Big Black Women

bailer1310

Cultural differences. Please!! Give me a break. I haven't met a black man yet that LIKES a big girl. Curvy maybe but all men have their fetishes whether its big butts, breast, thighs and a flat stomach.

I'm a black women and I be damn if I'm every bigger than a size 4...EVER. My mother is a black women, who wakes up at 5am (like me) to workout everyday. At the age of 58, she runs 5 miles and participates in spin classes regularly.

Whatever makes you sleep at night to feel better about yourself...save it for you.

Lastly, Beyonce is no where near overweight - that proves your delusional. Poor food choices are in EVERY under-served low income community, not just black ones. Have you been to East LA lately or Koreatown in LA? It comes a moment when you need to take accountability for you. Soul Food isn't just a "black" meal, it's served all over the southern states. I know white women who can cook better fried chicken than anyone I ever met. HOWEVER, "YOU" don't have to eat it.

I'm glad to hear you don't want to be a BIG BLACK WOMEN, you shouldn't because its not healthy!!

What "BIG BLACK WOMEN" are being glorified in the media. Monique has never been America's (or Black America's) definition of beautiful. Again, I don't know any men salivating at the thought of Monique undressed. Beautiful Black women covering the pages of magazines and media are:
Rihanna, Iman, Kimora Lee Simmons, Jennifer Hudson (who has lost 80lbs), Kelly Rowland, Gabrielle Union, Ciara, Jessica White, Selita Ebanks and so on and son on. Guess what, they all have something in common. Beautiful, yes but physically fit.

The people who are probably telling you bigger is better are probably bigger themselves. Misery loves company and Ignorance is bliss.

SkateboardFi

no one is making excuses here. again. i'm more than certain that was not the point of this thread. i have a mother who still runs marathons and gets up at the crack of dawn to go run, and is currently in excellent shape. however, in my family (as a whole, not just the one exception to what we're actually talking about here), we get picked on for being small. could it be misery loves company? sure. why not. however, speaking of mo'nique, and the black community, she definitely wrote a book that was a 'hit' called 'why skinny b**tches are evil' where she basically attacks women for trying to get in shape. and this is a sentiment shared by many women of color. i've had friends give me crap over my lifestyle, as well as watched other friends gain weight because they got sooo much flack for their frame. bottom line is, there IS a cultural difference. there are exceptions to every rule and nothing is absolute of course. but there is a difference in perception. this much is true.

runner328

I hope I don't offend anyone saying this but I was unaware that black women were pushed to be heavier. I just assumed your culture was more accepting of fuller figures and quite honestly I was a little envious of it. Thank for you for informing me of this misconception. I literally learn something new everyday on this site. Good luck I know you will do well!

KarmaxKitty

I hope I don't offend anyone saying this but I was unaware that black women were pushed to be heavier. I just assumed your culture was more accepting of fuller figures and quite honestly I was a little envious of it. Thank for you for informing me of this misconception. I literally learn something new everyday on this site. Good luck I know you will do well!

Not so much "pushed" to be heavier as picked on for being smaller or picked on for not being "the right sort of big". In the south (where my family is from...i dont consider myself a "southern sistah"...HATE that term...), people are BIG as an AVERAGE. When you don't fit the average, or you want to change the average, people think you're an idiot. "Why change when you weren't as big as whats her name down the block?" "Skinny people are uppity." Or the wonderful phrase EVERYONE loves "skinny b*tch." You dont even have to be skinny. Just smaller than the average.

And I don't believe it's just culture, but location. And class status. I knew one girl who's parents lived in the EXTREMELY upper part of society? She HAD to stay thin. For some reason "thin" equals "rich and beautiful" in some places. If she gained weight at all, people wouldn't associate with her.

Or further south, where another girl i knew simply CAN'T gain weight. she naturally stays at 95 pounds for some reason. And people constantly pick at her for being tiny and call her a b*itch and they theink she thinks she's better than everybody. Not to mention she has lighter skin, which makes a whole lot of STUPID trouble for her on top of that.

But that last point is a whole other topic. It's not JUST culture. It's also WHERE you live and the people who live there that shape the general right and wrong body image of that place. Unfortunately.

calliope_music

this is something i've struggled with as well, particularly coming from a mixed background (black dad, white mom). but i think i get what you're saying about the food thing in particular - i live in a very "black" city and that's definitely what i see everywhere. but at home in the 'burbs, we have vegan and healthy restaurants everywhere. it's a conundrum.

jujubean1992

i just want to say i totally agree with you! there is a definite double standard! being a white woman if my back side looked like beyonce i'd be called fat. and i live basically in downtown toledo, oh and the corner store's around here barley have bottled water and if they do it's $2+ yet i can buy a gallon of kool-aide for $1? none of them have any healthy snacks, pretzels is as good as your going to get there. but i go to a suburban area where my granny lives and they have fresh fruit in the carry outs. sugar free juice, all natural tea's... basically all i saying is i know what you mean.

