Body checking is repeatedly checking your body's weight, shape or size, by weighing yourself, studying yourself in mirrors, pinching or measuring parts of your body, or comparing yourself with others. It is common in eating disorders, and research shows that critical checking can make body dissatisfaction worse in the moment. Cutting back gradually, ideally with a therapist's support, can help loosen that cycle.

Checking your body now and then is ordinary. Body checking becomes a problem when it's frequent, hard to stop and tied to how you judge yourself. If you've noticed that a glance in the mirror turns into a long inspection, or that the number on the scale sets your mood for the day, this article is for you.

Body checking can be part of an eating disorder, and it can also happen without one. Either way, it tends to feed the worry it's meant to settle.

What does body checking look like?

Body checking can be obvious, or so automatic that it happens before you notice. Common examples include:

Weighing yourself several times a day, or after eating or exercising.
Studying specific parts of your body in mirrors, windows or phone cameras.
Pinching, grabbing or measuring your stomach, thighs, arms or face.
Checking how tight your clothes, rings or waistband feel.
Taking photos of your body to compare from day to day.
Comparing your body with friends, strangers or people online.
Asking others again and again whether you look bigger or smaller.

Body checking has a flip side called body avoidance: refusing to look in mirrors, avoiding photos, wearing baggy clothes to hide your shape or refusing to step on a scale. Researchers study the two together and see both as expressions of the same worry about shape and weight.

What does research say about body checking?

Checking is common in eating disorders

In a 2004 study, 92% of 64 women being treated for eating disorders checked their bodies to assess their shape or weight, and more checking went with more eating disorder symptoms. A second study in the same paper found more checking and more avoidance in women with eating disorders than in women without one. The authors wrote that their findings support the view that body checking and avoidance are direct expressions of overvaluing shape and weight.

Critical checking raises dissatisfaction

A 2007 experiment tested what checking does in the moment. Sixty women with no history of an eating disorder took part in a single 30-minute session. Each was randomly assigned either to scrutinize her body critically in a mirror or to look at her whole body in a neutral way. Critical checking immediately raised body dissatisfaction, feelings of fatness and the strength of a self-critical thought, while neutral looking lowered feelings of fatness. The effects were short-lived, and because the study looked at a single session, it can't show what checking many times a day does over weeks.

The links hold across studies

A 2018 meta-analysis combined studies on body checking and body avoidance. Both were strongly related to eating disorder symptoms and to body dissatisfaction, and moderately related to mood. These are associations, so they don't prove that checking causes the problems. The analysis also found that the strength of these links differed by gender.

Why does body checking keep going?

Checking promises relief. You check to make sure nothing has changed, and for a moment you may feel reassured. But checking also trains your attention on the parts of your body you worry about most. The relief fades, the worry returns and the urge to check comes back.

Perfectionism and low self-esteem can add fuel, because a body that never measures up becomes one more standard to fail. Our post on the consequences of perfectionism looks at how high standards can turn against you.

How can you stop body checking?

The aim is to cut back gradually, one habit at a time. These steps can help, and they work best alongside support from a therapist:

Notice and count it. For one week, jot down each time you check, where you were and what was going on for you at the time.
Pick one checking habit to cut back first, such as weighing after every meal or pinching your stomach in the car.
Delay the urge. When you want to check, wait ten minutes, do something else with your hands and notice whether the urge changes.
Change how you look as well as how often. If you use a mirror, look at your whole body from head to toe, describing it in neutral words, such as "I see my shoulders, my arms, my hips." If mirror work feels hard, try it with your therapist first.
Reduce the triggers around you. Unfollow accounts that leave you comparing your body, and put the scale somewhere less convenient.
Watch for avoidance, too. If you've stopped looking in mirrors or wearing fitted clothes, that's part of the same cycle, and it's worth bringing to therapy.
Answer the self-critical thought. Try saying: "Checking won't give me the reassurance I'm looking for. I can get through this urge."

If you're working with a treatment team, talk with them before changing how often you weigh yourself. In eating disorder treatment, weighing is often handled as part of a plan, and changing it on your own can backfire.

When body checking is part of an eating disorder

Body checking alongside restricting food, bingeing, purging, compulsive exercise, rapid weight change or constant thoughts about food and weight can be a sign of an eating disorder. The National Institute of Mental Health notes that eating disorders are serious and can be life-threatening, and that they can be treated successfully.

Bridger Peaks Counseling's therapists work with body image, self-esteem and eating concerns, at the Bozeman and Missoula offices and by telehealth for anyone in Montana. For eating concerns, an assessment comes first, to understand what you're experiencing and whether outpatient care is the right fit. Some eating disorders need more support than outpatient therapy can give, and when that's the case, the practice helps you find the right level of care. You can read more about body image counseling at Bridger Peaks.

For free support and referrals, the ANAD Eating Disorders Helpline is available at 1-888-375-7767, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Central. It's closed on some holidays and returns messages left outside its hours.

Frequently asked questions

Is body checking an eating disorder?

No, body checking on its own is not a diagnosis. It's a behavior that's common in eating disorders, and it can also appear without one. Frequent checking that is hard to stop is worth talking about with a professional either way.

Is body checking a sign of body dysmorphia?

It can be one sign, though it isn't proof on its own. The International OCD Foundation describes body dysmorphic disorder as being excessively preoccupied with perceived flaws in your appearance that are minor or not visible to others. It lists mirror checking, reassurance seeking and comparing among the common signs. A clinician can help tell it apart from an eating disorder.

Is it normal to check your body in the mirror?

Looking in the mirror to get ready is ordinary. It becomes body checking when you're scrutinizing specific parts critically, checking many times a day or letting what you see decide your mood or what you eat. If you're unsure which describes you, try writing down each check for one week, with where you were and what was going on, to see the pattern.

How long does it take to stop body checking?

It varies from person to person. Change usually comes gradually with steady practice, especially with a therapist's support, and cutting back one checking habit at a time keeps it manageable. When checking is part of an eating disorder, it's addressed within that treatment.

A calmer relationship with your body

Your body does not need to be inspected to be cared for. If body checking is taking up more of your day than you'd like, you can call or text (406) 209-8711 or send a note about individual therapy. A client care coordinator will reply by the next business day. We hope you find a calmer, kinder way of living in your body.

Sources

This article is for general information and isn't a substitute for professional care. If you're in crisis in Montana, call the Help Center at 406-586-3333, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline), or call 911.