While doing my yoga this morning, I was thinking about how good it feels to be able to stretch my body and to feel strong and healthy in my body. From that thought, I also realized how grateful I am for all of the wonderful things that my body does for me that I am most of the time unconscious of.

I am honestly a really self-conscious person when it comes to my appearance and my body, probably the most self-conscious person in the world (which makes me an expert on the subject of body loathing and making peace with my body). In fact, I have been rather mean to my body with both physically and emotionally abusing it over the years. I have even often proclaimed (as many women do)  that I hate it. How cruel is that??

Today I figured, why not break free from that prison and show my body some love by expressing gratitude for all that it does for me? It is after all Valentine’s Day! Bring on the love!

15 Reasons Why I Love My Body

1. My body nourished, grew, carried and delivered 3 beautiful healthy baby girls! I was also able to breastfeed all three of my babies with no difficulties, for many, many months. I am still breastfeeding Serafina.

2. My body is flexible and able to stretch, allowing me to release tension and feel better, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

3. I have eyes that can behold the beauty all around me. Sunsets, green grass, budding trees, my beautiful children, the blue sky and everything else that has been created. Sight is a miracle in itself that we should always be grateful for.

4. My body enables me to run! I have gone on both 2 and 12 mile runs in my body and have felt amazing every time my feet hit the ground.

5. I couldn’t go for a walk without my body! My body enables me to get out in nature and behold the beauty of each new day, while moving and feeling good in the sunshine.

6. Food wouldn’t taste so amazing if I didn’t have a body. I do love to eat!

7. My body is wise and gives me all the cues that I need to be healthy. It lets me know when to rest and when to work it. It tells me when it is time to eat and when to put the fork (or cookie) down. It tells me when to slow down to prevent getting sick or worn out and sometimes it is full of energy and just needs to dance around and be silly with my daughters. Too bad I don’t always listen to it, it really does know best.

8. My body is very forgiving. No matter how much I don’t listen to my body, it always works for me and is forgiving of whatever mistreatment I put it through. After neglecting to nourish it with healthy foods, exercise, positive thoughts or rest, it always gives me another chance to treat it right and get back on track.

9. Sex also wouldn’t be so great if I didn’t have a body. Physical intimacy and touch is important to a persons overall health as well. I do love a good massage!

10. My hair is a beautiful red color (like my daughter Autumn). I used to hate it and dye it all the time, but since I shaved my head in September 2010 I have let it grow back its natural red color and have accepted that this is how I was made and what I look like and I am beautiful.

11. I have a really nice smile! 😀 Dental hygiene is very important to me.

12. I have arms that I can hug and cuddle my children with.

13. I can smell. I especially appreciate this sense when I am baking something, especially something with cinnamon. Mmmmmm….

14. Relaxing in my body, when taking a short nap or having a hot bath feels so good.

15. My body wears the beauty marks of carrying my three children and my stomach is soft, (like the bread I knead) which makes me a perfectly cozy place for my children to snuggle up to. I always thought that mothers were naturally a bit softer for this reason. Such a nice feeling to cuddle up with your mother!

Even though my body is not ‘perfect’ or what the media may depict as beautiful, it is perfect and beautiful to me, no matter what it weighs or how old it gets. To have a body and all of my senses is a miracle! I want to be grateful for that fact more often and to start seeing more positive aspects of myself. I really want to love myself more and be comfortable in my skin, even though it may take a while to reprogram my mind from the media’s definition of beauty to the reality of what real, natural beauty is.

We are all beautiful! Every one of us, no matter what size, shape or color we are. No matter what we weigh or what our hair looks like. Being alive, breathing and waking up to a new day to bring light and love into this world is beautiful!

The reality is that our body is only our temporary home and someday every existing body will die. It is important to keep our bodies healthy while we are here so that we can really enjoy our lives. If you don’t feel healthy physically, you probably will not feel health in the other areas of your life as well and that just sucks!

I make one of my priorities to exercise my body for half an hour to an hour everyday, by either doing yoga, cardio or going for a walk. I do this not  as a means to try and lose weight, but because I know that when I move my body, I feel so much better! It helps with my digestion, my mood, my energy levels, appetite and with my ability to sleep good at night. It also makes me a much more happy and pleasant person. As you can tell by this here blog post! 🙂

It amazes me how just changing your view on exercise can help it to be something to look forward to, rather than something to dread or use as a means of control or abuse. I love to exercise for all areas of my health, physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. It truly is important to me and a way that I show love for myself. Spending 30-60 minutes a day moving and feeling the strength and flexibility in my body, really helps me to appreciate what a miracle I am.

My question for you today is, what do you love about your body? You don’t have to leave a comment if you don’t feel comfortable doing so, but just give that question some thought today and maybe even write down your own list of reasons why you love your body. This is one step to loving ourselves more and in loving ourselves and taking better care of ourselves, we can better love others.

Thank you all for your comments on my Valentine’s Cupcake post! The winner of the measuring cup and vegan cookbook as chosen by the random number generator is Lou!

Congratulations Lou! I will contact you soon and mail you your prize this week!

Have a great day everyone! Happy Valentine’s Day! 🙂