jujubean1992

What "BIG BLACK WOMEN" are being glorified in the media. Monique has never been America's (or Black America's) definition of beautiful. Again, I don't know any men salivating at the thought of Monique undressed. Beautiful Black women covering the pages of magazines and media are:
Rihanna, Iman, Kimora Lee Simmons, Jennifer Hudson (who has lost 80lbs), Kelly Rowland, Gabrielle Union, Ciara, Jessica White, Selita Ebanks and so on and son on. Guess what, they all have something in common. Beautiful, yes but physically fit.

i can't name the name of the magazine off the top of my head but whilst in wal-mart today i saw a magazine with the words "big IS beautiful" across the top and a rather large black woman on the front... FYI

Klw43

I too am a black women and being healthy doesn't have a color. I am also from the South and being "curvy/heavy" has never been encouraged in my up bringing nor in the community in which I live, however being healthy has. And yes I do find it offensive to stereotype the black community, defining differences by financial status and beauty. All women are beautiful, regardless of color, cultural background or financial status, for beauty comes from within.

anikasc

Love the post!!!

CreativeGuy504

I don't think there's anything wrong with BMI at all. Sure, it may classify SOME athletic people as being overweight, but when used for the population as a whole, it's extremely accurate.

For the record, no medical tests are perfect. None. But that doesn't mean they aren't useful.

CreativeGuy504

I too am a black women and being healthy doesn't have a color. I am also from the South and being "curvy/heavy" has never been encouraged in my up bringing nor in the community in which I live, however being healthy has. And yes I do find it offensive to stereotype the black community, defining differences by financial status and beauty. All women are beautiful, regardless of color, cultural background or financial status, for beauty comes from within.

I have to say, I disagree with you. Living here in New Orleans, obesity is extremely socially acceptable and promoted in our community. Shocking how big so many AA women become down here.

JennsLosing

I have a question... Which is harder; finding healthy food choices or finding clothes that fit and look nice on you?

haha and its way easier to find cheaper clothing that looks nice at a size medium than it is for a 3xl.

hforte3

Young Lady...!

Good luck! Keep doing what you are doing despite what our community is "saying"... That attitude is one of the biggest reasons behind why our people are leading the categories of diabetes, heart attacks, high blood pressure, strokes and etc...

Be Healthy! Sista!
A supportive Black Man...

blackgirlfit

This is what ny senior research proposal was on. I wrote a 20 page paper and presented the topic for 30 minutes in front of the department. There are so many factors. It's sad but its the society we will live. It's not right

edorice

I don't think there's anything wrong with BMI at all. Sure, it may classify SOME athletic people as being overweight, but when used for the population as a whole, it's extremely accurate.

For the record, no medical tests are perfect. None. But that doesn't mean they aren't useful.

Here's some BMI for you:

trixie5059

I am not black, but I am big. I live in central Canada, in a fairly nice neighborhood, and have neighbors of black, white, and every other colour in between. It doesn`t matter what colour you are, where you live, or what you do for a living....there is cheap, junk food around every corner, and it seems next to every school. I joined mfp to fight that and start living my own life on my own terms, and keep my son healthy. It has been a slow journey, but one I plan to keep on with.

Good luck with your journey!

hazelnutflav

stop hatein'

Beyonce is NOT overweight.

queenfresh

I agree 100%! Being at a healthy weight should be a goal for everyone. Also, curvy does not equal overweight!!!!!! You can be curvy and a healthy weight! I am curvy, but in a healthy weight range. I wish people in our society would stop using those words interchangeably. When I think curvy, I think of Marilyn Monroe or Jennifer Lopez.

Rishawna

Curves are beautiful and as a black woman I embrace mine like you. However, there is a bit of excess "poundage" surrounding my abdominal area that has proven to be a health concern in regards to diabetes. I am a black woman with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome - a hormonal disorder that causes the body to fight itself. A huge symptom is weight gain (and difficult weight loss), insulin resistance, infertility and a lot of other reproductive and endocrine abnormalities. I am 33 years old and tired of being tired and allowing me to let this disorder within my body rule me. I have learned a few basic tips on how to help myself b/c there isn't a cure and it's just a matter of me putting those tips in place to better my health. I don't want to be a skinny minnie; I don't think it would look well or becoming for me. However I do want to be healthier. And if slight modifications and reduction in my weight can be achieved - although will be difficult - I am going to take the challenge and do it. Just need the support because this isn't easy.

Kanohane

The majority of America is fat...Blacks and Latinos are both a minority...so....who's the other percentage?