Now that you have your power anthem, add Tip #19 (courtesy of Tyra Banks):

Every hallway is a runway.

Throw your shoulders back, stand up straight, hold your head up high, and walk into every room like your walking down the catwalk. You’ll feel like a star.

For fans of “The Full Body Project,” there is now a MySpace page (sanctioned by no less than Leonard Nimoy himself) for those who want to show some love for the book and art exhibit: myspace.com/fullbodyproject.

If you want to see some beautiful, dynamic women, just take a look at the friends pictures. There are some awesome ladies here.

Love Your Body Month Tip # 18:

Find your power anthem.

Every been to a ballgame?  Notice how a powerful song can energize an audience.  Most teams, professional and amateur, have a theme song, a tune with a pounding beat and a memorable chorus.  Music exerts a power that bypasses the logical, over-thinking part of the brain and connects straight to our emotions, and our bodies.

Find a song that resonates with you, that causes you to throw your shoulders back and walk to the beat.  Then, whenever you walk into a room, turn on your theme song in your mind, and walk in fully in your power. Your confidence will radiate through the room.  And its hard to hate your body when “You’re Unbelievable” or “Beautiful” is running through your mind.

Tip # 16 may require a little rummaging:

Create your own photo therapy.

Find a picture(s) of yourself from some years ago that, at the time, caused you to flinch, but now, you can appreciate as your fresh, youthful self. Remember: you looked fine then, but you couldn’t appreciate it yet.

Then find a photo of yourself that you hate today and imagine how you will feel when you look at the picture 10, 20, 30+ years from now. The same will be true of this picture as is true of the older photo–you look fine now, you just can’t appreciate it yet.

This process may take a while to work–I’ve kept an “ugly” picture file for years, and only in the past few years have I really been able to truly believe in the beauty of current “ugly” pictures. But stick with it, and you can transform your relationship with the camera.

Love Your Body Month Tip #15:

Buy (insert favorite style here) lingerie.

I’m a fan of the lacy, racy stuff, but whatever your flavor–pretty, funky, comfy, silly–treat your body to something that makes you feel your best, most powerful self.

This is a great time of year for lingerie–post-Valentine’s should provide you with selection and sales. Check out our Shopping links for some great resources.

Enjoy!

In honor of Valentine’s Day, Tip #14 is:

Be your own Valentine.

Valentine’s Day, at it’s heart (pun intended), is supposed to be about appreciation. Could your body use some appreciation? If you feel like sending your body flowers or candy, I’m sure it won’t complain; however, how about a nice love note? Here’s mine, feel free to copy:

Beloved body,

I know that I don’t always say it enough, but thank you for being my true partner is this world. Thanks for sticking with me thorough thick and thin (or thin and thick, as the case may be). I promise to shower you with love for as long as we are together.

Remember, I’ve got your back, because, baby, I know that you have mine.

XXOO!

Love Your Body Tip #13 comes from Dr. Margo Maine:

Your body is extraordinary–begin to respect and appreciate it.

The human body is amazing. Consider some of these facts:

• Your skin replaces itself once a month, your stomach lining every five days, your liver every six weeks, and your skeleton every three months.
• The heart circulates your blood through your body 1000 times a day.
• Your bones are 4 times stronger than concrete.
• Your eyes can distinguish over 1 million colors.
• You exercise at least 30 muscles when you smile.

When negative thoughts about your body enter your mind, meditate on the amazing nature of the skin your in. (For many more facts about the human body, click here.)

Love Your Body Month Tip #12:

Make a personal beauties list.

Most of us have no problem listing our blemishes, but how many of us keep a list of our beauties? Sit down with pen and paper and give yourself a compliment: I have beautiful brown eyes, I have pretty hands. If you struggle to compliment yourself physically, start with your inner beauties: I am kind and loving, I’m a good listener. Try to come up with at least 5 compliments. Then, every day for the rest of the month, read your list and add at least one more compliment.

Let’s see if we can make our beauties list longer than our blemishes list.

Check in tomorrow for lucky Tip #13.

Love Your Body Tip #11:

Make friends with the mirror.

You can use the mirror to train your brain and your eye at the same time. Put a note on your mirror with a body love message, such as “I accept myself unconditionally right now,” or “I am beautiful inside and out.” Whenever you look in the mirror, look yourself directly in the eye and say your message. You’ll be amazed at how powerful the experience may be.

Well, we’re 11 days into Love Your Body Month. How are you doing? Do you have any tips of your own? Feel free to post a comment on your experience with Love Your Body Month so far.

You’ve just got to love the tagline of Multi-Tasking Woman.com: is Redundant.

Kyle Young, founder and CEO (Chief Encouragement Officer) of the site, is creating a community of women:

“that empowers each of them to embrace and celebrate ALL the facets of their lives as a unique whole. There’s so much power in women having the support of each other at every point along their path.”

And I’ve got to love MTW: check out the fantastic profile of The Curvy Life (by clicking here) and the profile of me (by clicking here).

