We explore the differences between body positivity, body neutrality, body acceptance, and body liberation, and which approach to body image might be right for you.
If you’ve ever gone onto social media or clicked an article that claims it will help you feel more comfortable in your own skin, you’ve likely encountered a library of terms related to body image. So what is “body image” anyway? And what are the nuances between the terms used to describe our relationships with it?
Body image is a complex topic. In the most basic terms, body image is what you believe about your physical appearance in your mind. This can encompass memories and assumptions you have about your body, feelings you may have about body traits like height, shape, and weight, the sense of control (or lack of control) you have over your physical abilities, and/or how you feel in your body.
Body image isn’t just about appearance: Feeling bad about your physical appearance can affect every part of your life, including your sense of self-worth. This isn’t a superficial issue; after all, negative body image is one of many known contributors to eating disorders.
Aside from eating disorders, negative body image can affect everything from our moods and relationships to our world views and perceptions of reality. While there’s absolutely no “right” or “wrong” approach to body image, you may have come across a handful of similar but separate philosophies: body positivity, body neutrality, body acceptance, and body liberation. Below we break down what they represent and mean for people:
Body positivity
In general, body positivity encourages individuals to love “their bodies regardless of shape, size, color, gender, or ability.” The concept has its roots in the 1960s Fat Acceptance Movement and has evolved over time with the advent of social media, particularly Instagram, which has helped popularize it with the rise of influencers like Megan Jayne Crabbe aka Body Posi Panda, artists like Lizzo, and model Tess Holliday.
“I think of body positivity as the practice of embracing and celebrating all aspects of one’s body, which can be challenging and might feel overwhelming for folks in the throes of eating disorder recovery,” says Jennifer Derenne MD, Equip’s VP of Clinical Care Delivery and Head Psychiatrist.
While body positivity is perhaps the best-known approach to self-image and has been widely celebrated, some of the very figures who’ve helped it gain recognition have also criticized its shortcomings. Lizzo, for example, said the movement “has been co-opted by all bodies,” and that “big women, big brown and Black women, queer women are not benefiting from the mainstream success of it.” Others have critiqued the current form of body positivity as “fake”, appropriation, and filled with influencers posting images [who] are thin, white, able-bodied women.”
“For many people, body positivity is inaccessible or impossible,” says Cara Bohon, Equip’s VP of Clinical Programs. “In a society where large bodies are constantly ridiculed, judged, or discriminated against, it is not always realistic for people to have positive feelings for their bodies.”
Body neutrality
Unlike body positivity, body neutrality is considered a “middle-of-the-road approach” that isn’t about loving your body or hating it — it’s about simply “prioritizing the body’s function and what it can do, rather than its appearance,” according to certified intuitive-eating counselor and eating disorder specialist Anne Poirier who’s credited with popularizing it.
“Body neutrality focuses on function rather than appearance,” Derenne says. “An example of this is saying, ‘My body can do what it does – no matter where I am right now, I don’t need to be compared to anyone else.’”
Body acceptance
Similarly, body acceptance isn’t about loving the way your body looks or feels, but about simply accepting that it’s yours, no matter its weight, shape, size, or state. In some ways, body acceptance is more closely tied to the origins of body positivity and the Fat Acceptance movement, encouraging individuals to acknowledge their bodies from an impartial place.
“Body acceptance is a slight variation of body neutrality that has a somewhat more positive angle — accepting the body as it is in a nonjudgmental way,” Bohon says.
Derenne adds that body acceptance is unique and distinct from the other approaches in its focus on celebrating the very existence of one’s body, even while tolerating any uncomfortable feelings about its appearance of ability. “Body acceptance allows individuals to acknowledge that there may be things about their body that they feel conflicted about or don’t always love, and at the same time promotes the importance of respect and care for bodies no matter what,” she says.
Body liberation
Equip Body Image Program Manager Ally Duvall says her personal approach to defining body image can be described by the phrases “body liberation” or “body freedom”. “Body neutrality gives us permission to lay down the negativity towards our bodies and acknowledge that our body is just a body — a way to exist in the world,” she says. “Body liberation or body freedom provides the space to move past a body truce and explore how it feels to live unapologetically as ourselves. This can be a great foundation for a new relationship with your body, and can be the next step toward love, joy, and freedom regarding your body.”
Body liberation picks up where body positivity leaves off and cultivates freedom from systemic oppression for all bodies. It encompasses a collective freedom and liberation from fatphobia, homophobia, ableism, racism, sexism, transphobia, and more. It takes back that control over how bodies “should” be and allows them to live as they were always meant to.
“When I first came to the body positive movement I was challenged because I did not love my fat, disabled, Black body,” says Nia Patterson, Equip’s Social Media Manager. “I thought body positivity was about self-love and I was wrong. What I quickly learned is that body positivity is a social justice movement created so that people like me did not have to live in fear of body-based oppression. I knew that I could not recover from my eating disorder at the time in a world built to punish and hate my body. Now I fight for fat liberation and body liberation because those movements are made for the eradication of the oppression of marginalized bodies.”
How to know which body image approach is right for you or your loved one
Depending on where you are in your body image journey, one of these approaches may resonate for you more than the others — and that may change over time. “Someone early in their recovery journey may be able to slowly challenge themselves to think about body neutrality before perhaps getting to a place where they can — at least for brief moments — celebrate all aspects of their physical selves,” Derenne says.
That evolution is something Duvall encourages everyone to be aware of, considering the ever-changing experience of having a body. “You might choose to stay in neutrality or choose to explore body liberation, but nonetheless, the choice is yours and not society’s,” she says. “I think we have to be careful when focusing on the things our body allows us to do as a way of escaping body negativity. Although that can be a helpful starting place, our abilities change over time, just as our body size and shape do, so we want to be intentional about not putting conditions on it.”
Bohon says that no matter which body image approach parents choose to model at home, the language they use to discuss their own bodies matters most. “The best thing parents can do is to work on their own body image,” she says. “When parents express love for their own bodies, they send powerful messages to their kids that contrast with those from media, peers, and others. Stop the weight comments and body checks. Stop the disparaging self-talk about having dessert. Start with body neutrality if that feels best for you, and if you feel ready for body positivity and self love, go for it. That may have an even more powerful impact.”
While body image is an issue everyone deals with, it’s especially important for those who may be prone to eating disorders for any number of reasons (like genetics, environment, media messages, etc.) to be extra vigilant about how they think and talk about their bodies. If you or someone you know is struggling with body negativity, it’s never too early to seek support — whether that means learning healthier coping strategies or embarking on a treatment journey.
