Don't Judge a Book By Its Cover

There is no doubt that people can be extremely judgmental about, well, everything.  From the clothes we wear to the cars we drive to the music we listen to, it seems like someone always has a negative opinion about us.  You're a slob if you're not wearing the latest fashions; you're uncultured for listening to pop music; you're a rich snob if you drive a nice car.  We spend so much of our lives being judged for our choices... yet we spend even more time being judged for what we look like.  Pick up any magazine, and chances are you'll see at least one story criticizing some celebrity for being too fat or too thin.

We are all human beings here, and I'm sure the majority of us are insecure about our looks.  So who are we to judge others?

I've struggled with weight my entire life.  I was teased in elementary and middle school for being fat (among other things), and it really sucked-- I wouldn't wish that (or any type of teasing/bullying) upon anyone!  I was ashamed of my weight and appearance, and I was an emotional eater, so I ate more to deal with that-- and until I was 13 (when I found Atkins), it was a never-ending cycle of getting picked on for my weight, and then turning to food for comfort.  (And by high school, I was overweight, the new kid, and an academic-oriented theatre geek.  Yeah... I kept turning to food.)
People (and especially kids) can be incredibly cruel and judgmental-- if you're not thin and beautiful, you're somehow a lesser person, regardless of your personality or talents/abilities.  That's not okay with me.  And it's never okay to pick on people for their looks (or anything else, for that matter!).  You are more than a number on the scale or the size of your jeans-- and we should view others with that idea in mind.

Our society is whack.  What mostly prompted this post is this article: "America's hatred of fat hurts obesity fight", which kind of hit home for me, given my life-long struggle with weight and being teased for it.  According to the article, "Children as young as 3 tell scientists studying [the stigmatization of obesity] that overweight people are mean, stupid, ugly and have few friends," and adults say "obese people are self-indulgent, lazy and unable to control their appetites."  Why the hell do looks and personality go hand-in-hand in our society?  And how absolutely heart-breaking is it that preschoolers have already been taught to judge others like this?  What are we doing to our kids?

Prejudice is taught, and clearly 3-year-olds already judging overweight people will keep this problem going, considering they'll go to school and start picking on and isolating any kids that they deem overweight/fat... and "targets of stigma often fall into depression or withdraw socially, both making overeating, binge eating, and a sedentary existence more likely."  This is a vicious cycle.  Americans are so obsessed with being thin (because obviously, thin = good and fat = lazy/stupid/bad) that "in a 2007 study, 24% of women and 17% of men said they would trade three or more years of life to be svelte."  Right.  So being thin-- focus on thin, not healthy-- is more important than a few more years of life.  Of course.  Look, I know that being overweight/obese puts you more at risk for health problems, but there are so many thin people with health problems too!!  The prescribed "eat less, move more" might make someone thinner, but that doesn't mean that'll make them healthier... so health care costs would still be an issue if they're sick/malnourished.

I don't consider myself to be thin.  I'm not a twig, and you won't see me in a bikini any time soon.  But I'm healthy-- I'd rather be a healthy size 6/8 than an unhealthy size 2.  The aforementioned article ends with this quote: "I work out, I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, and I'm still not thin."  Story of my life!  In fact, just a few weeks ago, the amazing Ancestralize Me! came out with "Paleo Women are Phat", which A) is a must-read, and B) discusses why some women in the community aren't as "lean and mean" as the men.  But what I love most about this post is the emphasis on strength, health, and personality, rather than just being skinny.
The post also features a picture of the Venus of Willendorf (which I had the pleasure of seeing on my trip to Vienna last month)-- this fat little statuette, and other "Venus figurines," were worshiped by paleolithic people.  Worshiped.  Can you imagine the majority of Americans worshiping something that wasn't thin and beautiful today?  God forbid!
The definition of beauty has been so horribly warped.  In fact, artist Anna Autopia Giordano altered some famous pieces of art (including Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus") to meet today's beauty standards in her exhibition "Venus."  Check it out.

