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11 Top Celeb Quotes About Loving Your Body

Preach.

In a world where owning a fat roll can become a national news story, celebs probably find it hard not to become insecure or overly focused on their bodies. They’re under so much scrutiny and often held up to totally unrealistic beauty standards.

BS body-shaming headlines don’t just impact celebs though... they impact everyone reading them. Having a healthy body image (basically accepting and being at peace with your body the way it naturally is) is important because it plays a big part in good mental health and high self-esteem, and seeing celebs shamed for body features that pretty much all we humans share, like fat rolls, isn’t helpful.

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That’s why we’re celebrating the amazing celebs who’ve used their platform to preach the message that no-one (celebs included) can live up to the abnormal beauty standards we see in photoshopped ads, and that we’re all worth way more than just our outward appearance anyways.

Here are some of our fave quotes...

1. Rihanna

By being totally open and cool about the fact that her body size fluctuates (because she’s, ya know, human), Rihanna is showing us all how self-acceptance is done. Whenever she is body-shamed she always responds with wit and grace as well, like the kween she is.

She told 'Vogue' last year, “You’ve just got to laugh at yourself, honestly. I mean, I know when I’m having a fat day and when I’ve lost weight. I accept all of the bodies.” Our bodies change and adapt throughout our lives to keep us alive and functioning, and Rihanna’s a great reminder that accepting your body, whatever stage it’s at, is super important for self-love and, actually, killer confidence.

2. Sam Smith

Sam Smith has recently opened up about the body-related trauma he experienced growing up, and the steps he’s been taking to address his negative body image since.

Captioning an Instagram post of him topless on a beach in February, Sam wrote, “In the past if I have ever done a photoshoot with so much as a t-shirt on, I have starved myself for weeks in advance and then picked and prodded at every picture and then normally taken the picture down. Yesterday I decided to fight the f*ck 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.” Yaas Sam!

3. Lizzo

How can we talk about positive body image and self-love without mentioning Lizzo? She’s a total icon within the movement. She’s been clear though that, although she embraces the body positive label, it doesn’t define her.

She told'The Cut': “All these f*cking hashtags to convince people that the way you look is fine. Isn’t that fucking crazy? I say I love myself, and they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, she’s so brave. She’s so political.’ For what? All I said is I love myself, b*tch!

“Even when body positivity is over, it’s not like I’m going to be a thin white woman. I’m going to be black and fat. That’s just hopping on a trend and expecting people to blindly love themselves. That’s fake love. I’m trying to figure out how to actually live it.” P-r-e-a-c-h.

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4. Bebe Rexha

When Bebe was nominated for a Grammy her excitement was soon soured by the fact that designers were refusing to dress her for the occasion, saying that she was ‘too big’. Not only is Bebe a mere American size six/eight (making the slight doubly insulting to all women) but the fact that designers were discriminating against any body size was totally out of order.

What did Bebe do? She did her sisters a solid and took to social media to expose the industry insiders for body-shaming her. “That’s crazy… You’re saying that all the women in the world who are size 8 up are not beautiful and they cannot wear your dresses. So all the people who said that I’m too thick and cannot wear your dresses - f*ck you, I don’t wanna wear your f*cking dresses,” she stated in a video on her Instagram.

Spoiler: she wowed everyone at the Grammys in the dress she did end up wearing, after loads of other designers sent her dresses to wear in solidarity of her message. That’s how it’s done.

5. Little Mix

Little Mix are great at speaking out about the power of positive body image. Their music video for ‘Strip’ was famously all about encouraging everyone to embrace their body just as it is.

Speaking to Newsround about why body positivity is important to them, Jade Nelson said, “Unfortunately, in the world we live in at the minute with social media, I think it’s really easy for girls to feel bad about themselves or insecure… so I think for us as a group it’s really important to get that message across that being you, being yourself is enough, we’re all beautiful in our own way.”

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6. Beyoncé

Last year, Beyoncé did a stripped-backshoot for 'Vogue 'with very little makeup, no wig and no hair extensions because she wanted to encourage people to appreciate natural bodies. In the interview she talked about the weird expectations and pressures on her to look a certain way after having her baby... That’s when she mentioned her FUPA.

“To this day my arms, shoulders, breasts, and thighs are fuller. I have a little mommy pouch, and I’m in no rush to get rid of it. I think it’s real. Whenever I’m ready to get a six-pack, I will go into beast zone and work my ass off until I have it. But right now, my little FUPA and I feel like we are meant to be.”

FUPA stands for ‘fat upper pubic area’, btw. Brilliant.

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7. Adele

Where to start?! Adele has always been a champion of body positivity, as she’s never given two sh*ts about looking like anyone other than herself, and has always been very vocal about that.

“I enjoy being me; I always have done,” she said in a2011 interview. "I’ve seen people where it rules their lives, you know, who want to be thinner or have bigger boobs, and it wears them down. And I don’t want that in my life.”

8. Dua Lipa

Dua Lipa had some great practical advice on accepting and loving your body when she spoke to 'British Vogue' last year. She said that although she feels quite confident in her body there’s always going to be something you don’t like, but it’s so much healthier to tell yourself two things about yourself that you do like every day.

“I go, ‘You know what, my skin’s looking great, I’m not going to put any makeup on,’ rather than, ‘Oh God, you’ve had pasta every night this week’”, she explained.

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9. Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran is another celeb who has been open about struggling with his body image. Speaking on The Hits radio for their mental health campaign ‘State of Mind’, he revealed that he’d struggled with his body image but that he had since taken on a much kinder mindset towards his exercise and eating regime.

About getting into shape, he said, “I think if you do it for health reasons, then it's great but if you do it for image reasons - purely image reasons - I don't think it makes sense.”

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10. Anne-Marie

Talking about a time when she put her body through a lot to try and lose weight, Anne-Marie told Huffington Post, “I wanted to be skinny, and I think that’s a negative thing straight away…. It’s unhealthy to think that way. There were times when I didn’t eat and I had to be forced to eat.

“At the time I thought everything was fine because I still had energy and was still happy with what I looked like, but I definitely wasn’t. I didn’t have any energy. What I’ve learned most recently is what my body deserves rather than what it ‘should’ look like."

11. Demi Lovato

Having had an eating disorder, Demi has experienced first-hand the consequences that can arise from negative body image, but she’s always careful to push body positivity to her fans and followers, and doesn’t stand for any body-shaming.

When it happened to her earlier this year (a headline commented on her ‘fuller figure’) she wrote a post on Instagram saying that she wasn’t triggered but was upset for others who might be. “I’m not upset for myself but for anyone easily influenced by the diet culture,” she wrote. “Don’t listen to negative diet culture talk. You are more than a number on a scale.”

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So it turns out that celebs are just as vulnerable to body image issues as we are... maybe even more so thanks to all the eyes constantly on them. But we’ve got so much time for the celebs who call out the BS, and encourage everyone to be more accepting of their unique bodies, just as they are.

'If you're struggling with mental health problemstake a look at Mind for more information and resources orif you, or someone you know, may have an eating disorder, check out Beatfor support.'

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