Hello friends,
I don't know which season is harder on the body image, summer or winter. I just know that I feel under constant assault during both those times. There is so much discussion of weight and food and appearance during the holidays. So much shame about eating treats, so much toxic talk about "earning" food. So many people commenting on body changes or policing food choices and thinking that it's helpful.

This has been an exceptionally hard stretch of road for everyone, and your body has continued to function under very stressful circumstances. It is carrying grief and stress for you. It is holding the fear and uncertainty you feel. It is recovering or coping or caring for someone. Every pivot you've had to make as you kept putting one foot in front of the other, your body has made happen.

It deserves compassion for what it is going through. Every morning you keep waking up. You keep breathing in and out. You keep thinking new thoughts. Your body shows up for work every day, taking care of you. It deserves to be taken care of in return.

I hope you have a wonderful, restful, holiday season. I hope you eat what makes you feel good. I hope you tell the people that need to hear it to stop commenting on your body. But mostly I hope you speak to yourself with compassion, and find ways to be loyal to your body by taking care of it.

This month on the blog I've been thinking about what a Body Loyal approach to the holidays would look like. How do you balance tradition, family, obligation, and your own needs and abilities? The answer is going to be different depending on all the different variables that make up your life, but I think it is important to ask that question. Especially on a year when everyone is worn down and feeling depleted. Sometimes emotional energy needs to be rationed and, if we're not thoughtful about it, it's easy to end up with your needs left off the to-do list.

I have been having a great time with TikTok. It's a really great format to talk about all the different facets of Body Loyalty. I try to post every morning, as my body will allow.

Follow me there for lots of bite sized pep talks and rants.

Every January we get pummeled with ads and media that tell us to make over your whole life and do whatever it takes to make your body smaller. It feels gross and pressurized and would require me to wake up on New Years Day as a person who behaves completely different than I ever managed. But the new year is a natural time for new beginnings and evaluations. I do want to grow and make healthy changes in my life, so how do I navigate setting health goals without drowning in diet or grind culture?

We'll talk about that in January!