Target has a new kind of ad campaign this year for their swimsuits. They say the premise is " Living confidently, on one’s own terms." You can check it out here. They show normal women in swimsuits without photoshopping out their stretchmarks and thigh pudge and other normal body things. What a great campaign!
I always look at marketing campaigns like this, whether it's Target or Dove or any number of others that have popped up over the years, as positive steps forward in dispelling the notion of the perfect body. However, the notion of the perfect, thin, flawless body has been beaten into all of society for generations. It's not something that's going away with a few ad campaigns. That glamour bullshit drives sales and shapes our own relationships with our bodies. It's great to see the Target campaign, but ultimately, we all have to fight back against what has been beaten into our heads for years. We have to love our bodies for what they can do, how they look, how we feel, and more. That's the needle we can move on this scale of body acceptance.
I know I've talked recently about some of the ways that my relationship with my body has caused anxiety and depression, but that's only part of the story. I also have moments of feeling strong and confident. When I'm eating well and exercising, I increase those positive feelings, not because my body all of a sudden becomes perfect, but because eating well and activity make me FEEL better. It's so counter-intuitive. I would have thought sitting on the couch eating bon bons in a comfortable moo moo would have increased good feelings, but it turns out that's not the case.
How do you guys feel about your bodies, and what do you do for self-care and to feel confident and happy?
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