Can A Feminist Diet?

kathywoo10

CAN A FEMINIST DIET?
by Kjerstin Gruys from http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2011/07/14/can-a-feminist-diet/

Please welcome guest blogger Kjerstin Gruys. Gruys is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Sociology Department at UCLA where she’s writing her dissertation on clothing size standards in the fashion industry. At her blog, A Year Without Mirrors, she’s chronicling her commitment to avoid her reflection for 365 days.

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The title question haunts me. I’m a feminist, a recovered anorexic and, yes, I’m on a diet.

Because of my experience with anorexia, I know how horrible things can get when one starts obsessing about “bad foods” and setting (and re-setting) weight-loss goals. My eating disorder made me miserable, and I have lasting health issues that could eventually shorten or lessen the quality of my life.

That said, recovering from anorexia made me a feminist. While battling for my sanity and health, I became increasingly pissed off at the THIN=BEAUTIFUL*GOOD environment we live in. Our culture’s valorization of thinness caused well-meaning friends to compliment me on my rapid weight-loss, literally up until the weeks that I entered treatment. Even after entering treatment, some people didn’t think I was skinny enough to be “really” anorexic. Worse, my awful then-boyfriend hinted that it would be great if I could recover without gaining any weight, “since you’re not, like, scary-thin.”

In the end, I got better, got angrier, and ultimately re-arranged my life so that I could stay healthy and continue fighting-the-good-fight as my career.

We feminists typically view dieting — and, particularly, the diet industry – as an expression of patriarchy that is bad for women. As a scholar who studies the harmful effects of our culture’s beauty standards, I agree with this. Diets (which FAIL 95% of the time) drain women’s energy, happiness, and wallets – often while risking our health. Hence, “RIOTS, NOT DIETS!” has become a well-known rallying cheer for many feminists.



Dieting can also be understood as a type of “patriarchal bargain” (an individual woman’s decision to accept gender rules that disadvantage women-as-a-group, in exchange for whatever power she can wrest from the system). By strategically losing weight, we accept the THIN=BEAUTIFUL*GOOD equation (which implies FAT=UGLY*BAD), and propel ourselves into positions of greater social advantage. On an individual level, having “thin privilege” feels empowering. (Recall, Oprah Winfrey — arguably the MOST powerful woman in the world — has described “going to the gym when I really prefer wine and chips” as her greatest accomplishment!) Yet, these THIN powered feelings depend upon a system of inequality in which power/privilege/respect are denied to others on the basis of these standards.

Frustratingly, given the patriarchal bargain of weight-loss, being radically anti-diet as a political stance doesn’t always fit comfortably as a personal stance. Because we live in a society that punishes women for being “fat,” even the most dedicated feminists report struggles with body image. The threat of becoming a martyr for this cause (i.e., by voluntarily giving up ”thin-privilege,” if we’ve got it) can be terrifying. Add to this the personal fact that I’ve gained an (subjectively) uncomfortable amount of weight in the past year by neglecting to care for my body, and suddenly I’m facing a conundrum.

So what’s a good feminist to do? Here’s how I’ve proceeded.



Step 1: Shun Mirrors for 1 Year

I was saying mean things to my reflection in the mirror and wanted to lose weight, urgently. My body insecurities were reaching a dangerous peak, and it scared me. Was I on the verge of a relapse? 10 years ago, I’d probably have gone on an extreme diet, but this time something blissfully self-protective kicked in. I still did something extreme, but in a vastly more body-positive direction: I decided to shun mirrors for a year. Yep, you read that correctly. I’ve embarked on a quest to go without mirrors for 365 days.

Thus far it’s been enlightening (and challenging), but hasn’t completely resolved my body image issues.



Step 2: Revamp Eating and Exercise Habits to be Healthfully Moderate

So, in addition to shunning mirrors, I’ve decided to monitor my food and exercise until I’m back on track. As an advocate of the “Health at Every Size” movement (which stresses the importance of healthful behaviors but rejects the idea that there is a universal “healthy weight”), I’m going to try to judge my “success” based on my behaviors, instead of my weight. My goal is to consciously re-engage in healthful eating habits and joyful activity, and then accept my body size and shape wherever it settles. As much as I’m still tempted to “get skinny,” I know I can live with this, and (more importantly) I know my body can live through it.

But I still hope I lose some weight.



So, what do you think? If “fat is a feminist issue,” can a feminist diet?

