It’s not always easy to love your body. Learning and implementing the best ways to practise self-love takes time and patience, as well as a deeply rooted understanding that you truly are beautiful the way that you are. You don’t need to look a certain way to have a sex-positive attitude, exude confidence, or seduce your partner.

In an effort to spread body positivity, here are our favourite (tried and true) ways to improve body image.

Stop judging other people’s bodies

If a positive body image is what you’re striving for, judging others’ appearances will not help you to achieve that. Looking at those around you in a harsh light — whether they’re strangers, acquaintances, or individuals that you know well — only serves to perpetuate a negative outlook on how society believes someone ‘should’ look. In reality, there is no single way that anyone needs to appear!

To avoid putting a damper on your mental health, avoid criticizing anyone. Eventually, you’ll break the seemingly instinctual habit and will not only avoid mentally belittling others, but yourself, as well.

Get to know your body better

Looking for a boost in body positivity? Get to know your body better! Learn your ideal sleep schedule, the clothing colours that suit you best, your style, and the things that you enjoy both emotionally and physically.

Get to know the parts of your body, including learning vagina facts or penis facts, based on what you have yourself. On that note: masturbation is good for you! It’s an incredible way to figure out what you love (or hate) sexually. Sometimes, a self-induced dry spell is necessary to figure out the sexual things, while for other people, it might be the complete opposite!

Dress confidently

Dress in a way that makes you feel your very best. Pick clothing that reflects your personality, your favourite colours, and your preferred pieces. That is, if you’re a fan of dresses, wear lots of dresses! If you’re a casual tee and jeans kind of person, go for that! Keep in mind that this can vary day-to-day, and that’s fine. There aren’t any rules that need to be followed.

The same goes for when you’re undressing! Whether you’re nervous about having sex after kids, with your partner that you’ve been with for decades, or deciding how to take nudes to send to someone you’ve just recently started talking to, confidence is key!

Nourish yourself from the inside, out

Learning how to improve body image starts with treating yourself with respect, both internally and externally. Try your best to feed yourself healthy foods, including doing what you can to avoid anything that you have allergies or sensitivities to. Hydrate with plenty of water, moisturize your skin, practise good overall hygiene to prevent infections (and the pain that often comes with it), and try to get enough sleep.

Associate exercise with feeling good

Another way to take care of your body is by exercising. This isn’t about reaching a societally-deemed ‘perfect’ weight or body shape, but rather, about creating body positivity for yourself by feeling your best. With 150 minutes of physical activity each week being ideal, you can regularly release endorphins — the feel-good hormone — and reap the benefits of reduced stress and anxiety, increased happiness, and a flooding feeling of loving your body.

Cleanse your social media

It’s challenging to love your body and develop a positive body image when you are consistently viewing images of bodies that look nothing like your own. Because social media is such a common space to see unrealistic body shapes and sizes, it’s essential to limit the number of accounts you follow that perpetuate a sense of self that is not viable; instead, follow influencers that look like you, of account that do not use Photoshop to change ‘imperfections’!

Some people opt to follow no humans at all, instead choosing to flood their feeds with cute animals, informative accounts, and encouraging quotes.

Surround yourself with positivity

As humans, we tend to adopt the mentality of the people that we spend the most time around. Thus, it’s no surprise that surrounding ourselves with positive people — individuals who understand the importance of self-love — is crucial to our growth and development on the journey to body positivity.

Associate with people who encourage you to be your best. This may involve leaving an abusive relationship and having to break up with your partner, dropping ‘friends’ who hinder your development into a better person, and even learning how to foster intimacy without sex to those who matter most to you.

Now that you’ve learned how to improve body image, both in the way you look at yourself and others, we hope that you will love your body for the beautiful entity that it is. For all of its flaws and all of its perfections. In following the advice and exercises above, your journey to genuine self-love will be a rewarding one.

How do you create a more positive body image for yourself? What are your most effective steps for self-love? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

7 Simple Steps to Love Your Body as It Is