There’s a reason why folks say ‘comparison is the thief of joy.’ While it’s difficult to avoid it entirely, here are a few ways to overcome the critical voice within.
BY: CHRISTIN MORGAN, MS, RD, CSG
Body comparison is a major problem. It always seems like we are constantly looking at the bodies around us, and thinking how we’d “kill” to look like a certain way. While it may seem harmless on the surface, this mindset sneaks up on you in more destructive ways than you can imagine.
When you relentlessly compare yourself to someone else, it instills the thought that you will “never be enough”.
If you’ve ever struggled with diets, you understand that it goes hand in-hand with body comparison. If you are trying to overcome the diet mentality and begin normalizing your relationship with food, it starts by being OK with where you’re at right now.
To start ending body comparison in your life, integrate the following tips:
1. Make better use of your critical voice.
When you find yourself saying negative things to yourself, use that as a sign to do an internal assessment. Is there something else going on in your life that needs attention that’s causing you to take frustrations out on yourself?
It’s impossible to stop that critical voice from coming in; instead, reframe the way you use your critical voice. Ask yourself instead, what’s really going on? What’s happening in my life right now? Are you just super tired? Are you lacking self-care or self-compassion? Are you taking all of these struggles out on yourself? By questioning your motives for negativity, you can form a better awareness of why you are criticizing yourself.
2. Make connections to a body-positive community.
Take a look at who you’re surrounded by in real life and on social media. Are they people who lift you up, or do they bring you down by setting up unrealistic expectations?
Diet culture is pervasive, so you must surround yourself with people who see the world differently than the rest of our society. These are folks who have removed themselves from the social norms and the need to be or look a certain way. When there’s less judgment going around, there’s less judgment on yourself!
If you find yourself surrounded by people who focus too much on looks as a measure of success, ask yourself: are they the people who inspire you the most? If the answer is no, there is no need to continue to surround yourself with people who are focused around that.
3. Look for beauty and diversity in ALL things.
By taking time to stop and acknowledge beauty in the smallest things, you can retrain your brain to think the same thing about different human bodies. Stop and acknowledge the beauty in what’s around you. Stop by a park near your house, and acknowledge the plants that surround you. Take notice of the colors and the type of flowers and trees. Now, take a minute and notice the diversity of people around you and how that’s beautiful. Keep an open mind to what it means to be beautiful; the more you practice this skill, the more it will help you look at your own body and appreciate it for where it is today in all its glory. By changing your mindset and taking notice of the beauty that surrounds you,
It will help you to stop the comparison that plagues so many of us.
Adapted from the original article.
Christin Morgan, MS, RD, CSG is a Michigan-based Registered Dietitian who specializes in helping women regain body confidence without diets in her virtual private practice. As the founder of the #MyDietRebellion, she loves helping women get away from the number on the scale as a measure of success, and putting the excitement back into nutrition as a method of righteous self care. Learn more about Christin and the#MyDietRebellion movement.