Ajontheguitar

I don't look at the idea of being fat detrimental to the feminist issue. Meaning, I agree with society's objectifying of women and the "ideal size" or "ideal look being horrible, but when it comes down to it, obesity is BAD for the body, it's health, and it's longevity. Women should take pride in the old fact (correct me if this has changed) that they stastically live longer than men, and should keep it that way.

I guess I am trying very carefully to express that I support the idea of destroying the societal norms and ideals for how women should look, but not use that as an excuse that being very large is un-healthy.

Now, there is a very BIG line between skinny/un-healthy, and how beautiful AND healthy doesn't mean tiny. I just mean obese.

Pebble321

Great article, very thought provoking.
I too, struggle with the fact that "thin" is the only size that is generally considered attractive and shudder when I hear "wouldn't she be pretty if she lost weight" comments about anyone.
Getting healthy and feeling stronger are goals of mine but I have to admit that I love the compliments I get when I'm warring new, much smaller clothes too....
Food for thought!

ljacobson

I'd say there is nothing anti feminist about consciously making decisions to be healthy. Actually should be very empowering to take charge of your health to reach the amazing potential you have as an individual.

Ajontheguitar

Great article, very thought provoking.
I too, struggle with the fact that "thin" is the only size that is generally considered attractive and shudder when I hear "wouldn't she be pretty if she lost weight" comments about anyone.
Getting healthy and feeling stronger are goals of mine but I have to admit that I love the compliments I get when I'm warring new, much smaller clothes too....
Food for thought!

OOOhhhh I hate when someone says "she'd be pretty if she lost weight."

That means she IS pretty.

tameko2

Of course we can. A feminist can have body issues too. Those things are unrelated.

craft338

i was the same as you a while back, and yeah, people complimented me and my boyfriend encouraged me to keep going. i was never "skinny" but i was starving myself and working out like crazy, so no one knew there was a problem.

i agree with a lot of the things you have to say, BUT i don't think that it goes for women alone. i think it goes for BOTH men and women.

it sucks, but the stereotypes are there, but there's nothing we can do about it, except for knowing what's healthy and what's not. i think it's TERRIBLE that young girls AND GUYS look at billboards of supermodels with bones sticking out and think that they need to look like that to be "beautiful". it's horrible.

i'm not on here to look good, i could care less who finds me attractive or not. i'm on here to get healthy, so one day i can have healthy kids, and live a long, happy, and healthy life.

of course a feminist can diet. feminists can be healthy and still be a feminist, right? however, if they're dieting to look sexy like all the other girls...then i think they might need to re-think the whole feminist thing.....

Ajontheguitar

^ I think that depends. You can diet to look sexy if it first and foremost makes YOU happy. We all love attention from the opposite sex, that is human nature. There's nothing wrong with it but you should always be motivated to be healthy for YOU above anything or anyone else. Everything else is just a bonus that you can take or leave and feel about as you'd like.

Umeboshi

WONDERFUL post. I'm very much a supporter of size acceptance and HAES but I also struggle with body-image and wanting to lose weight for the mirror instead of change habits for my health.

craft338

it's great to want to look good and be happy with your body, but when you're trying to look a certain way because everyone else looks that way, then THAT'S when there's a problem....

EdensMummy

I look around at people all the time and I admire other girls with good figures (not ultra skinny ones, to be fair) and think I want to look like them...for no reason other than they look good and I too want to look better. I don't think this makes me not feminist; I don't think there is anything anti-feminist about wanting to look good and take pride in your appearance.

I think losing excess weight (for an overweight/obese person) has two rewards - one is their health and the other is their appearance. For me, I want to be healthier and set a positive example to my daughter about being healthy and active and slim - but I can't deny that I also want to look nice, wear smaller jeans and feel more attractive and confident in myself.

I don't think this is a feminist issue; I think it's about self worth, belief and maintaining good health for a positive future. As someone else on here said, there are plenty of men losing weight...so it's clearly an issue that affects everyone.

koosdel

It seems to me.. that there isn't anything wrong with being attracted to thin members of the opposite sex.

Claiming that this attraction is somehow the cause of someone's health problems? This is irresponsible, and dishonest.

