Plus-size model Tanja Marfo shares her journey toward body neutrality — the idea that you can appreciate your body for what it can do, rather than how it looks. Marfo's experiences highlight the importance of learning, practicing and achieving body neutrality, which she actively promotes.
She has struggled with various diets and eating disorders since her teenage years and decided to undergo bariatric surgery — a medical procedure for weight loss — after reaching a peak weight of 198 kilograms (436 pounds). Her decision was driven by both health concerns and the hostile treatment she received from others due to her size.
On her Instagram blog Kurvenrausch, Marfo talks about body neutrality as a way to accept your body as it is, without the need to love it obsessively. She wrote a book about it with Carolin Matzko, a journalist who has lived with anorexia. Their philosophy of body neutrality is different from body positivity.
The difference between body neutrality and body positivity
While body positivity advocates for loving one's body regardless of its shape or size, body neutrality focuses on accepting and respecting one's body without the need to love or hate it.
Both women say body neutrality encourages people to foster a healthier mindset, free from the pressures of societal beauty standards.