12 Tips on How to Love Your Body, No Matter Your Size or Shape
- Janelle Ryan
- Mar 28
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 24
Lately, I’ve been having conversations with clients about body love—how to honour our bodies while also wanting change. It’s a complex, deeply personal topic that can stir up emotions, and it’s one I’ve worked through myself.
Our bodies are incredible. They serve us powerfully through every stage of life. They adapt, transform, and carry us through our greatest adventures. And because of that, they will continue to change. The key is to keep loving them through every shift, expansion, and contraction, rather than withholding love until they meet some arbitrary ideal.
But what happens when we feel at odds with our bodies? When we want to change something, but also want to remain body positive? Or when our bodies don’t do something we desperately wanted them to—like falling pregnant, carrying a baby to term, or healing the way we hoped? These are real, painful experiences. And in those moments, we need to extend deep, compassionate forgiveness to our bodies. They have been doing their best for us since day one.
Loving our bodies, unconditionally, is the ideal place to start.
Loving our bodies leads us to treat them with more respect and nourishment.
Loving our bodies leads to deeper self-love, which radiates outward and is mirrored back to us.
We are one system—what we think about our bodies affects the cells within them. They listen. They respond.
If you’re ready to break through the body-perfect-bullsh*t and build a better relationship with your body, here are some truths to hold onto:
There is no “perfect” size. Bodies are meant to be diverse. If you’re holding yourself to a rigid standard, let it go. Right now.
Are you enjoying good health? If you can get out of bed in the morning and go about your day without serious illness or pain, that’s something to be grateful for. Your body is doing its best for you every single day—acknowledge that.
Your body is working for you every single day. Take a moment to be grateful for that. If you’re able to move, breathe, and go about your life, acknowledge the privilege of a functioning body.
Remember: your body is an instrument, not an ornament. It exists for more than just being looked at.
Be mindful. Enjoy food with presence, rather than restriction or guilt. A balanced, intuitive approach to eating will always serve you better than harsh rules.
Move because it feels good. Your body is made for movement, and it will thank you for it. Walk, dance, stretch, lift—find something joyful and do it often. Not as punishment, but as a celebration.
Wear clothes that fit and flatter your current body. Not the body you had five years ago. Not the body you think you should have. Now.
Surround yourself with people who value inner strength, character, and joy over superficial ideals.
Look at yourself through the lens of hindsight. If you’re fixating on flaws, ask yourself—will I even care about this in ten years? When I look back, will I regret wasting time on self-criticism instead of living fully?
Your happiness is not determined by your body size. There are deeply fulfilled people in every shape and size, just as there are unhappy people who fit the so-called “ideal.” What you pursue in life will matter far more than the shape you pursue in the mirror.
Check in with your beliefs. The media, social conditioning, and even well-meaning family members may have planted unhelpful ideas about what your body should look like. Challenge those beliefs—are they truly yours, or something you’ve inherited?
Forgive your body. If it didn’t do something you desperately wanted it to, meet that pain with love. Our bodies carry us through every single day, through joys and heartbreaks, through triumphs and losses. We owe them kindness.
When I’m older and my body no longer moves the way it used to, I want to look back and know that I appreciated everything it did for me.
For me, loving my body means fuelling it with nutritious food, moving it in ways that bring me joy, and prioritising self-care. It means celebrating what it can do rather than punishing it for what it can’t.
The more I love my body, the better I want to treat it.
Maybe this will work for you too.
If you would like to spend 3 weeks Exploring, Embracing and Embodying Body Confidence so you can release shame, relcaim your power and set yourself free CLICK HERE.
Janelle Ryan is a globally recognised Personal Coach, celebrated for her unwavering commitment to helping individuals achieve extraordinary results. She is the founder of Sky High Coaching, an author, international retreat leader, workshop facilitator, and an engaging, inspirational speaker.
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