Rethinking Body Image: How Body Neutrality Promotes True Healing

Ah, summer. The season of longer days, pool hangs, sunblock that somehow never blends in... and an avalanche of "get bikini body ready!" messages that no one asked for.

If you've scrolled through Instagram, TikTok, or wandered past the checkout aisle at Target lately, you’ve probably noticed: everyone seems to have an opinion about your body—how it should look, how it should shrink, how it should be "fixed" before you dare show it in a swimsuit.

Let’s pause right there.

Because the truth is: your body was never the problem. The problem is a culture that constantly tells us we have to earnthe right to be seen, to feel confident, to enjoy ourselves.

The Cultural Obsession with “Looking the Part”

From a young age, we're taught—explicitly and subtly—that looking a certain way will unlock happiness, confidence, relationships, success. And when summer hits, the pressure intensifies. All of a sudden, the focus shifts from what brings us joy in the warmer months (watermelon, beach days, laughing with friends) to how our body appears doing those things.

This isn’t just irritating—it’s harmful. Research shows that internalizing cultural ideals of thinness and beauty contributes to body dissatisfaction, self-objectification, and disordered eating behaviors (Grabe, Ward, & Hyde, 2008). When we constantly measure our worth based on how we think we look, we disconnect from how we feel—and from what really matters.

From Body Obsession to Body Respect

Here’s the thing: positive body image doesn’t always feel realistic, especially when you’re deep in the process of healing from an eating disorder or disordered eating. Telling yourself to "love your body!" when you're feeling uncomfortable in it can feel... fake, forced, and frankly, frustrating.

Enter: body neutrality.

So, what is body neutrality?

Body neutrality is the idea that you don’t have to love your body all the time to respect it. It’s about shifting your focus from how your body looks to what it does for you. It says: “My body is not an ornament. It’s an instrument.”

Instead of chasing body “confidence,” which often still keeps the body at the center, body neutrality moves the focus back to you—your values, your joy, your relationships, your aliveness.

Why Body Neutrality Can Be a Game-Changer

This shift can be powerful. Our lives are already filled with stress and challenges. Add diet culture, social media filters, and peer pressure into the mix, and it’s no wonder so many feel like their bodies are under a microscope.

Body neutrality offers permission to step off the body comparison treadmill and start investing energy into what truly matters—your experiences, relationships, creativity, and growth.

Tips for Practicing Body Neutrality This Summer and Beyond

If you’re tired of the constant commentary on bodies—yours or others’—here are some real-life ways to practice body neutrality:

1. Focus on function, not form

Instead of criticizing how your stomach looks in that swimsuit, try asking: What is my body allowing me to do right now?Swim. Laugh. Hug. Eat ice cream. Run through sprinklers. Your body is showing up for you—what if you showed up for it, too?

2. Curate your feed

Social media algorithms thrive on comparison. Start muting or unfollowing accounts that leave you feeling “less than,” and follow people who reflect real bodies, joyful movement, and body respect. (Check out @thebodyisnotanapology or @beauty_redefined for inspiration.)

3. Set boundaries around body talk

When friends or family comment on weight, appearance, or dieting, it’s okay to redirect. You can say, “I’m working on having a different relationship with my body and those comments aren’t helpful.” Practicing this can be empowering.

4. Wear the swimsuit

The goal of summer is not to look good in a bikini. The goal is to feel good in your life. Wear the thing. Get in the water. Let go of the idea that your body has to look a certain way to deserve joy.

5. Name the voice—and talk back

Notice when critical thoughts pop up. Is it your voice, or internalized diet culture? Try saying, “That’s the perfectionist talking—and I’m not listening today.”

6. Practice gratitude for your body

Even on hard days, try finding one thing you can thank your body for: breathing, holding your hand steady while you journal, allowing you to listen to your favorite song. These small shifts add up.

The Bottom Line

You don’t have to love your body to respect it. You don’t need six-pack abs to enjoy the beach. And you definitely don’t have to spend another summer obsessing over beauty standards that were never meant to serve you in the first place.

Body neutrality offers a way forward—one rooted in respect, functionality, and freedom. Not perfection. Not comparison. Just living.

You are already worthy. Full stop. Let your summer reflect that truth.

✨ Further Reading & Resources:

• More Than a Body by Lindsay and Lexie Kite

• The Body is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor

• Beyond Beautiful by Anuschka Rees

References:

• Grabe, S., Ward, L. M., & Hyde, J. S. (2008). The role of the media in body image concerns among women: A meta-analysis of experimental and correlational studies. Psychological Bulletin, 134(3), 460–476.

• Tylka, T. L., & Wood-Barcalow, N. L. (2015). The Body Appreciation Scale-2: Item refinement and psychometric evaluation. Body Image, 12, 53–67.