50 Best Body-Positive Quotes That'll Remind You That You Are Enough
Reset your mindset with these powerful words about loving the skin you're in.
So here's the thing about body positivity: Try as you might, you probably won't feel like cheerleading for yourself nude in front of your full length mirror every single day (or, well, ever). Even those of us who generally feel good about our bodies don't feel it every single day, and that doesn't mean that you're "doing it wrong."
What it means is that everyone, especially women, is under enormous pressure to live up to unrealistic beauty standards (we don't need to go over what they are, but let's just say that most of us don't feel that we meet them, according to a recent Good Housekeeping survey.) Rejecting that pressure, pushing back against fat-shaming messages, giving your body credit for all it does for you and figuring out ways to value yourself and your fabulosity that are more about who you are than what you look like — those are what will lead to long-term body acceptance. Some also find that thinking about "body neutrality," rather than body positivity, works better to bring them peace.
But of course, those things take time and lots and lots of repetition, especially given that diet culture and a mindset of valuing women for their appearance over their humanity is the water in which we swim. A good place to remind yourself that you're not alone in thinking whatever it is you might think about your body is looking at this inspirational body-positive quotes from celebrities who know how to keep it real.
1."I never beat myself up or forced myself to look a certain way, and my goals have not been vanity-oriented, so I’ll be able to talk to my kids in a very real way about having to work with ourselves the way that we are. We’ve got to embrace it. We were all made a certain way.” — Drew Barrymore
2. “I’m 37 and finally love and accept myself. This isn’t a 'good for me' post. And it’s definitely not a 'feel bad for me post.' It’s for the kids who don’t take their shirt off at the pool. Have fun. You’re wonderful and awesome and perfect.” — Jonah Hill
3. “Any body type is beautiful. It’s all about loving what you got and rocking it.” — Megan Trainor
4. “I’ve never had a flat stomach. It just doesn’t happen, it’s just not going to happen, and it’s my little warm roll, and I like it, and I’m not a failure for not having a flat stomach,” — Jameela Jamil
5. "It doesn’t have anything to do with how the world perceives you. What matters is what you see." — Gabourey Sidibe
6. "I guess my mom raised me right. She was very celebratory of her body. I never heard her once say, 'I feel fat.' Back when I was modeling, the first time I went to Italy I was having cappuccinos every day, and I gained 15 pounds. And I felt gorgeous! I would take my clothes off in front of the mirror and be like, Oh, I look like a woman. And I felt beautiful, and I never tried to lose it, 'cause I loved it." — Christina Hendricks
7. “The body is such a commodity in our culture. People always comment on your weight. It's a very shameful thing to take more than your share or take up more space. But now I realize that you're entitled to that space. You can take up as much space as you want.” — Margaret Cho
8. “[T]here’s a double standard where it’s ok to talk s**t about a dude's body… I’m happy with my body and who I am and other kids who are built like me and thinner than me should be able to feel the same way.” — Grant Gustin
9. “It’s beautiful to feel positive about your body, but it’s also fine that you don’t look like everybody else...or you have a different shape of this, or your legs are thicker, or your breasts are larger, or your breasts are smaller, or whatever the thing might be.” — Alicia Keys
10. "We just need to be kinder to ourselves. If we treated ourselves the way we treated our best friend, can you imagine how much better off we would be?" — Meghan Markle
11. “I’m comfortable in my body and I don’t mind putting it on display... Honestly, I like how unique it is. My big arms, my bigger hands, these long legs — I love being different. If everybody was the same, it’d be a boring-ass world.” — Britney Griner
12. “I’m so grateful that my body has taken care of me this long. It’s given me children, it’s healed from various accidents and surgeries, and I just feel, I think that we talk about that. I feel better in my 50s than I ever did prior.” — Brooke Shields
13. “I see my body as an instrument, rather than an ornament.” — Alanis Morissette
14. “Our own physical body possesses a wisdom which we who inhabit the body lack. We give it orders which make no sense.” —Henry Miller
15. "Each individual woman’s body demands to be accepted on its own terms." — Gloria Steinem
16. “With all the sharpness and harshness and violence and fear that has been around, perhaps the softness of my body is a blessing. It has been able to nurture me in a way that my mind could not.” — Tracee Ellis Ross
17. “I wanted to do nudity. I felt like, all right, I’m 45, I’ve got cellulite, I’ve got stretch marks. I’m feeling really good about myself. Let’s stick it out there.” — Frances McDormand
18. "I say this for any other person whose appearance has been changed with time, illness or circumstance — it's okay to live in your present body without treating it as transitional. I am, and I'm really enjoying it." — Lena Dunham
19. “[Y]esterday I decided to fight the f**k back. Reclaim my body and stop trying to change this chest and these hips and these curves that my mum and dad made and love so unconditionally.” — Sam Smith
20. "We’ve forgotten what a regular body looks like. There are people out there who are struggling, and I’m struggling, and it’s okay to come to terms with realizing it’s going to be a bit of a journey." — Chrissy Teigen
