5 ways to practise self-love

What does your self-love practice look like? If you answered: A bottle of wine and a Real Housewives of Beverly Hills marathon, well, you’ve got great taste in reality TV – but there could be more nourishing ways to throw yourself a little love fest! Here are five suggestions for starters (after you finish the episode you’re watching, obvs)…

Write a love note

Yep, to yourself. You might feel a bit weird about patting yourself on the back, but there’s nothing arrogant about being proud of yourself. So, get out a pen and a fancy sheet of paper and make a list of all the ways you love yourself – think accomplishments, efforts, personality traits, even an ode to your longer-than-average lashes. Own your fabulousness! And when you start to feel a little less-than-fantastic, come back to this note… ‘Cause like the totally wise RuPaul says, ‘If you can’t love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?’

Tune into your body

It’s true that sometimes you might choose to ‘honour’ your body with tacos and extra guacamole (because treat yo’self!), but we’re sorry to say that most people don’t thrive on the much-loved Corn Chip Diet… Instead, try nourishing your bod with healthy whole foods and take up a type of exercise you really enjoy. Whether it’s a heart-opening yoga flow, a mindful walk in nature or a pulse-racing gym circuit, approach moving your body from a place of love and gratitude, not self-loathing and punishment.

Adopt an attitude of gratitude

Practicing gratitude has been linked to greater happiness, improved self-esteem and increased mental strength, so it makes sense that being consciously grateful for yourself – your achievements, your family, your body, your passions – can help ignite the self-love spark. Consider spending five minutes each day writing down things you are thankful for in a gratitude journal or make it your mission to take photos of things that you love in your life and keep them in an easily accessible album on your phone.

Love your life, not theirs

Repeat after us: Put the smartphone down. It’s easy to get swept up in other people’s Instagram-perfect lives (how did your ex-boyfriend’s cousin Julie manage to get a $1.4 million beach house and perfectly shiny hair?) but at the risk of sounding like the kind of cheesy inspirational quote Julie would post on Insta: There’s no one in the world like you, so don’t compare yourself to someone else. Take a break from social media and spend some time reflecting on all the wonderful things that are happening in your life right now and how you can make your big dreams happen.

Make time to do what you love

When you’ve got a hectic schedule of work commitments and social events, it can be hard to carve out time for just-for-fun hobbies (remember them?), but it’s worth blanking out a space on your calendar to indulge your passions. Whether you sign up for a salsa dancing class, hit the golf course for 18 holes or bake your way through a Nigella cook book, let go of any fears about ‘wasting time’ and start thinking about your enjoyment as an investment in your wellbeing. Movie-for one? You go, Glen Coco.