Key Terms

Positive and/or negative comments that reinforce appearance ideals. Whether it's intended as negative (e.g., “my thighs are too big”) or positive (e.g., “you look good—have you lost weight?”), all body talk has the potential to be harmful. This is because it places emphasis on appearance at the expense of valuing our intrinsic qualities, actions, interests and activities.

A commitment between teammates and teams to create a space where people avoid engaging in body talk and/or challenge this behavior when it occurs.

Frequent monitoring of one’s body and worrying about one’s looks (e.g., frequently checking out one’ reflection in the mirror, adjusting one’s clothes to cover up specific body parts).

The act of deriding or mocking a person’s physical appearance. This can include, but is not limited to, fat-shaming, shaming for thinness (or ‘skinny-shaming’), height-shaming, shaming for hairiness (or lack thereof), shaming for hair color, shaming for body shape, shaming for one’s muscularity (or lack thereof), shaming for one’s looks (e.g., facial features) and shaming of visible differences (such as burns, scars, disabilities, etc.).