For many of us, this wild and woolly time will take its toll on all areas of our health, compromising our overall sense of wellbeing, self-worth, and body confidence. But with unprecedented changes to our daily routines, work dynamics, and even to our sense of freedom, it’s not surprising we feel out of sorts. Lock-down has robbed us of the activities, connections, and social events that nurture our emotional health and keep us grounded. Although we can’t rely on the same coping mechanisms we had prior to the pandemic, we can still get inventive with the tools available to cater for our needs.
One of the ways we can support our physical and mental wellbeing is through exercise. While some of us may have a complicated relationship with physical activity, movement remains an important pillar of health, especially in the current climate. Healthy doses of exercise can play a vital role in fostering a sense of inner calm, peace and, ultimately, self-confidence. Let’s explore how to maintain a positive relationship with exercise in the quest to support your wellbeing, sense of self-worth, and self-confidence.
An abundance of choice
During this time, it’s important not to lose sight of the many ways we can exercise our bodies and minds. Better still, we live in an age where we can do all of this from the comfort of our own home with online programmes, Apps, Instagram and Facebook lives at our fingertips. Yoga, Pilates, Barre, High Intensity Training, you name it.... it’s available to you with just the click of a button.
While this can be a tremendously helpful way to support our physical and mental wellbeing right now, it's important to observe how you feel and how you choose to take part in these activities. Admittedly, there’s a lot of pressure to do every online class under the sun during this time. And since many of us are spending more time online and on social media, it can be easy to fall into the trap of comparing ourselves and feeling like we're not doing enough. Alongside the increasing opportunities to workout online, there are even more subliminal messages promoting weight loss. This is diet culture rearing its ugly head.
How to spot diet culture
Diet culture is the system of beliefs that pressurises us to diet and exercise to ‘fit’ a societal norm of what is deemed to be attractive and acceptable. It equates thinness to health and moral virtue. It promotes the elusive idea that weight loss can solve your problems, making you happier, more successful and attractive. It endorses the idea of ‘good’ and ‘bad foods’, and encourages restrictive and unhealthy eating patterns, including but not limited to cutting out food groups, restricting calories and only eating foods deemed to be ‘clean’ and virtuous. It labels certain foods as ‘naughty’ and portrays them as the forbidden fruit. It promotes the idea that you should feel guilty about eating, let alone enjoying certain types of food. It profits from the notion that you aren’t worthy of feeling good enough in your own skin; that you aren’t worthy of receiving pleasure through food unless it’s ‘burned off’.
In particular, lock-down can be hugely challenging and triggering for people with a history of low body confidence, body dysmorphia, and poor relationships with food and exercise. When everything feels uncertain and out of control, many people feel an urge to maintain control of their eating habits. This uncertainty has left no area of our lives unscathed. It has changed the way we work; we miss the physical connection of our loved ones; we are no longer able to do many of the things that support our well-being, and it may cause some of us to fear the potential loss of our income. The explosive combination of these factors can, undoubtedly, shake our self-esteem and confidence.
What you can do to feel at your best
To support your overall health in this period, it’s important to make conscious, positive, and empowering choices to nourish you each day. As I’ve already mentioned, one powerful weapon in your arsenal is movement. ⠀
Each morning – before you even entertain the idea of exercise – take a few minutes to ask yourself how you're feeling. Tune in to what it means to treat your mind, body and soul with care and respect that day. This may mean setting aside time to meditate, even if it’s just for a few minutes to notice the thoughts, feelings and emotions that arise. It may mean taking a walk first thing in the morning to connect yourself and nature.
Notice how you are feeling in your body and what it needs each day. Follow this up by writing down what comes up for you. This will help you to truly acknowledge, process, listen, and honour your emotions and respond accordingly.
Of course, sometimes that may mean doing cardiovascular exercise to get your heart rate up, to release those endorphins and to get you fired up for the day.
Here are some other ways you may play with movement: ⠀
Sometimes, it may mean getting out your weights, or anything you can get your hands on (think tins and books), to focus on intentional movement, cultivate strength, and leave you feeling empowered.
