Understanding Health at Every Size
I have noticed a trend lately. I am seeing people coming in who are ready to love and accept themselves in the bodies they currently live in. Yet, they are feeling misunderstood by other people in their lives. They are hearing the message from family, health providers, and our culture that the need to change their body before it can become healthy, lovable, or acceptable.
I think that some of this misunderstanding is because people do not really understand the Health at Every Size movement. They think it means not caring about your health and not taking steps to improve general fitness. This is not the case at all. Health goals just become about improving habits and not about changing the weight or shape of the body. For example, my clients who are embracing HAES are working on goals like being able to touch their toes, running a 3K, drinking more water, getting outside in nature more, making more home cooked meals, and eating at the kitchen table instead of in front of the tv. They are also connecting more with friends and family, because they are working really hard not to feel ashamed of their bodies when they are in public spaces.
Health at Every Size is about loving and taking care of your body. It is about developing a healthy relationship with food. It is about recovery, balance, and connection. It is about not putting your life on hold while you transform your body into something different. It is about living your life and being fierce.
Deah Schwartz, writing for NEDA, sums this up well when they wrote the following: “The basic premise of health at every size, as written in Linda Bacon’s Book, Health at Every Size: The surprising truth about your weight, is that “Health at Every Size” (HAES) acknowledges that well-being and healthy habits are more important than any number on the scale.
1. Accept your size. Love and appreciate the body you have. Self-acceptance empowers you to move on and make positive changes.
2. Trust yourself. We all have internal systems designed to keep us healthy — and at a healthy weight. Support your body in naturally finding its appropriate weight by honoring its signals of hunger, fullness, and appetite.
3. Adopt healthy lifestyle habits. Develop and nurture connections with others and look for purpose and meaning in your life. Fulfilling your social, emotional, and spiritual needs restores food to its rightful place as a source of nourishment and pleasure.
Find the joy in moving your body and becoming more physically vital in your everyday life.
Eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re full, and seek out pleasurable and satisfying foods.
Tailor your tastes so that you enjoy more nutritious foods, staying mindful that there is plenty of room for less nutritious choices in the context of an overall healthy diet and lifestyle.
4. Embrace size diversity. Humans come in a variety of sizes and shapes. Open to the beauty found across the spectrum and support others in recognizing their unique attractiveness.”
I am listing some resources below to help learn more about the HAES Concept:
https://haescommunity.com/
https://lindobacon.com/_resources/
https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/sites/default/files/ResourceHandouts/