It can often seem like everybody online has a perfect life, amazing wardrobe and a killer body. Even when we know deep down that Instagram and other social media outlets do not portray accurate representations of most people’s lives, it is extremely discouraging to see posts of such “perfect” people nonetheless. However, a recent trend of body positive influencers has been popping up, and they bring a touch of much needed inspiring reality to their followers’ Instagram feeds. Here’s a few body positive influencers that you should be following to bring some truth and positivity to your feed.
Photo posted @devan.kline on Instagram
Devan Kline
Devan Kline (@devan.kline) is a hardcore fitness instructor. The difference between him and most Instagram trainers? The representation of all types of people in his posts. Kline himself is extremely dedicated to working out and eating clean, but he knows that not everyone he trains lives the same lifestyle. He posts videos of his classes and one-on-one sessions with people that look motivated and inspired, but not the ripped, sports-bra wearing people that many Instagram users are accustomed to seeing on workout pages. Kline also uses his lengthy captions to relate to everyone, not just those who are gym junkies. Scrolling past one of Kline’s videos and reading his captions are sure to motivate followers to accomplish their goals, whether they are body, career or life related.
Photo posted by @ericafitlove on Instagram
Erica Lugo
Erica Lugo (@ericafitlove) weighed 322 pounds and did not ever think she would be interested in fitness. However, when her son asked her to play with him and she was unable to, she realized her health was impacting more than just her clothing size. So she began a fitness journey and lost over 150 pounds. She did not do it to be “skinny” or fit into size zero clothing. She simply wanted to feel good and have fun, and she encourages her followers to do the same. Throughout her journey she has acquired more than 400k followers who look to her for encouragement and self love. Lugo embraces her imperfections, such as loose skin and stretch marks, and truly makes her followers see the beauty in themselves.
Cori Baker
Cori Baker (@cori_fit) started her Instagram account to document her progress as a female bodybuilder. After a while, she began to realize that what she was doing may have made her look “good” by some standards, but it was not making her feel good. So, she began to shift into a body positive account.
Photo posted by @cori_fit on Instagram
She provides her followers with posts of herself looking happy and healthy, but never pushing her body too far, or forcing herself to do anything that is not providing her with joy. She emphasizes self-forgiveness, especially when it comes to toxic thoughts about food, your body or yourself in general.
It takes a lot of courage to be truthful online, especially when it comes to things that most people are extra sensitive about. Having and following body positive accounts on Instagram can certainly help to alleviate a lot of the negative thoughts that unfortunately seem to infiltrate many users’ minds. The encouragement, bravery and positivity that shines through in the posts of body positive influencers is slowly changing the way that many people view themselves and others on social media, and is much needed in today’s digital society.
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