“I focus on what I will enjoy and what makes me feel healthy, rather than what I will look like”

“I traveled with my husband a couple of years ago to Italy. I was really worried and preparing myself to gain all this weight from eating in Italy, but instead we both lost weight. We figured out several things from this experience: when we ate whole, unprocessed foods in reasonable portion sizes, neither of us obsessed about calorie intake and instead just enjoyed our food without shame.

“Walking and other enjoyable forms of exercise that weren’t killer cardio routines made us feel great. Happiness and enjoyment had sort of slipped through our fingers from all the ‘shoulds’ we were putting on our own backs. When we let them go, we both felt so much healthier. We tried to bring that home with us, and ever since I have been feeling so much stronger. Now, I focus on what I will enjoy and what makes me feel healthy, rather than what I will look like. The irony is that, after years of being so hard on myself about staying thin, I am more consistently fit and svelte now than I have ever been. Healthy food and exercise are definitely important, but equally important are your mental state and overall enjoyment of your routines,” says cmurphgarv.

The best advice on how to love your body and fight against beauty standards, by Reddit users