Why Body Neutrality Might Just be the Way Forward, and How to Implement it into Your Life by Christa Cripwell
Over the last century, the ‘perfect body’ pendulum has been in constant motion. From the silhouette of Marilyn Monroe to the heroin chic figure of the 90s, the emphasis placed on women’s bodies continues to reach lofty heights. Terms such as ‘body-positive’ were popularised around a decade ago, with the intention of helping women feel confident in those bodies which were not represented on the big billboards. However, whether the desired effect of the coining of this term has been achieved is up for debate. While the term ‘body-positive’ has engendered a movement to increase diversity within the fashion industry, it has also exaggerated the emphasis placed on bodies, perhaps perpetuating the idea that the way we feel about our bodies is intrinsically linked with our happiness. What if we were to remove this notion altogether and view our bodies, not through the lens of the beauty industry, but as our home? After all, that is what bodies are. We should not allow something so endemic to life, be chastised by opinions which are rooted in patriarchal suppression. Our bodies sustain us and help us to move through life and it is this notion which has instigated the move towards the attitude of body neutrality.
In order to help you to detach yourselves from the emphasis of body-image, VOLUP2 has put together some things you can do to apply this mentality in a practical way and actively employ it in your day-to-day lives.
Picture this: you are on your evening commute back home and are bombarded at every angle by posters and adverts presenting contradictory messages telling you how to feel about your body. From posters advertising dietary pills to those promoting plus-size positivity; they have intruded your thoughts without your permission. When you get home, leave these thoughts at the door by running yourself a bath (or whatever you love to do for ultimate relaxation) and light a CTOAN candle. CTOAN was created by Jodyann Morgan (@ctoan.co), a black queer woman from Wisconsin. The brand celebrates inclusivity and diversity, values which are represented by the candles themselves. They represent bodies of all shapes and sizes. CTOAN candles relay the important idea that, just like the wax on the candles, bodies change and develop. It celebrates the idea that they should be nurtured and cared for. Jodyann explains that CTOAN Co candles are “little works of art that I infuse with that joy, heart and a whole lot of love”.
To accompany the bath and the candle, we would suggest having a flick through the bestselling book The Body Joyful by Anne Poirier. Poirier engendered and popularised the notion of body neutrality in 2016. The book provides the reader with a roadmap, based on and informed by Poirier’s own experience, to disregard body-talk. She talks of her own journey from self-loathing to self-acceptance and discusses that the way we feel about our bodies should not be viewed as an obstacle which has to be overcome to find happiness. Rather, she proffers that we actively shift our mindsets and not view our bodies through an image-concerned prism, but rather understand how they are endemic to the very definition of life. The body neutrality movement does not promote constant positivity; but a simple recognition and appreciation of all the things the body is capable of.
Another tip for adopting the mindset of body neutrality concerns the way that we view food. This may be stating the obvious, but how we see food is a crucial stepping-stone to achieve the mindset of body neutrality. By viewing our bodies as things which we must sustain and nourish in order for them to thrive at their fullest potential, we must view food as fuel for them. Food should be an object of total enjoyment, not restriction. Check out Cari Garcia’s blog ‘Fat Girl Hedonist’, to learn to indulge in the mindset of viewing food as a pleasure in and of itself, not as something with complex ties to self-esteem and guilt.
Lastly, VOLUP2 wants to remind its reader that an Instagram detox is never a bad idea. Our algorithms are often manipulated in a way that makes us hate ourselves, constantly encouraging us to compare ourselves with people with so-called ‘perfect’ bodies. Remember that photoshop is an epidemic and that these models that you see when you are scrolling are literally paid to look like that. By coming off social media, you can regain control of your thoughts and not have to battle with the feelings that arise from constantly being confronted with the idea that looks should be valued above all else. Furthermore, allow yourself to ridicule the notion of a perfect body by taking a dive into the evolution of women’s bodies throughout the centuries. What is deemed to be perfect now is a far cry from what was desired 50 years ago. This fluctuation further proves how arbitrary and mythical the idea of a perfect body is, and makes the notion of body neutrality even more attractive.
