Healthy Body Image and Weight Loss

Most people, when they’re being brutally honest with themselves, can admit that there are some aspects of their body that they aren’t happy with.

Some may even pinpoint specific things they’d like to change: a smaller nose, perhaps, or larger muscles. Maybe they’d choose to be taller or curvier in some places (less so in others).

Short of cosmetic surgery, a miracle, or both, there’s not a whole lot people can do about physical characteristics such as height, body type, and inherited physical attributes.

Fortunately for all of us, one thing we do have some control over is the one that tops most people’s lists of things they’d like to change: weight.

Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is vital to disease prevention, heart health, and countless other aspects of health. It’s also a cornerstone to solid mental health, as a positive body image reflects upon overall well being.

Wellness efforts often center around weight loss because of the countless positive effects that healthy weight has on physical and mental health. Researchers have also found that people who have a positive body image stand to shed more pounds than those who don’t.

So, theoretically, a step or two in the right direction (the first few pounds lost, for instance), will get the ball rolling, inspiring people to lose more, which will improve their body image, which will help them lose more, etc. etc.

It’s a more manageable way to think about weight loss, knowing that little successes can lead to big changes.

Check out this information from the Weight-control Information Network: