Self-compassion is defined as the ability to express and accept one's own feelings. Women with low self-compassion show greater dissatisfaction with their own bodies. The aim of the pilot study was to analyze in healthy subjects how % body fat relates to perceptions of body size and self-compassion Twelve women and 10 men aged 19-26 years participated in the study. Self-compassion was assessed with the SCF-SF questionnaire (Raes et al. 2011). Anthropometric data included BMI and % body fat measured by impedance method. Arm, thigh, breast, waist and hip circumference were estimated by participants using a string and then verified with a tailor's tape measure. Data were evaluated by ANOVA for repeated measures and correlation analysis.Women significantly overestimated their body size compared to men. Regardless of gender, waist circumferences were most overestimated, hips least. In men, % body fat did not correlate with self-compassion, in contrast to women, where % body fat correlated positively with self-compassion, but at the border of significance (r=0.5, p=0.08).The greater overestimation of body size even in healthy women, compared to men, may be one of the predisposing factors for the higher incidence of eating disorders in women. The suggested positive correlation between % body fat and self-compassion in healthy women with normal BMI may represent only part of the relationship. With increasing overweight, the relationship may become parabolic, i.e., self-compassion may decrease with higher body fat percentage, which in turn may reinforce the eating pathology in both directions.Supported by Cooperatio Neurosciences