Did you know that you are beautiful inside and out? We do!!!! You are gorgeous, amazing, and inspiring to everyone around you! We know how much our lives improved once we started loving ourselves more, and we want the same for you!! We are all here to support each other as we become our best selves. The first step to being your best self is to give yourself some love!!

Here are three tips on how to love yourself even more, because you are worth it!!

1. It’s ok to start where you are.
Your body is an amazing tool. It constantly rebuilds itself. It takes one month to regenerate completely new skin. Your bones take three months, liver takes 6 weeks, blood takes 4 months, your lungs are completely new every 2-3 weeks. Do you know how incredible your body is? Listen to the things you are telling yourself in your mind about yourself and your body. Are those things kind? Are they helping you become your best self, or are they just tearing you down? If you can’t love yourself from the inside, how can you love yourself from the outside? Everyone has insecurities, but love yourself for what makes you unique. Realize that the things that make you different also make you special and lovable, they are not flaws. They are what make you, you!

Write a list of all the things that are wonderful about you. Ask loved ones or friends for help if you are feeling stuck. Write at least forty things, I promise you there are AT LEAST that many incredible things about you that you may not even realize. Post the list somewhere that you see often to remind yourself. Because you are BEAUTIFUL, inside and out. Treat your body well, and it will treat you well back. Your body loves you.

It is important to love yourself wherever you are in your journey. Because when you reach your end goal, if you don’t already love yourself, then you still won’t then. Loving yourself comes from within, not because of the number on the scale. There is no “perfect body.” Realize that loving yourself is a life-long journey and that you might have to reevaluate and reset often back towards self-love.

2. Set goals, big and small. Celebrate all the milestones.
Now that you are armed with positive self-talk, it’s time to make some goals! It’s important to have your goal be realistic and measurable. Break your big goal up into smaller pieces so that it isn’t as intimidating and celebrate every milestone. This will keep you motivated and make the journey fun! One way to keep you excited could be to put away a dollar for each time your work out. Save up for a new workout shirt or pants in your new size, a water bottle, or a gym bag to make your workouts feel even better! Plan a trip or something big when you reach the big goal!Realize that you might not see results right away. It might take a month or longer to see any real changes. Have the dedication and love yourself enough to realize that good things are happening even if you can’t see it right away. Redefine success, hard work will always pay off. Don’t base your success on the scale. Take pictures and measure yourself, that will be more accurate than some arbitrary number. You are still winning the battle. Don’t wait until you reach your end goal to be proud of yourself, be proud with every step that you take.

“About a year and a half ago, I joined my local gym and it was the best decision I have ever made. I dropped 21 pounds in six weeks and won the Most Inches Lost Challenge. I kept going until I had lost 58 pounds! I was asked to do a photo shoot with Flex It Pink. The girls were super sweet and made me feel proud of my weight loss. They also encouraged me to buy smaller sized clothes, which I hadn’t felt comfortable with before. Now I have the confidence, thanks to their encouragement. My kids are also a huge motivation, always telling me “Good job, mom!” and “You can do it!” I especially rely on them on our hikes when I just want to give up. But thanks to them I keep going. My boyfriend, Albert, is also a huge support for eating healthier with me. I still can't believe I'm down 58 pounds and am so excited to keep going!” -Rosa Acosta

3. Appreciate the perks that come with loving yourself. Find people to support and encourage you, and the spread the love.
When you love your body, you improve your confidence. This will spill over and affect every area of your life, even in ways you don’t expect. One example is improved posture, which can make you even more confident! Have you seen this TED Talk on power poses?
Your relationships with other people will be stronger because you are more secure and confident with yourself. People will be drawn to you because they want to be around positivity. Because you are feeling so good, you will want to spread that love and help other people. You will have more friends and better relationships with family members and significant others. 

“At the beginning of this year, I was at the heaviest I had ever been. I was working out sporadically, eating whatever. I just wasn’t making time to take care of myself a priority, but I knew I needed to. So, I signed up for a 6 Week Tough Love Challenge at my local gym. Signing up was the best decision I could have ever made. As a result of the challenge, I gained some amazing workout partners and was able to lose 15 lbs (today I am up to 22 lbs lost) and I feel better and stronger than I have in a long time. The same week the challenge started, I purchased my first Flex It Pink box because I really loved the message on the shirt it said, “Here’s to Strong women…May we know them...May we be them…May we raise them.” As a mom of 4 girls, I know how hard it is for girls and body image so I don’t want to just tell my girls they should love themselves but be an example of that self-love. I am so grateful to be a part of the strong, supportive and motivating fitness community that Flex It Pink provides for women.”      -Erica Haggins

As you learn to love yourself more, please remember to not compare your journey to anyone else’s. Everyone is at different places in their individual journeys, but we can support and help each other without comparing. Comparison is the thief of joy which is the opposite of self-love. Say positive things about yourself and about other women, spread the love!

It is important to find people who will help and support you. A friend or a spouse is a great person to remind you how great you are doing on days when you are having a hard time remembering how fantastic you are. (Hint, look at your list of 40 things about you that we talked about earlier.)

In essence, find like-minded people that can keep you motivated. We at Flex It Pink want to be alongside you on your journey! We know that you are so worthy of all good things and want you to be your best self, which means loving yourself and being happy with who you are at every step of your journey. We love you for you, and you should too!
XOXO,

Anna & Elisha

Need a little bit more? Here is a great article from the National Eating Disorders Association that gives more ideas about how to love your body.