Body Positivity vs. Body Neutrality: The Difference & Why It Matters

Large numbers of both men and women are unhappy with their appearance — so much so to where 40% of women and 20% of men are considering cosmetic surgery.
Body image issues are now becoming prevalent in the media. This caused both body positivity and body neutrality movements. Here’s the difference between body positivity and body neutrality.
Body Neutrality & Body Positivity: The Definitions
Before we look into the differences, let’s look at the basic definitions of both movements. This will enhance our understanding of these concepts and will help us better understand the differences.
Body Neutrality
Body neutrality promotes the acceptance of your body image as it naturally is. This more so encompasses the nonphysical characteristics. For example, you may love or grow to accept how strong your body becomes when lifting weights.
The purpose of body neutrality is to stop seeing the body as an object and to stop tying self-worth to body image. As a result, more people take a step back from conversations about the body.
There are many reasons why people may hate their bodies, and these reasons may not have to do with body image. For example, some women may feel tired and weak while pregnant, hating the state of their bodies.
Body neutrality encourages us to accept our strengths and flaws so we can grow to love ourselves.
Body Positivity
On the contrary, body positivity focuses on accepting the appearance of your body. This isn’t a bad thing; the body positivity movement teaches us that we all have a positive body image, regardless of how our culture and society shape body standards.
Body positivity aims to accept all body types, challenges body standards, addresses unrealistic body standards, and helps everyone become more confident in their appearance. One of the ways that body positivity targets this is by addressing the way the media portrays exercise, food, health, clothing, self-care, and even identity.
In addition, body positivity goes beyond body shape and size. It challenges the standards we place upon gender, race, disability, and sexuality. The body positivity movement also targets other aspects such as aging. All of these aspects combined will help us have a healthier relationship with our bodies.
Body Positivity vs Neutrality
As you can see, both movements are very similar. However, they do have their differences.
Body positivity encourages you to love your body, no matter your shape and size. That’s because the body positivity movement believes everyone is beautiful.
On the contrary, body neutrality promotes the fact that we’re more than just bodies. It encourages the idea that physical beauty isn’t the only example of your worth. You may not feel 100% all the time, and that’s okay.
Everyone thinks of both movements differently. On one hand, many think body neutrality is more realistic. Those who support body positivity believe that accepting your physical body will enhance your mental health and well-being.
Examples of Both
Are you still confused by body neutrality and body positivity? If so, there are common examples to enhance your understanding of both movements.
Body neutrality focuses on body acceptance. The best example of body neutrality is you eat healthy and exercise, not to improve your body image but to achieve better health.
Body positivity mainly focuses on accepting the physical aspects of yourself. A good example is wearing clothes that flatter your figure so you can feel more confident. Or, if you’re losing your hair, you may use products to regrow your natural hair.
The History of These Movements
Both movements have an interesting history. Body neutrality is a relatively new concept — the term started appearing online only in 2015. The movement began with a couple of bloggers and then expanded to celebrities and influencers.
From here, body neutrality exploded in popularity. Books and even courses became available that teach essential aspects about the body neutrality movement.
However, body positivity has been around for much longer. The movement traces back to the 1960s, where the concept of fat-shaming first became addressed. In 1969, the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance was even formed. This group aimed to change the way we talked about weight.
The term “body positivity” didn’t actually form until 1996. A psychotherapist and an eating disorder victim founded the website The Body Positive, which offers educational materials and other resources to help people love their bodies and refrain from dangerous diets and exercise routines.
From here, the body positive movement grew. In 2012, the movement started challenging unrealistic body standards placed on women. As time went on, the movement began promoting the concept that all bodies are beautiful.
The movement started increasing more thanks to social media. People started becoming vocal about their body positivity journey on Instagram and other platforms.
As a result, more companies and magazines stopped airbrushing their models. Other companies started integrating more body positive messages into their marketing and advertising campaigns.
The Psychology Behind Both Movements
The psychology of both movements is debated. On one hand, many say the psychology of the body positive movement is a good thing. Many argue that body positivity emphasizes appreciating one’s body, which can prevent eating disorders and other forms of self-hate.
On the other end of the spectrum, many argue that the body positivity movement enforces the idea that you need to love your body to feel good about yourself.
On the contrary, the body neutrality movement emphasizes that you don’t have to love or hate your body. You can accept your body for its flaws and other aspects that make it unique.
This is especially important for certain groups of people. For example, those with conditions such as alopecia may not feel confident when they lose their hair. Those who are transgender may not have loved their previous body because they didn’t identify with that gender.
Who Are These Movements For?