Sometimes, it may mean leaning more into gentle and mindful movement, rolling out your yoga matt and going with the flow.
Sometimes, it may mean getting up super early and doing the workout, even though you don’t initially feel motivated. ⠀
Sometimes, it may mean taking brisk walks in nature
Sometimes, it may mean having a bath and taking rest
Sometimes, it will be obvious as to what the right course of action is for you. Other times, you’ll find yourself torn as to what the ‘right’ thing to do is. You may find yourself feeling guilty or noticing the voice inside your head calling you ‘lazy’ or ‘stupid’ for wanting to stray from what you need to do to ‘maintain’ a particular shape, weight, and size.
Years of societal conditioning, pressure, and diet culture can wreak havoc with our ability to truly know, listen and honour what we need. If you find yourself struggling to tune in to what you need and distinguish between the multiple voices in your head, ask yourself:
“What would I do today if I was being kind to myself and looking after myself - mind, body and soul?”
This means not only thinking about your short-term needs and desires in the moment, but considering how an action may not only affect how you feel for the rest of the day, but may contribute to your sense of well-being over a period of time. For example, that may mean you choose to skip the workout to recharge if you’re feeling genuinely tired. It may mean you commit to doing a workout despite not feeling particularly energised in the moment because you know exercising regularly supports your health and well-being in the long term.
Put aside what everyone else is doing and stay in your own lane. This means stop living your life according to what everyone else is doing and simply do what feels good for you. Throw any ‘shoulds’ out of the window.
Unfollow or mute anyone on social media who shares content that makes you feel uncomfortable. Consider this: you wouldn’t invite someone into your house each day that didn’t make you feel good, so it’s equally important to protect the virtual space you inhabit. Make it your virtual home rather than your virtual prison. Invite in people who make you feel good – follow people from lots of different backgrounds and who are different shapes and sizes. Follow people who talk about topics that you’re passionate about or who share common interests and hobbies.
Unsubscribe from any emails that promote diet culture. Diet culture can be insidious. Anything that leaves you feeling like you need to change your appearance to feel okay about yourself shouldn’t be taking up precious space in your inbox, let alone your life.
Ultimately, this means making choices from a kind, self-accepting and self-loving place; it means connecting, listening and honouring what you need each day – mind, body and soul. If you’re reading this and feel uneasy about the notion of ‘self-love’ don’t be afraid of it. I understand that it can be a big step to move from a place of inadequacy to self-love. But trust that you can find your way there.
Self-love starts from self-acceptance – that is, unconditionally accepting yourself and your body, just as it is. Practise body neutrality, whereby you respect your body for how it serves you - not how it looks. Take a moment each day to acknowledge and be grateful for all the things your body does for you without you even having to think about it.
Here are some reflections to get you started…. Your heart pumps blood throughout your body, which, in turn, transports oxygen & nutrients to your major organs. Your lungs help you breathe. Your stomach facilitates digestion, thereby allowing you to eat, enjoy, and receive the full benefits of food. Your eyes allow you to see the beautiful work around you. Your legs allow you to move. Your arms allow you to hug loved ones.
ABOUT ISLA
Self-confidence & Self-expression Mentor. Holistic Healing Facilitator. Transformational Coach
I’m a certified Self-confidence & Self-expression Mentor, Transformational Coach & Holistic Healing Facilitator. I help women reconnect to who they are, gain clarity and cultivate deeper levels of inner calm, peace and self-confidence, and feel confident, self-expressed and fulfilled in their careers, relationships and sexuality. I take a holistic approach to my practice and integrate bespoke meditations, mindfulness, Emotional Freedom Technique and theta healing alongside positive psychology, cognitive behavioural coaching and mentoring to help my clients to holistically heal and transform how they feel from the inside out.
Feel free to reach out if you'd like some support to help you feel calmer, more self-confident and fulfilled. You can book a complimentary exploratory call to discover more about my bespoke 12- week coaching, mentoring and holistic healing package to help you to cultivate deeper levels of inner calm, peace and self-confidence, feel fulfilled in your career and relationships and sexuality and thrive. I'm also offering deep dive, calm and clarity packages to help you navigate this time of change, uncertainty and stress.
