I used to look in the mirror and hate what I saw. Even looking at a clothing catalog was painful because I believed I would never look like the models. Shopping for clothes usually ended with me in tears.

It took practice to change my thinking about my beautiful, magnificent, and wonderful body! A turning point for me was recognizing the injury I was heaping on my body—not only my thoughts, but the food I put into it and how little I moved it.

Is it any wonder that my weight was like a yo-yo, and that I suffered from depression and chronic migraines and back problems? If I had been the parent of my body, I would have been arrested for mental and physical abuse!

But even with all those insults, my body never stopped working hard for me. It never stopped doing everything in its power to heal and help me move throughout my day. No matter how much I hindered it, it never stopped knocking itself out on my behalf.

That awareness shifted my thinking about my body to appreciation. I began to practice appreciating my body.

I appreciated my feet and legs for carrying me everywhere I wanted to go. I appreciated my back for supporting me in everything I did, my hands for enabling me to do just about everything, and my face for being what I share with the world. I pondered how amazing is it that with no effort on my part, my heart beats, my brain functions, and I breathe in and out. Everything I take for granted about my body is truly a miracle.

And a wondrous thing began to happen. The more I appreciated my body and praised it, the more energy I had to support it with healthy foods. Not only did I have the energy to work out, but I wanted to exercise. And the easier it became to lose and maintain my weight.

I knew I had truly changed when one day I was looking at a catalog and caught myself thinking how good I would look in the clothes being modeled. Not only was I was enjoying looking at the clothes, I was appreciating the beauty of the models—and recognizing my own beauty!

When we treat our bodies with love and appreciation, we truly empower ourselves to live the life of our dreams.

Together we can do it!