Beware: if you have been struggling to lose weight, you may be irritated by this entry!
So, I have been thinking a lot about the body insecurities that I have, that most women have. We all have something we want to change, and the "perfect" images we see in the media do not help at all.
Most of my life I have been very slim. I've fielded all kinds of questions and comments from "What do you do to stay that thin? Do you eat?," to "Girl what are you talking about,? YOU don't need to exercise!" Though never said with ill intent, I think people often forget that those who feel they are overweight are not the only ones that need consideration in the way you talk about their bodies. They are not the only ones who might feel that they want to improve parts of their bodies. They are not the only people who receive health benefits from exercise. Being slim does NOT make it ok to say any comment you feel like saying about my body! If you wouldn't call an overweight person "fat" to their face, don't tell a thin person that they look like they don't eat!
Sure, the media is filled with images of slender people. Slim is not the same for every person though. I am small, but I don't feel that I look like a supermodel (as ridiculous as some have felt that is). Assuming that someone is thin and, therefore, has an ideal body type that they couldn't possibly want to improve upon tends to reinforce the idea of thin being the most acceptable way to be. I've actually been laughed at for saying I need to work out as I try to explain that I too need muscle tone and stamina to be healthy.
There is also the movement to show the "real" woman, from companies like Dove. While I applaud the effort, I would love to be included! I don't see anyone who looks like me in "real women" campaigns, or the airbrushed supermodel campaigns. I'm not being self-deprecating, I just don't look like that!
That being said, I feel like I've never had a more realistic view of my body. I guess that's part of growing up. I know that I look nice, and I also see what I can do to improve myself. We're all "real women," ladies.
I hate when any woman or person for that matter judges anyone for their size. Granted it can be annoying when you are bigger to hear someone you wish you looked like say they are fat... BUT I have had to make myself realize that everyone see's themselves in their own way. I was skinnier back in the day and totally thought I was a cow. Body image can be very damaging.
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