While neither movement is bad, certain people are drawn to one movement over another. Now that you have a better idea of the differences between body positivity and body neutrality, you may wonder which movement benefits you.
In short, both movements can benefit everyone. However, body positivity is ideal for those who put too much emphasis on their body image and often struggle with eating disorders and/or unhealthy exercise habits.
Body neutrality is also ideal for this person but is more for someone who is honest and understands that they may not love their body all the time. Body neutrality is more about acceptance and takes away the self-worth from their physical looks.
Other aspects of your physical appearance, such as your hair, can cause you to feel insecure. If your hair is thinning, the body positivity movement encourages you to find a solution while the body neutrality movement helps you accept your thinning hair.
How to Practice Body Neutrality
If the body neutrality movement is more appealing to you, there are ways you can accept your body and your health. Here are a few examples.
Redirect Conversations
You can’t control what others feel and say, but you can control the conversation when topics such as size and weight come up. You can start by emphasizing your health and how you feel rather than your physical body.
Relax When Your Body Changes
Our bodies are always changing. Rather than stress over them, try and relax.
For example, maybe you notice you have to go up a size when shopping at a specific clothes store. Maybe you notice you’re losing your hair. Try to not worry about these changes and accept them.
Listen to Your Body
Your body is smarter than you think. That’s why your body will give you cues and you should pay attention to them. For example, if you exercise too much and you feel fatigued, that’s your body telling you to stop and rest.
Eat What You Want
Are you eating salads every day when you would rather eat tacos or Chinese food? There’s no shame in chowing down! While you should choose healthy foods that provide nourishment, denying your cravings is also a bad thing.
Give It Time
From self-hate to false positives, we’ve been taught to view our bodies in many ways. That’s why developing a neutral mindset will take time. Stay patient and try to distance yourself from the media.
What to Do If You Criticize Your Body?
What if you start criticizing your body? Try and reframe your mindset. Unlike body positivity, where you identify qualities about your body that you like, reframe your mindset by understanding the damage that self-hate will cause.
Instead, focus more on staying healthy and active. Try and adapt to this neutral mindset.
How to Practice Body Positivity
What if you prefer the body positivity movement? Here are ways to feel better about your physical appearance.
Don’t Focus on Being Skinny
Everyone has different body types. Just because you’re healthy doesn’t mean you’re skinny. Take the focus off of body image and focus on the dieting and exercise that works for your body.
Only Use Positive Affirmations
Speak positive affirmations to yourself and say them often. Look in the mirror every day and say what you love about yourself. Give yourself encouragement and say kind things to yourself.
You’ll especially want to say body positive mantras. For example, if you’re losing your hair, tell yourself that it’s not the end of the world and you can find a hair regrowth solution.
With that being said, cut out any negative self-talk. Treat yourself with kindness, as you would toward any loved one. Negative self-talk only brings us down the road to self-hate.
Read Body Positive Messages
If you’re not ready to tell yourself positive messages, you can start by reading them. There are many body positive blogs and books available that you can read. If you’re not a reader, there are even body positive songs and music artists out there.
Surround Yourself With Positivity
Negative messages about appearance surround us and can make us feel insecure. That’s why you should always surround yourself with positivity.
Avoid looking at models in magazines. Be careful about who and what you follow on social media. Spend time around people who are also positive and believe in body positivity.
Compliment Others
Body positivity isn’t only about you — it’s about those around you. Make sure you compliment your loved ones. If someone looks great in a particular outfit or if you love certain qualities about them, such as their hair, be sure to say something. Being kind to others will help us be kind to ourselves.
Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
We’re all different and no one is more beautiful than the other. That’s why you should never compare yourself to others. You will feel like something is lacking or you’re simply not beautiful enough. Instead, understand that we have qualities that make us different.
Focus on Things You Like About Your Appearance
Sure, no one is perfect, but we all have qualities we like about ourselves. Further, while it’s positive to accept your flaws, you can always use safe methods to improve your appearance if you feel it’s necessary.
For example, maybe you’re insecure about your thinning hair. If you have a receding hairline or thinning hair, there are a variety of hair restoration products that are effective, scent-free, and don’t leave any residue. But if you’re accomplishing your strength training goals, focus on that instead of your hair.
Do Something Nice for Your Body
Self-care is a major part of body positivity. There are simple ways to be nice to your body, such as hiking, taking a bubble bath, or even taking that well-deserved nap.
Focus on Yourself as a Person
Body neutrality and body positivity are two very similar concepts that help us accept who we are. However, both are different in their approaches. One is not better than the other, but different people are drawn to different movements.