I am currently in the middle of reading Lessons from the Fat-o-sphere: Quit Dieting and Declare a Truce with your Body by Kate Harding and Marianne Kirby. Upon explaining the subject matter, fat acceptance and loving your body, to a friend of mine, he responded "But you're not fat!" I know, I am not fat by any stretch of the imagination, unless you were to compare me to a ballet dancer or a runway model. However, body positivity is still important to me as it is important to everyone. Despite the fact that I am not fat, standing up and saying "I love my body just the way it is" is a radical choice. The media, society and even your friends and family put pressure on you to look a certain way and weigh a certain amount (especially if you're a woman.) I must recommend, no matter what size you are, check out Health at Every Size, if you're tired of people equating thinness with health, if you're tired of depriving yourself in the name of a diet, and if you're tired of exercising for fitness and exercising for vanity being considered the same thing. And how can that be surprising, since in our culture "fit" usually means "thin" by some measure?
Nobody benefits from a huge cultural lie that only a size 2 is healthy. That lets size 2 ladies off the hook for never exercising (cough, cough me in college) and ladies who will never be a size 2 aren't allowed to feel great in their bodies, even when their bodies (regardless of size) are in great shape.
I love my body. I like the way it looks, especially the parts that never get complimented by men. It's like those parts are truly mine. If a part of my body never gets complimented, my ribs for instance, then it is truly mine to love because I love it, not because somebody told me to love it.
I love focusing on what my body can do. I have found that the more I focus on my body's abilities rather than it's size (girth, height, weight) the happier I am with my body. Going for a run doesn't make me feel better because I'll lose weight or "tone up;" It feels great because no matter what size my thighs are, they have amazing abilities to carry me far and fast. I am so proud of myself for having completed the Carleton Triathlon in June. I managed to mentally and physically bring myself to the point of being able to work out for nearly four hours, despite my previous hate of running and sports.
Today, if you're feeling brave, pick a body part that you usually can't stand the look of. Check it out in the mirror and thank it for being there. This is your body. It is the one and only vehicle you have to go through life. Thank that body part that you previously wished you could get rid of. Thank it for what it does for you and why it exists within this whole wonderful machine that gives you so much. And give back to your body. Eat something that you know makes it feel great. Do a type of physical activity that puts your mind and body in perfect harmony. We can all get gloomy in this type of weather, and getting up and moving tends to help (Says the girl who is sitting in front of her computer at 12:20PM)
The more you love your body, the better you feel and even look. Good Luck!
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Name droppy side note: I went to see TJ & Dave last night, and Tracy Letts was there instead of TJ. I missed TJ, of course, but I gotta admit, it was pretty awesome. Most people won't get this, but it was awesome.
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