Women spend so much time stressing about how we look. We think we have to look like Kim Kardashian in order for men to find us attractive, but that’s total BS. Do you have a perfectly flat stomach? It doesn’t really matter—especially not to guys. If you stress that dudes won’t be into you unless you’re rail thin, stop. Turns out, most men actually prefer women who have a little bit of a belly.
- Most women have bellies, so let’s just be real about it. While you might not talk about it when grabbing drinks with your girlfriends, the truth is that it’s pretty rare for a woman to have the toned abs of her dreams. It’s time to start talking about what our bodies actually look like. It’s 2017—who cares if you have a round stomach?!
- You should be proud of your curves. Because they’re beautiful. Cheesy AF and so true. Just look at the most inspiring women around, like Ashley Graham. They have curves and they’re proud of it, and you should feel that way about your own body. Guys are attracted to women who are confident.
- You don’t need to feel self-conscious around guys. Nothing kills the mood faster than if you’re worried about what the new guy in your life thinks about your stomach (or any other body part). You should be focusing on how into him you are and how amazing it is to be intimate, not whether he thinks you should have a six-pack. There’s literally no reason to feel self-conscious about this.
- You care more about your so-called body flaws than they do. Any guy that you’re hooking up with is definitely not going to stop and go, “Oh, you don’t have a flat stomach? Yeah, I’m going to have to leave now.” You absolutely care more about this stuff than any guy is going to. And if a guy ever DOES say anything disgusting about your physical appearance, you’ll know that he’s the worst and you won’t keep dating him.
- Guys have some belly fat too. Your BF is probably self-conscious that he doesn’t have the most athletic figure around or about some other part of his body not being up to par. There’s no reason for him to worry because you’re super into him and you care about him and think that he’s the cutest, right? That’s what you should remember when you start spiraling out about your stomach.
- There are more important things to worry about. Do you have your dream job (or just a job that makes you happy)? Are you in a healthy relationship? Do you get enough sleep and eat a green vegetable every once in a while? These are the questions that you should be asking yourself on a regular basis. You don’t need to fixate on your body. Besides, you’ve probably spent way too many years wondering if you were supposed to look a certain way and comparing yourself. Let’s let go of those unrealistic AF ideas and expectations.
- The right guy likes you for you, not just because of your physical appearance. Yeah, he’s attracted to you, and yeah, he wants to have sex with you—but that’s not what it’s all about for him. He likes you for being who you are and you have an emotional, intellectual connection. That’s what counts.
- Insecurity is just never a good look. A little insecurity from time to time is normal, and a guy who likes you isn’t just going to end things because you admit to having some body image issues. But at the same time, if you really aren’t comfortable with the skin you’re in, that might cause some tension and problems down the road. He’s only going to try to convince you that you’re beautiful a few times and then he’s going to get tired of that game.
- It’s just another thing for you to overthink. If you’re dating anyone, you’re probably overthinking things, right? It’s a pretty common story. And it’s definitely not something that you need to do in basically any dating situation. If a guy likes you as much as you like him, things are really pretty simple. And if he likes you then he likes absolutely everything about you, including, yes, your belly. It’s seriously no big deal so don’t make it one.
- You have an actual life. Sure, you probably could get a flatter stomach… if you worked out with a trainer five hours a day and stopped eating anything besides salad. Sounds like so much fun. There’s no reason to be ashamed of living your life and enjoying a few glasses of wine a week or whatever your fave treat is. As long as you’re healthy, that’s what matters. Guys don’t care about the state of your stomach and you shouldn’t, either.
