This is prompt #3 of the 15 Day Vitality Challenge! I am posting this to give you guys ideas of what you may write in your own letter :)

“Hating something ties you to it, and if you want to move to a better place, start by loving what you have” –Sanaya Roman

So often, we spend so much of our time picking apart everything we hate about our bodies. We tell ourselves that we’re fat, our nose is too big, our legs are too thick, our chest is too big, our arms are so flabby, our stretch marks are disgusting, our breasts are too saggy, etc. etc. (I know you get the picture and I don’t have to continue). We spend so much time focusing on what we don’t like about our body and feeling bad about how it doesn’t measure up to other people’s bodies or how we feel like our body should be.

As you guys know, I am a firm believer that you get what you focus on. I think one of the biggest issues people have when it comes to losing weight is they are always focusing on what they aren’t doing or how they aren’t measuring up (as a recovering perfectionist, I am so guilty of this!). Why this is so harmful is because it doesn’t motivate us or make us feel good, which are two KEY components to being successful long-term on your weight loss journey.

Focusing on what you dislike about your body doesn’t serve you in any way and this prompt is dedicated to CELEBRATING your body. It is just human nature to take for granted all the things our body does for us! There are so many people out there who are paralyzed and don’t have the privilege to walk at all! There are so many people out there that would DIE for your body because it does so much more than their body does. This prompt is about putting into perspective how much your body does for you that a lot of times you don’t even think about. As cheesy as this sounds (you guys know I Love the cheese!), you are going to write a Love Letter to your body!

I personally saw when I started to accept and appreciate my body as-is (long before I reached my goal weight), the weight dropped off much more rapidly! That because hating something ties you to it! When you hate your body, you are sending negative affirmations through your mind daily. As you guys know, negative self-talk TOTALLY messes with your ability to lose weight (and keep it off)! Your body Loves you no matter what, time to show it some Love too!

What are you thankful for that your body does for you that some people can’t say? Walking? The ability to exercise? Are you happy that your body still Loves you, even though you may have mistreated it with binges? How can you reframe the way you look at your body in a more positive way? What about your body makes you happy? What’s your favorite physical feature about yourself? What do your stretch marks REALLY mean? What other aspects about your body are you grateful for? List them all!

Dear Body,

Man, oh man…I can’t thank you enough for bearing with me while I hated on you for so many years! Even though I got up practically EVERY single morning, stood in front of the mirror, and picked about everything I hated about you, you still Loved me. You still functioned and didn’t give up on me, even though I didn’t appreciate you at all. When I was struggling with my binge-eating disorder, you really hung in there and had faith that it was just a phase. When I was ready to eat healthy, you didn’t flinch for a second and started making me feel good immediately! I Love you for that!

I Love that you allow me to walk for miles at a time, run, and play with my nephews. I Love that I am 100% mobile, which is something a lot of other people cannot say. I Love that you stuck with me as I gained and lost 80+ pounds in six years, never straying or giving out on me. I Love that you don’t hold against me how terribly I treated you for so long and was ready to change externally as soon as I was ready internally.

I Love how the gap in your two front teeth sends the message I want to tell the world without saying a word, “you are beautiful JUST the way you are, embrace your ‘imperfections’!” I know for the first 18 years of my life, I was embarrassed and wouldn’t smile with teeth because I was told that I had “bad teeth”…thanks for bearing with me while I realized that my teeth are perfect just the way that they are!

I Love your muscular legs that carry me so far, which I used to hate on ALL the time because I thought they were so huge and looked fat. Thank you for hanging with me while I realized that they were a beautiful part of me, too.

I Loved that you also hung in there with me when I was extremely self-conscious of my stress marks, helping me realize and reframe that my stretch marks are just the stripes and medals I earned while finding myself and my purpose in this world. That took me awhile to figure out, and you’re the greatest for waiting around so long. ;)

Thank you for continuously rooting for me, even when I haven’t been your greatest supporter. Thank you for giving me Love, even when I haven’t given you Love. I promise from the bottom of my heart, I am going to appreciate you from now on, regardless of what superficial reason not to crosses my mind!

I Love you!
Lauren