Wait, what now??

So I was reading a book yesterday, basically because I was desperate for something to read and it was all I had that hadn't been read. It was an alright book, but I am also a very picky reader. Anyway, I'm not here to tell you about the book per se, rather something in the book that sparked a thought.

The plot centered around a "fat" woman who was turning her life around. This, of course, included getting thin and fit. Now, while I will hand it to the author for capturing many of the emotions of being overweight, I am almost tempted to write her and let her know what a healthy body image is. The poor lady in the book started at a size 16, which by the standards indicated was FAT, FAT, FAT. She also counted her fat rolls, which I found quite amusing, going down the backside of her body - which totaled 9 when she began her life transformation.

Now first of all, is a size 16 seriously FAT, FAT, FAT???? If it is, good goddess I am afraid to think of what I am! Hello people???!!!!! The average size of women in America is a size 14. And most of those women don't look fat, fat, fat at all. Now I know we have a weight problem in America. A fitness crisis, if you will. I understand that most people have no concept on nutrition and big bads like heart disease and Type II diabetes are occuring in staggering numbers. I know that is an issue. All I am saying is, do we have to degrade each other by saying, look at your body and see how ugly it is? Second of all, I've seen LOTS of bodies. And I have never seen 9 fat rolls going down a backside, especially not on a size 16 frame! Or even a size 18, 20, etc. frame for that matter!

I have always thought curves were much sexier than no curves. I personally think the most beautiful part of a woman's body is probably the part most hate - the curve of the hip where it rises from the stomach above into the thigh below. I wish we could learn to appreciate these beautiful bodies we have, including the imperfections. Why aren't we motivated to change our bodies for health reasons, not for appearance? I'd love to see women (and men) out there working to get healthy, not working to keep up with the thin people in the world.

I'll tell you a secret about thin people, they have insecurities too. And many of them have an even worse distorted body image than overweight people do.

And we want to be thin so bad, we throw away the healthy to get there. We don't eat, we skip meals, we make ourselves miserable all for the sake of achieving the perfect size. And if we'd just strive for health we'd feel better, look better, and live better.

It just makes me sad that so many beautiful people out there feel so flawed. And their feelings are only perpetuated by the airbrushed models and attitudes like in the book I just got done reading.