Really, though: the saddest thing about this whole obesity crisis is that people don't seem to want to be healthy-- they just want to be thin.  The two are not synonymous.  I understand it, of course-- you'll still be judged and teased if you're a healthy size 12, because health isn't something that can be seen.  Even if your numbers are all perfect and you've cured all of your ailments and haven't been sick in months, you'll still be seen as the fat lady/guy/kid.  And that's not fair to you!  People need to back the hell off!
People's judgmental and hurtful comments also foster an attitude of Well, this is how it is, so it's okay I'm being picked on.  No.  After fat jokes were made about him at the White House Correspondents' dinner, Chris Christie stated, "When you're overweight, fair or unfair, there's going to be those who make really awful comments about you and there are going to be people who make jokes about it.  That's the way it goes." Well, that shouldn't be the way it goes!  Things need to change!  This is bullying, and it needs to stop.

Overweight/obese people are not stupid or lazy, and they shouldn't be treated as such.  You don't know their stories, and they should not be judged.  No one should be judged, bullied, made fun of, or picked on because of how they look (or what they believe in, or who they love, etc.).  What we can do, however, is educate and help others.  We can point people-- regardless of their size-- in the right direction health-wise.  We can teach people to make smart food and lifestyle choices-- to cut out processed/refined foods, to sleep and move more, to end toxic relationships and spend more time around the people they love, and to stop judging books by their covers.

Quote of the Day:
"Who are you to judge me and the life that I live?  I know that I'm not perfect and that I don't claim to be.  So before you point your fingers, be sure your hands are clean."  -Bob Marley, "Judge Not"

My "Toss the Scale" Moment

For a long time, I both hated and was obsessed with the scale. I thought whatever number flashed in neon colors at me was magical and determined how I felt about myself. I remember being in seventh grade and getting on the scale for the first time in awhile, wearing a brand new pair of size 17 jeans (I'm pretty sure I didn't wear jeans through sixth and half of seventh grade because I liked the comfort/room of sweatpants)... and seeing a pretty high number. That killed me! I had known, of course, that I was heavy-- especially going to a school where there were only 18 girls in my entire grade, I stood out. I also did ballet, and I most definitely stood out there too. The scale, however, solidified it for me.

It was those size 17 jeans and that pretty high number (at the time) that made me first go on Atkins. Thirty pounds and quite a few sizes smaller later, I didn't stand out anymore. But, of course, I couldn't keep up the low-carbing. I started working at Dunkin Donuts in eighth grade, then went to high school (where I was introduced to carby cafeteria food and essentially lived on pizza and Subway during theatre season) and stopped dancing... By the summer of junior year, I was back up to that size 17-- but was 40 pounds heavier than I was at my heaviest in seventh grade! How the hell could that possibly work out?

Long story short, I yo-yo low-carb dieted junior and senior year, but stayed pretty much in the size 12-16 range. Then I started my quest for weight loss and health second semester of freshman year of college (i.e. through Paleo/Primal/real food), and have never looked back. I also stopped weighing myself at some point last year because it was silly-- why should I go by a number? I knew I was healthy, and I've been out of plus-sizes since early 2010 for the first time since that weight loss in seventh grade... so what was the point?

Today solidified why the scale is stupid. I had to get my vitals taken today so a health form for my study abroad program could be signed, and it turns out I am three pounds lighter now than I was at my heaviest in seventh grade!! I was a size 17 then... and a size 6 now. WHOA.

Clearly, that number on the scale means nothing. It doesn't measure health. It doesn't measure your clothing size. It's completely pointless and only serves to stress people out that they're "fat" if they see a certain number. So stop obsessing over a number, especially if you're working out and building muscle, because muscle weighs more than fat! Want more proof? Check out Everyday Paleo's "Attention Scale Addicts, Part 2."

So toss the scale. If you're keeping track of your progress, buy a measuring tape instead and go by inches-- not weight-- lost. Sure, it's awesome to say "I lost [insert #] pounds," but what does that even mean? Nothing, really! I think it's so much more of an accomplishment if you can say "Well, I didn't lose any weight, but I lost [insert #] inches and am now [insert #] sizes smaller!" That number on the scale doesn't represent anything, so please don't freak out about it! Just get rid of it! You are more than a number!

Quote of the Day:

"You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection." -The Buddha