If one wishes to be a feminist, fine. Just don't blame It on me.

calliope_music

I'd say there is nothing anti feminist about consciously making decisions to be healthy. Actually should be very empowering to take charge of your health to reach the amazing potential you have as an individual.

took the words right out of my mouth! or right from my fingers, that is.

songbyrdsweet

This should be titled "Can a Feminist Turn a Global Epidemic That Equally Affects Men and Women into a Feminist Issue?"

I mean, come on. Being healthy isn't political. It's just a personal choice. If you're not happy with yourself based on the *media's* idea of what's attractive, it's because you're impressionable and haven't yet found your independence and self-worth beyond what other people tell you.

mummyflippers

It seems to me.. that there isn't anything wrong with being attracted to thin members of the opposite sex.

Claiming that this attraction is somehow the cause of someone's health problems? This is irresponsible, and dishonest.

If one wishes to be a feminist, fine. Just don't blame It on me.

The thing is though, that the issue is so much bigger than that - for thousands of years a woman's worth was defined by her attractiveness - is she young and beautiful enough to nab a decent husband to look after her? And yes, society has moved on, but we are no where near a point of equality, and as the article says, for women the message in society is still clear: thin and pretty is good, fat and unattractive is bad.

I don't blame anyone for being attracted to someone who is thin and beautiful. But I do feel sad that women are still primarily judged on their looks by so many. That for me is the issue.

Heather75

It seems to me.. that there isn't anything wrong with being attracted to thin members of the opposite sex.

Claiming that this attraction is somehow the cause of someone's health problems? This is irresponsible, and dishonest.

If one wishes to be a feminist, fine. Just don't blame It on me.

The thing is though, that the issue is so much bigger than that - for thousands of years a woman's worth was defined by her attractiveness - is she young and beautiful enough to nab a decent husband to look after her? And yes, society has moved on, but we are no where near a point of equality, and as the article says, for women the message in society is still clear: thin and pretty is good, fat and unattractive is bad.

I don't blame anyone for being attracted to someone who is thin and beautiful. But I do feel sad that women are still primarily judged on their looks by so many. That for me is the issue.

It isn't just women. Human beings judge pretty much everything on looks.

songbyrdsweet

It seems to me.. that there isn't anything wrong with being attracted to thin members of the opposite sex.

Claiming that this attraction is somehow the cause of someone's health problems? This is irresponsible, and dishonest.

If one wishes to be a feminist, fine. Just don't blame It on me.

The thing is though, that the issue is so much bigger than that - for thousands of years a woman's worth was defined by her attractiveness - is she young and beautiful enough to nab a decent husband to look after her? And yes, society has moved on, but we are no where near a point of equality, and as the article says, for women the message in society is still clear: thin and pretty is good, fat and unattractive is bad.

I don't blame anyone for being attracted to someone who is thin and beautiful. But I do feel sad that women are still primarily judged on their looks by so many. That for me is the issue.

I'd like to know what society DOESN'T have standards of beauty, and why it's such a problem. If we lived in Nigeria and were married to Nigerian men, if we were thin it would make them look like abusive paupers. Many places in the world find beauty in being overweight or obese because it's associated with wealth.

Jenscan

That, and the fact that men ARE in fact judged by their looks. It's not a women's issue, per se. You can't tell me that we do not have standards of "beauty" for men also.

It's an issue for everyone.

melaniecheeks

Take a look at some of the conversations on here - what body type do men find most attractive? How can I look like Bittany? I need to be a size zero!

Body image is undoubtedly a feminist issue, but that doesn't mean that feminists can't look after them (our) selves physically. The motive might be different from others!

tmarie2715

What an awesome article. I hadn't ever considered my dieting to be anti-feminist, and as a self-proclaimed (okay, maybe also proclaimed by others) raging feminist, I almost hate that I am so obsessed with body image.

I know that my male friends, SO, etc, have all encouraged me to be healthy, and when I see the people they consider attractive in Hollywood or real life, I know they like a more healthy, normal body. I am the one who feels I should be thinner and that women are more attractive thin.

mummyflippers

Thats not the point I'm trying to get across. Yes, of course people do judge each other, and yes there are these set images of accepted beauty - applicable to both genders, I'm not for one moment suggesting that men don't feel pressure to conform!

But, they are not quite the same - traditionally for men is wasn't purely about looks. Men were valued for their strength, their ability to provide, their ability to cope and stay almost stoic - and other stereotypical qualities. Elements of this are still around today - some people still view those as desirable 'male' qualities.