Coined by Dr. Lindo Bacon, HAES is often confused with body positivity, but they are siblings, not twins. HAES is a framework that asserts that:
You cannot thrive in a space designed to make you hate yourself. Here is how to detox your environment:
The body positivity and wellness lifestyle argues that health behaviors (eating vegetables, moving your joints, sleeping eight hours) are valid regardless of their outcome on the scale. If you run for your mental health, that is a win—even if your weight stays the same. If you eat a salad because it gives you energy, not because you are "being good," that is freedom.
Some corners of the body positivity movement have become toxic, suggesting that "all bodies are perfect" and that wanting to change anything is "internalized fatphobia." True wellness allows for nuance.