all get older and we look back at pictures of ourselves saying I wish I still looked like that.  But when that picture was taken you really wanted to look skinner, you wanted to change the shape of your arms or legs.  We have a terrible time appreciating yourselves just as we are in this moment.  So I want everyone to look over the tips below and truly try to incorporate them into your lives.

1. Admire your body for what it can do!  Think about all the things you can do, hold a plank, go for a run, walk, play tennis, perform a push-up no matter if it is on your toes, knees or even the wall.  Honor those things and be proud of them.  
2. See yourself right now as having the perfect body for where you are in your life.  Your body is the way it is because of what you have or haven't done for it the past few years.  Honor that and see your body as perfect for what it is.  If you don't like something about it map out a plan to start changing it.  When I say this I am talking to people who might be overweight and need to lose weight for health reasons.  
3. Be proud of what your body has done for you over the years.  Have you ever played a sport, run a 5k, 10k or even a marathon, rode a bike, gone to a yoga class, had surgery to recover from an injury?  Be proud that your body has done those things and recovered from such things.  Your body has a tremendous amount of healing power on its own. 
4. Treat your body like the most important thing in your life.  Without your body your just thoughts and emotions inside a head.  Appreciate your body by treating it right.  Eat clean, exercise 4-5 times a week, move daily.  You will regret the choices you have made when your in your 20's & 30's when you reach your 60's & 70's.  Start your habits young (by young I mean however old you are right now) they are easier to keep over the years.  
5. Your body truly is a temple.  This goes out to all the females.  Think about what your body does for you each month (you get a reminder).  We can carry a child in us for 9 months, than beat ourselves up about not losing the baby-weight fast enough.  Don't get to hard on yourself.  You had another person growing inside of you.  Work back slowly and praise yourself for every milestone you achieved along the way!

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Have a healthy & happy day!

Andrea