If you are a Multi-Tasking Woman (I know, redundant) head on over to Multi-Tasking Woman.com where you can meet some awesome women (present company included) and share your own Multi-Tasking story.

Tip #10 comes from NEDA’s (National Eating Disorder Association) “Twenty Ways to Love Your Body!” If you’re feeling ambitious, check out the entire list; however, for a Sunday, this one is probably plenty :

Eat when you are hungry. Rest when you are tired. Surround yourself with people who remind you of your inner strength and beauty.

Be mindful of your body and and your environment. Feeling physically and emotionally at peace go a long way to making us more comfortable with our bodies.

See you tomorrow for Tip #11.

Love Your Body Month Tip #9:

Look at images of real women.

Not only are the majority of the images that we see in the media photoshopped beyond recognition, the women in these images represent a very rare body type. Our eye becomes accustomed to just one look–tall, skinny, smooth, and shiny. And if that is not your body type, it is easy to become convinced that your body is flawed and unappealing.

So, where do we find images of “real” women? A great place to start is the Lifetime Television show “How to Look Good Naked” (Fridays 9 & 9:30pm, Saturdays 11 & 11:30 pm, or watch full episodes online). Women of all shapes and sizes strip down to bra and panties, and look awesome while doing it. Never before on television have I seen such a wide variety of female body types placed side-by-side and treated in such a positive manner. (Of course, they feature a commercial at the beginning of this clip with a tall, skinny, smooth, and please note, shiny woman.)

Plus Model Magazine (online) and Figure Magazine (print) feature women anywhere from size 10-18 (Yes, Virginia, size 10 is plus-size in the fantastical world of modeling). For some curvier models, check out the girls on B&Lu.com. There are other sources as well; check our links for many more.

It is a slow process, but we can re-train our eye to accept a broader, more inclusive definition of a beautiful body.

Check back tomorrow for Tip #10.

The following is our updated About page:

The Curvy Life blog is a response to the constant barrage of unrealistic images of women on television, in movies, and in print. We are constantly being told that our bodies and our lives aren’t “good enough” and many of us suffer from the emotional pain of feeling outside the beauty norm (ab-norm as it is).

However, the Curvy Life is really for her:

That’s me at age 15, hating my body.

I had already been on a diet or two, and I remember the punch in the gut I felt when I looked at this photo–I hated my thighs, I thought my stomach was too poochy, and my knees were too dimply. From this point forward, I made it a mission to avoid having my picture taken.

It breaks my heart to look at this picture today. I look at that photo know and think– How cute was I? Young, slim, with creamy skin, beautiful in the way of youth (and I wish I could have those thighs back). I was athletic and smart and outgoing. Yet, at this moment in my life, I felt like a failure as a woman (and I was just starting out).

It took me many years to learn to appreciate my own beauty, and dare I say it, to love my body. It was a process, and I want to share that process here, so that no woman has to carry the heavy burden on her heart carried by that 15 year-old girl.

Here I am, all grown-up:

I still wince at the site of myself on film, but I don’t run from the camera anymore. And I know, that one day, I’ll look back in wonder at the beauty of my youth here, just like I do with my 15-year-old self.

So, what’s the mission?

The Curvy Mission

1. To promote positive body image and self-esteem, regardless of size
2. To advocate for size inclusion and diverse images of women
3. To educate women about images and messages aimed at us
4. To promote body love rather than body hate
5. To encourage whole body, mind, and spirit wellness
6. To rage against the self-loathing machine
7. To create a community of support

I’d love to hear your curvy story. Feel free to share your curvy struggles, your curvy triumphs, your curvy fears, your curvy dreams–your curvy life.

Love Your Body Tip - #8 is inspired by a quote by Dr. Christiane Northrup:

You are not the victim of your body.

She made this comment, not in connection with body image, but rather concerning physical illness. Whatever the condition of our bodies, the physical body itself is trying as hard as it can to maintain life. Illness is not our body attacking or abusing us–our body is our biggest most loyal defender. Imbalance may cause the systems of our bodies to behave in ways that are counter to our well-being, that in fact, may end our life; however, from the point of view of the body, it thinks that it is doing the best that it can.

So, when we feel the victim of our bodies, due to illness or to body composition, we are really feeling victimized by our one true life partner. And it becomes easy to return what seems to be abuse with abuse.

You are not the victim of your body.

You and your body are in this thing together, and you both deserve as much compassion as you can muster.

We’re a week into Love Your Body Month, so Tip #7 is easy and fun:

Dance.

Find a place where you can put on your favorite music and just move. Don’t worry about what you look like, or if what you are doing is even dancing. Check your mind at the door and let your body take over. Jump, sway, twirl, kick, swivel, shake, even spin until you fall down.

After, you’ll find yourself much more comfortable in your skin. And if you are really feeling confident, do a little dance to the Muzak in the grocery store. Not only will you bring a smile to your own face, you might just make someone else smile, as well.

See you tomorrow for Tip #8.