Body image can be a major contributor to your overall happiness in life.  How you view yourself has a direct bearing on your confidence and self-esteem.  Confidence and health go hand in hand.  They feed off each other.  Having a healthy body image means that you feel good about yourself and will have the confidence to try new things.  A healthy body image is crucial to self-confidence, self-acceptance and self-worth.  One of the best ways to feel good about your body is to work on having a healthy one.  Exercise and eating nutritious food will help you develop a strong and fit body, but it will also make you feel more positive about yourself.  

Prior to starting his Life Coaching journey Carl felt overweight, lethargic and insecure about his body image.  He recently told me that it took him 6 months to have the courage to approach me for help.  During that very first consultation, he felt like he was doing the “walk of shame”.  Carl lost 2 stone in the first 6 weeks of his training programme (read more here).  During the following 6 weeks he lost an additional 7lbs and the change in his overall body shape and increase in strength has been incredible.  Whilst the weight loss is a huge achievement for Carl, the way he now thinks and feels about himself is far more important.  Any negative thoughts and feelings about his body image are a thing of the past and Carl has literally never looked back.  

Here are just some of the positive outcomes from his programme:

1.   Increase in overall strength.  Your body carries you through day to day life, helps you move each day and is capable of so much, therefore strength is extremely important.  Carl has literally quadrupled the amount of reps he can now do: 

                                   10 Jan            29 Mar

Full press ups.             25                      80 

Tricep Dips                  25                     150

Half sit ups                  25                     100

Squats                         100                    400

Full plank             1 min 45 sec    3 mins 35 sec

This increase in strength has improved his overall physical confidence and given him positive feelings about his body image. 

2.   Dealing with work stresses.  Carl has said goodbye to the negative mind chatter by focussing on what his body is capable of and by changing his lifestyle.  He wakes up every morning excited about the day ahead and finds it easier to see the positive in everything he does.  Challenges are not stressful anymore, in fact he embraces them. 

3.    Motivation.  Since finding a new love for health and fitness, Carl has far more energy to do the things he has put off for ages.  Nothing phases him and he will give anything a go.

4.    Appreciation for the outdoors.  Every single part of Carl’s progressive fitness programme was delivered outside.  This means that he now embraces the great outdoors and takes his family on far more outdoor adventures than he used to.  Nature is the best gym and it’s free, so why not use it!

5.    Respect and pride.  Carl has always been conscious of the way others saw him, which is common when you have negative thoughts about your body image.  One of his main aims was for his family to be proud of him and for his children to look up to him, as a healthy role model.  He has definitely smashed this goal! 

Changing your lifestyle habits in order to improve how you feel about your body image doesn’t have to be overwhelming.  It takes small changes and the benefits will be enormous.

If you don’t commit, you won’t achieve!

Make the Change.

Chris