21. “I've been sucking my stomach in since I was 11... I very specifically decided to relinquish and release every muscle I had that I used to clench to hide the reality. That was my goal. I have never felt more free creatively and physically.” — Jamie Lee Curtis
22. “You just have to accept your body. You may not love it all the way, but you just have to be comfortable with it. You just want something else that someone else has, but that doesn't mean what you have isn't beautiful.” — Rihanna
23. “It’s really an awakening — when you get pregnant and have a child — that the female body is the most amazing machine imaginable.” — Alyssa Milano
24. "Don’t waste so much time thinking about how much you weigh. There is no more mind-numbing, boring, idiotic, self-destructive diversion from the fun of living." — Meryl Streep
25. "I realize everybody wants what they don’t have. But at the end of the day, what you have inside is much more beautiful than what’s on the outside."— Selena Gomez
26. "Being a healthy woman isn’t about getting on a scale or measuring your waistline. We need to start focusing on what matters — on how we feel, and how we feel about ourselves."— Michelle Obama
27. "People often say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I say that the most liberating thing about beauty is realizing that you are the beholder." — Salma Hayak
28. "I’ve made peace with the fact that the things that I thought were weaknesses or flaws were just me. I like them." — Sandra Bullock
29. "How I feel about myself is more important than how I look. Feeling confident, being comfortable in your skin — that’s what really makes you beautiful." — Bobbi Brown
30. "My weight? It is what it is. You could get hit by a bus tomorrow. It’s about being content. And sometimes other priorities win." — Melissa McCarthy
31. "I’m pretty comfortable with my body. I’m imperfect. The imperfections are there. People are going to see them, but I take the view you only live once." — Kate Hudson
32. "Even I don't wake up looking like Cindy Crawford." — Cindy Crawford
33. "Feeling beautiful has nothing to do with what you look like." —Emma Watson
34. "Since I don’t look like every other girl, it takes a while to be okay with that. To be different. But different is good." — Serena Williams
35. "I definitely have body issues, but everybody does. When you come to the realization that everybody does — even the people that I consider flawless — then you can start to live with the way you are." —Taylor Swift
35. "Be happy in your own skin. If you are unhealthy, start by making small changes to become healthier. You are unique, beautiful, and worthy." — Octavia Spencer
37. "I can’t think of any better representation of beauty than someone who is unafraid to be herself." — Emma Stone
38. "Your words have so much power. Every day, if you tell yourself, ‘I love you,’ if you give yourself one word of validation, it will change your mind." — Ashley Graham
39. "You have to stand up and say, ‘There’s nothing wrong with me or my shape or who I am, you’re the one with the problem!'" — Jennifer Lopez
40. "Someone’s always going to have a critique … All that matters is what I think of it. And I had to go so deep inside myself and look in the mirror. Looking in the mirror and accepting what’s in the mirror is very, very difficult. And right now, I love it every time I look in the mirror." — Lizzo
41. "I’m constantly reminding myself it’s not about my thighs: It’s about my commitment and my happiness level." — Kristin Bell
42. "I make a promise to myself to start appreciating what my body CAN do and stop focusing on what it can’t." — Carrie Underwood
43. "Nobody is perfect. I just don’t believe in perfection. But I do believe in saying, 'This is who I am and look at me not being perfect!' I’m proud of that." — Kate Winslet
44. "Say goodbye to your inner critic, and take this pledge to be kinder to yourself and others." — Oprah
45. "Knowing that I feel good because I am being diligent about taking care of myself mentally, physically, and emotionally creates self-esteem." — Chrissy Metz
45. "All I have to say is 'I'm healthy.' In that statement, I express gratitude. I am grateful for my strength and things I can do with my body. I am saying I'm healthy and I accept the way my body is today without changing anything." — Demi Lovato
47. "Take your time and your talent and figure out what you have to contribute to this world, and get over what the hell your butt looks like in those jeans!" — America Ferrara
48. "You all can judge my body all you want, but at the end of the day it’s MY body. I love it and I’m comfortable in my own skin." — Simone Biles
49. "You define beauty yourself. Society doesn’t define your beauty." — Lady Gaga
50. "“It has come with age — age and continuing to read and travel and realize that nobody, except for mean girls, gives a shit about a dimple in a thigh or what your upper arms look like. If you carry yourself with confidence, and you move through the world with your head held high and your shoulders thrown back, you don’t need to be a [size] double-zero. What people are attracted to is the fact that you’re attracted to yourself.” — Gabrielle Union
Caroline is a writer and editor with almost a decade of experience. From 2015 to 2019, she held various editorial positions at Good Housekeeping, including as health editor, covering nutrition, fitness, wellness, and other lifestyle news. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism and dreams of the day Northwestern will go back to the Rose Bowl.
Stephanie (she/her) is the director of the Hearst Health Newsroom, where she writes, edits and oversees all health content for Good Housekeeping, Prevention and other Hearst titles. She has covered women's physical and emotional health, nutrition, sexuality and the multitudes of topics they contain for national publications for decades, and she is also a bestselling author, a mom of twins, a dog mom and an intuitive eater in progress.
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