Scroll down your Instagram feed right now and you’ll be quick to find curated profiles of exotic travel destinations and the perfect bikini body, #fitspo hashtag attached.
While looking at all of these images of seemingly perfect bodies and lives may seem like harmless fun, studies have shown that Instagram can actually make you feel worse about your body image.
Yes, that’s right. According to research published in the New Media and Society Journal, spending time browsing models and fitness influencers on the social media platform can have a negative influence on your self-esteem.
We’re all about body positivity here at Trevor Linden Fitness and want to inspire our readers to lead healthy and happy lives, without feeling the need to live up to certain body expectations.
Which is we searched the best of Instagram to find you the right kind of influencers to follow. These five social media influencers listed below have proven that you don’t have to be one specific weight size to happy, confident and successful.
Read on to discover them all and perhaps to decide to follow them yourself for daily confidence boosts and feel good vibes!
“Watch your life positively grow when you give up the pursuit of perfection, because the real beauty ideal is being imperfectly you. Pick out five things that you love about your body for what it does for you, because we want to change that discussion. It’s not just what your body looks like. Your body is an incredible thing.” – Iskra Lawrence
Iskra Lawrence- @iskra
Iskra Lawrence’s official career handle may be “model” but in reality, she is so much more than that. Lawrence is one of the leading faces behind the body positive movement, inspiring men and women alike to embrace their natural shape, be it a size zero or size 20.
As a National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) brand ambassador and the global Role Model for Aerie, a brand of clothing from American Eagle Outfitters, Lawrence is breaking down barriers everywhere she goes.
She made her runway debut at New York Fashion Week last season, being one of the first plus-size models (at size 14) to strut her stuff down the famous catwalk. And thanks to her firm “no re-touching” rule for all of her Instagram images, she’s inspiring an entire generation to just be themselves- #nofilter.
Lawrence’s Instagram account is a breath of fresh air amidst the countless photoshop happy accounts in abundance on Instagram today.
“Watch your life positively grow when you give up the pursuit of perfection, because the real beauty ideal is being imperfectly you. Pick out five things that you love about your body for what it does for you, because we want to change that discussion. It’s not just what your body looks like. Your body is an incredible thing.” – Iskra Lawrence
Robin Arzon- @robinnyc
Start your day off on a positive note with Robin Arzon’s refreshingly-real Instagram account. The lawyer turned fitness trainer has become one of the most recognized New York City spin instructors for Peleton Cycle, and frequently posts snaps of her daily runs in the different cities she visits.
From Vermont to the Hamptons, catch all of Arzon’s daily fitness snaps on her official Instagram page. Her posts not only show off the gorgeous East Coast but will also inspire you to get out there and go for a run yourself!
To find out her exact workout routine (those abs show us she’s doing something right!) check out her book Shut Up and Run.
“May all of your vibes say, ‘I got this.’ Warrior on.”- Robin Arzon
Kayla Itsines- @kayla_itsines
Kayla Itsines is the whole package. The Australian personal trainer and author of the Bikini Body Guides is a great Instagram account to follow if you’re looking to get off your butt and back into beast mode shape.
If Itsines’ books and apps don’t inspire you on your fitness journey, her Instagram page undoubtedly will. From before and after photos from past clients to motivational quotes, this feel-good Instagram influencer will surely brighten up your day.
“Just always be the better person. And make your intentions pure. What and who you are is what you’ll attract, what you’ll maintain. Pain is inevitable and it will always exist, but if you focus on understanding what you are feeling and why you are feeling it, you will overcome it.” – Kayla Itsines
Ashley Graham- @theashleygraham
Another model to leave her mark in both the fashion (and insta) world, Graham made history this past year when she became the first plus size model to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s annual swimsuit issue.
She killed it at New York Fashion Week this past week, and it doesn’t look like she has plans to slow down anytime soon. Scroll the body-positive model’s instagram for uplifting and inspirational snaps of a woman striving for people to see #BeautyBeyondSize (the hashtag she created!)
“I look at myself naked in the mirror and say, “You know what, awkward butt shape? You’re not gonna get higher or rounder but it’s OK, because I’ve got Spanx for you.” Your words have so much power. Every day, if you tell yourself “I love you,” if you give yourself one word of validation, it will change your mind. It’s about loving who you are. If you don’t love who you are, you are never going to feel 100 percent satisfied in life. It all starts with you. If you don’t love you, nobody else is going to be able to. -Ashley Graham
Vivien Bass – @vivien.bass
Vivien Bass has her own active travel blog where she documents her travel adventures. From Egypt to Malta, Bass shares memories of her experiences, a lot of which feature health and fitness inspiration.
Part travel album, part fitness blog, this is one Instagram account worth checking out. Not only will it gave you a serious case of the travel bug but it’ll motivate you to work and play hard- no matter what country you currently call home.
“I explore the world, look for the authentic, eat organic, train hard!” – Vivien Bass
Author bio: Lauren Martineau
Professional freelance blogger & writer, storyteller & adventuress.
When Lauren’s not typing 80 wpm, she’s travelling and staying fit.
