A new year has started, and millions of American people are going about their daily life. Some are perfectly happy in their own skin, going with the flow of life, working hard, and glowing because of it. Others are looking in the mirror, pinching their tummies, contorting their spines to appear smaller, and glaring at their reflection.

The classic New Year’s resolutions are as follows: I’ll stick to my diet I keep cheating! I’ll lose these last fifteen pounds! I’ll work out more often! I’ll get skinny. Thank god most people don’t stick to these routines. If we did, we’d lose so much weight we’d disappear.

Here is a possible shocker: skinny is overrated. There are far more beautiful meaningful things in life to focus our energy on. So many people are brainwashed to believe that shedding those last 15 pounds will bring happiness. We have become so obsessed with this trend of losing weight and juice cleansing and dieting that we forget to love our bodies in their natural form.

Skinny being “overrated” is not to say that being skinny is a bad thing either. Being skinny is beautiful.The message is that all bodies are beautiful. Desperately trying to reach the state in which our bodies are labeled “skinny,” will not ultimately make us feel more whole. Skinny is beautiful but not the only beautiful. We forget that.

Would you be friends with someone that called you the names that you call your body? If among these names are words like ‘ugly’ and ‘disgusting’ and ‘fat’ I should certainly hope not.

Here’s a new trend: start off the New Year without hating yourself! Start off the New Year without chaining yourself to some ridiculous “cleanse” that leaves you starving and live your life packed full of the good stuff like molten chocolate cake.

This is not to say that being healthy is wrong. Health is important. However, health is mental as well as physical. Working out and then hating your body for not being skinny up to some standard of perfection is backwards.

Lets make our New Years Resolutions to love our bodies and be positive towards one another. Work out to feel good that you did the work out. Eat healthy so you feel that you did your body a kindness. You’re your own person. You will be living in your body for all your life, so give it love.