Body Image Myths: Accepting your body means you’ve given up on your health.

Welcome back to my Body Image Myths series — where I’m unpacking some of the biggest misconceptions we’ve been taught about our bodies, health, and happiness.

So far, we’ve covered two big ones: the idea that you must love your body every day, and the belief that weight loss automatically brings happiness.

Today we’re tackling another myth that causes a lot of confusion:

“Accepting your body means you’ve given up on your health.”

And this one really gets to me, because it’s just not true.

Your health is deeply personal, complex, and nobody else’s business. And accepting your body as it is doesn’t mean you’re settling, giving up, or abandoning your wellbeing. Acceptance simply means acknowledging where you’re at right now — without shame, denial, or self-punishment.

You can accept your body and still want change. The difference is in the energy behind it. When you stop fighting yourself, you remove resistance. You start from truth instead of criticism. From that grounded place, you can make decisions about what—if anything—you want to work on.

I see this all the time with my clients. When they stop waging war on their bodies, they free up so much mental and emotional space to actually care for themselves. Their choices become clearer, kinder, and more sustainable. Change becomes something rooted in compassion, not self-attack.

That’s the real shift:
Acceptance isn’t giving up. Acceptance is what makes meaningful change possible.

So if resisting your body hasn’t worked — maybe try something gentler.
Try acceptance.
Try honesty.
Try meeting your body where it is, and see what opens up when you finally stop fighting yourself.

Want to join a community of people who are all looking to build better relationships with their bodies? Join my Belly Club Facebook Group.