SPARKS Peer Educators to host week-long events to provide tools and resources to respect and love one’s body.
Campus Recreation and Wellness SPARKS (Students Promoting Awareness Responsibility Knowledge and Success) Peer Educators invite students to Love Your Body Week (LYBW), Feb. 20-24. LYBW aims to create a positive environment on campus where students can learn to adjust their perceptions of their bodies and foster a positive, healthy mindset in which they can recognize that “good” bodies come in all shapes and sizes.
Using a holistic approach to wellness, LYBW provides opportunities for students to learn how to respect their bodies and create a safe space where all body types, sizes, gender identities and disabilities are validated and respected. Throughout the week, SPARKS will partner with other campus organizations and departments to host various events and share resources to help people learn how to appreciate their bodies.
The daily themes assist in guiding the week along with ways to think about different aspects of well-being. This year’s daily themes and events are below:
Love Your Body Week Schedule
Monday, Feb. 20: Mindful Monday
Mindful Eating collaboration with Elon Dining
11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Outside Lakeside
Visit RecWell’s SPARKS Peer Educators and Elon Dining outside of Lakeside Dining Hall to learn about mindful eating, enjoy delicious snacks and win prizes! RSVP to attend on PhoenixConnect.
LYBW SPARKS Tabling
11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Moseley Center
Visit the SPARKS Peer Educators in Moseley to learn about fostering a healthy relationship between you, your body, and food, and win prizes!
Sex with Yourself: Gender & LGBTQIA Center-sponsored Presentation
7 – 8 p.m.
Moseley 215
This student-led session on sexual health is an exploration of the ways we engage with ourselves and others around sex and how we respect and uphold the boundaries that others set for themselves. Sex with Yourself covers the concept of masturbation, different types of desire, and interrogates shame and stigma that are sometimes attached to self-pleasure. Presenters will facilitate a discussion on how family and cultural norms, peer influences, and media can influence ideas, feelings, and judgments about masturbation. Participants will leave with more information about masturbation, sexual health and risk reduction, as well as a more nuanced and culturally informed understanding of self-pleasure.
Tuesday, Feb. 21: Treat Yourself Tuesday
LYBW/Mardi Gras-themed College Coffee
9:40 – 10:20 a.m.
Phi Beta Kappa Commons
Featuring Sustainability Eco-Reps tabling with Free Sustainable Menstrual Cups
Ladies Lifting
8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
Koury Fitness Center
Campus Recreation and Wellness Group Exercise Instructors invite all female- and non-binary identifying students to learn about the correct form for lifting weights and building muscle in the safe and comfortable setting of a closed Koury Athletic Center Fitness Center! Sign up in advance on IMLeagues.
Wednesday, Feb. 22: Wellness Wednesday
LYBW Keynote Speaker Megan Hadley
7 – 8 p.m.
McKinnon D
Megan Hadley, registered dietitian and nutritionist, is the keynote speaker for Love Your Body Week. She opened Simple Nutrition in January 2015. Megan believes that difficult relationships with food and body image are barriers to people living life fully. She is passionate about helping clients find freedom in eating and acceptance of their bodies so that they can turn more attention toward living.
LYBW S’mores with Outdoors
9 p.m.
Koury Patio
Join Elon Outdoors for s’mores and learn more about how the outdoors and intentional community can positively impact your overall well-being.
Thursday, Feb. 23: Thoughtful Thursday
All Bodies Are Good Bodies NC Panel of Nutritionists
7 – 8 p.m.
Belk Pavilion – Teaching and Learning 208
Join SPARKS Peer Educators to hear from local nutritionists about the myths around BMI, the benefits of intuitive eating and the “Health At Every Size” movement.
Friday, Feb. 24: Feel Confident Friday
Black Solidarity Conference LYBW Pop-Up
4:45 – 6 p.m.
McKinnon Hall
Join SPARKS Peer Educators at the Black Solidarity Conference to learn about the unjust white-washing of the Body Positivity movement, the racial roots of fatphobia, and how we can all be a part of making positive relationships with our bodies for EVERYONE. Win prizes and make new connections!