You might be thinking I am going to throw some BMI calculation at you and waa-la! You will suddenly know the exact number your body is “supposed” to reside at.
But if that’s what you’re thinking, we haven’t gotten to know each well enough yet!
Your ideal weight, as a general statement, is different from what you want your body to look like.
I could (and have been in the past) be a size 2, but I’ve learned now that being a size 2 isn’t my ideal weight. If I only ate vegetables and worked out harder and longer every day than I currently do I could reach that size. But that kind of lifestyle is not something that works for me. I have tried it and it only led to feeling out of control with food.
So let’s talk a bit about your ideal weight. But let’s set something straight from the start.
When I say ideal, I am not talking about the weight of your favorite celebrity, the weight you were in high school, or even the weight you think you “should” be.
I am talking about the ideal weight that your body naturally wants to reside at when you’re living a healthy, balanced + enjoyable life.
A lifestyle that’s maintainable + allows you to live a beautiful and comfortable life.
This weight isn’t going to be exactly what you have pictured in your mind. It is going to a comfortable and fluid range that fluctuates as your life does.
It will change.
So how do you know what your ideal weight is?
Here are 2 questions to help:
- Are you eating when you’re hungry and stopping when you’re full?
- Is your body comfortable as it is right now, or is she sending you gentle signals that something isn’t quite right?
In a practical sense, you will know you are at your ideal weight when you eat foods you love when you are hungry + stop when you are full.
- When your body is comfortable and happy.
- When you move your body daily in a way that you love and can maintain (not out of fear of weight gain).
- When you are living your life instead of constantly living inside your head worrying about how you look or when your next meal is.
- When you have ice cream in the freezer that you forgot was there for four weeks and eating it when you want without guilt or punishment.
- When you have peace of mind around food.
Your ideal weight comes when you start living your life, instead of obsessing about food and your body.
The best way to get there?
Start living your life right now, regardless of your size.
Wear the bikini on the beach with your friends.
Go out dancing in your new backless dress.
Eat the foods you love without guilt.
Choose love and fun over fear, restriction, and deprivation.
Move your body how you want to move it, not how you think you should.
Let go of the notion that your body has to be a certain size, look a certain way, or weigh a certain number before it is “ideal”. Your body is ideal whenever you chose for it to be so. So why not start living like it is right now?!
Like what you read? Join the free Body Acceptance course + learn how to embrace your body as it is *right now* + reclaim your power xx
