Expertly Crafted Essay On Positive Body Image Exercises

My experience of completing the positive body image exercises was exceedingly rewarding and positive. In the process of carrying out each separate exercise, I recognized my intrinsic alignment with positive judgments and feelings that support my body’s growth and development. The negative energy that I sometimes project towards others and myself with regards to body image is something that I found to be a product of my social conditioning and programming. In other words, the negative judgments or bad feelings that I have related to mine and others’ body image is something generated by my socialization process and participation in a society that upholds strict ideals of achieved beauty and attractiveness. When I stripped this social conditioning away during such exercises as the “Guided Imagery and Mindfulness” exercise or the judgment release exercise, I noticed that my natural state is one of approval, satisfaction, and contentment with my body image.
The exercise that was the most meaningful to me was “Improve Your Body Image.” Being asked to work with my body rather than against it was a means of reprieve. Often, I find myself combatting my body to improve my self-presentation, rather than following my body’s natural flow or groove. This exercise helped me to acknowledge the myriad gifts, blessings, and abilities that my body provides me. It forced me to focus on the positive aspects of my body that I routinely forget to acknowledge or appreciate. “Improve Your Body Image” also made me aware of the fact that my beauty or attractiveness is not necessarily a measure of my physical appearance, but of the quality of my character and the personhood that I share wth others. From this exercise, I learned to be more assertive, self-confident, and proud of myself as a means of enhancing my overall self image.
The exercises that I enjoyed and felt were more meaningful than others were the “Release Judgment” and “Guided Imagery and Mindfulness” exercises. Being forced to confront the judgments that I often pass on others and myself (subconsciously) helped me to practice the art of non-judgment. “Release Judgment” helped me to reverse my mentality and the nature of my mental projections towards others by replacing my thoughts with recognition and praise of others’ good attributes and attractive qualities. “Guided Imagery and Mindfulness” helped me to change my thought patterns as well by way of positive affirmations and consolidated centeredness.
Regular practice of these exercises would absolutely impact my body image in a positive way. The practices that I do now to improve my body image are affirming my positive attributes, developing personal character traits that enhance the lives of those I meet, transforming judgments into praise for others’ beauty and redeeming qualities, and avoiding media messages that give rise to thin-ideal-internalization or other negative body image ideas and feelings. As a result of this course, my body image has improved significantly. My attitudes and behaviors towards my body are now influenced and informed by the wealth of knowledge that we have encountered and engaged with as a class, which has helped me to make intelligent choices and better judgments. I have developed a greater appreciation for myself as a whole person, rather than merely a consciousness inside of a physical body, and I have learned to direct my thoughts and ambitions towards health and wellness as opposed to only beauty and attractiveness.