This week on How to Love Your Body we are talking about self compassion.

To grab your worksheet to follow along with this episode go to www.thebodylovesociety.com/83

A big misconception of self compassion is that it means letting yourself go, never pushing yourself, being lazy… NO!

Self compassion means simple kindness to yourself - the same you would expect from others and the kindness that you extend to those around you.

Our inner critic is so loud and so strong and sometimes it can feel like - if we’re hard enough on ourselves we’ll be motivated to do things like workout more, eat “healthier” etc.

But this is not the case - negative motivations like fear, self hate and feeling inadequate fall short when things get tough. If you aren’t seeing “results” fast enough we fall into the screw it cycle. Go really hard and then say screw it and quit just to start all over again.

Self compassion works differently. It allows you to live in a more enjoyable way (no more self hate to fuel your fire) and can actually provide more sustainable and healthy motivation to reach your goals.

Let’s take moving your body for example - when you are being kind and gentle to yourself, yes you may allow yourself to skip today’s workout because you are exhausted but you also won’t fall into the screw it cycle so you just might go tomorrow instead. It’s real life, it’s sustainable and it’s ENJOYABLE. What is the point of reaching your goals or “doing the healthy thing” if you hate it the whole time?

Life is meant to be enjoyed and self compassion is what will get you there so you can have it all - enjoyment, action and sustainability.

 

3 Ways to show yourself compassion this week:

1.When you don’t do something you planned on doing OWN IT - you chose not to, no point beating yourself up! Give yourself a break my love.

2. Do something that is JUST for you - it’s rare that we do this in our busy lives. Even if it’s taken 30 minutes to listen to your favorite audio book and have a really good cup of coffee.. Show yourself that you are worth it.

3. Identify thoughts that come up in your mind about yourself and ask yourself - would I accept my friend saying this to me? Question why it’s ok for YOU to say it to you, and shift it around! At least make it neutral - take the cruelty out of your thoughts this week when you notice it. 

 

Shifting from self critical thinking to self compassion will allow you to find balance, sustainability and happiness much more quickly!

 

Don’t forget to grab your worksheet at thebodylovesociety.com/83 so you can actually take these steps this week to prioritize self compassion.