How do you feel about fat pride?

FA is not ok ,
sorry, i know my spouse prefers bigger woman ,
but i have always felt confined , the fat happy woman ...
im not im not nice all the time , im not chipper all the time,
and fat healthy only lasts a few years ...
that said ,

so we need to be more accepting of larger sizes , yes,
but not so much that we actively discourage them from getting healthier,

it think the FA movement is a WHIPLASH
against the FOOLISH and potentially harmfull diet industry...
think

What other industry is reliant <solely >on constant failure .....

Fat Acceptance, as I understand it, is about fat people being able to love their bodies and not be shamed or bullied for that. I think that's awesome! You sometimes hear, "but being fat is a choice!" So what? Even if someone makes a concious decision to be fat, they deserve the same respect and right to confidence as anyone else.

FA is about fat people having the right to be proud of who they are.

It should definitely be seen as an anti-bullying campaign.

However, what makes someone healthy is a whole other subject. You don't have to be "skinny" to be healthy and in fact once upon a time....skinny meant unhealthy and poor and having some meat on your body meant you were doing well. So these things change as time goes on....but obviously getting to a weight that causes health issues like diabetes and joint problems, sleep apnea..... is not healthy no matter how pretty you paint it.

The focus is to be healthy and active and find a happy weight....that can be a huge difference in numbers...:)

Sorry, long post: Personally I see a number of different points in this debate, and in my mind I like to separate them out.

Bullying someone is unacceptable for any reason, clearly. (Although I do draw the distinction between gentle teasing between friends and full scale bullying, but what does and does not fit into this distinction varies person to person). As someone has mentioned, bullying someone due to their weight may in fact make it worse.

A person’s value lies in more than just their physical appearance, and that therefore even unattractive people (or people who do not fit into society’s view of what is attractive) are worth something – appearance is just one aspect of a person, and while someone may be more attractive, they may be less nice (and vice versa).

However, I think we need to draw a distinction between what is “ok” as a human being, and what is healthy. The bulk of scientific evidence shows that the risks of many health conditions are much greater if you are outside of a range of BMIs, whether that is underweight or overweight. The fact that the *risks* of health conditions are higher outside of this does not mean that an overweight person always experiences the health conditions. However, the small number of cases where an overweight person is not currently experiencing health issues does not mean they will not in the future, and is not a good argument to say that being overweight is healthy when the science shows otherwise. It is also not a good argument to recommend ignoring medical advice by not losing weight if you are overweight (or indeed put on weight if you are underweight).

It is also worth noting, I think, that the majority (2/3) of Brits and Americans are overweight or obese, so our idea of what is “Normal” i.e. the most common physique is an overweight physique. This may also lead to the notion that being overweight is acceptable.

Personally, I support the idea of not bullying people because of their weight, and I’m all for questioning the societal norms and demands of glossy magazines; however I am wholeheartedly against saying that being overweight is healthy when the overwhelming scientific evidence shows otherwise. I am concerned that many people are using the argument that being overweight is “Normal” or being overweight doesn't make you less of a person to support their idea that therefore being overweight must be healthy and to justify not losing weight. This logic, in my mind, does not follow, and I think it’s dangerous to be arguing this.

TL;DR – I think we should love the fatties, but hate the fat

I've noticed the "fat pride" thing. I'm in two minds. It's not good to feel rotten about yourself BUT it's not good to encourage people to maintain an unhealthy state. To me, it's like being proud of being an alcoholic.

it think the FA movement is a WHIPLASH
against the FOOLISH and potentially harmfull diet industry...
think

What other industry is reliant <solely >on constant failure .....

Excellent observation.

I'm thinking the credit/loan industry - especially those that offer overpriced credit to the poor like payday loans or pawn shops - is another that's reliant on constant failure.

I look at dieting/fitness in the same light as I do financial health. With proper eating, one regulates the input against the burn and exercises for a healthier body. With proper money management, one regulates the burn against the input and invests for a healthier future.

"90 days same as cash" is definitely an industry that profits from failure because of the crazy interest rates that kick in if you fail to retire the debt inside 90 days - and that just restarts the cycle of getting behind and having to borrow again.

Been there, done that, got the t-shirt when it comes to failure in terms of food and money. I no longer accept keeping up with the Jones as a societal norm and have cleaned up my financial act. The next step is to clean up my body... and that's why I'm here.

I really liked these statements:

"Fat acceptance led me to a place where I could be who I wanted to be.... and that was positive, and bright, and colourful, and fun."

"It's a really good feeling to not hate myself."


The world would be a cool place if nobody hated themselves. Also, I think even if someone is UNHEALTHY, they still deserve to not hate themselves.



Basically, live however you want to. As long as your not messing up my groove, I don't give a good Goram what you do.

I'm seeing a lot of "It's unhealthy to be fat!" Which implies that you shouldn't be proud of yourself if you're unhealthy? I'm sure even if I make unhealthy choices, I could still feel proud of myself. I was beautiful when I was fat. I ate healthy food (just a whole lot of it). I lived a full life and contributed to my community.

Also, what if a person has lost over 100 pounds and is still 400+? Shouldn't he feel pride and love his body, even though it's still obese?

It's okay to be who you are, even if you're making unhealthy choices in some area of your life.

My 2 cents in a public forum. :flowerforyou:

I was at a Restaurant that specialises in Chocolate recently, it was a lovely experience. 3 obese ladies came in and proceeded to enjoy the same restaurant. The person who I was with said to me:
"What the hell are they thinking they should not be coming to a place like this, theyre fat enough".
I said to that person, "In all fairness you smoke, how is your smoking any better than their over-eating"
I don't like it when mean things are said to/about people, I don't think judging others helps fix problems.
But I am not naive enough to not be concerned about the preasure that obesity puts on the public healthcare system the same as smoking also has it's costs.
I think the first step to fat acceptance should be realising that youre not treating your body as well as you could and taking small steps to really come into some self acceptance rather than fat acceptance.
:flowerforyou:

healthy obesity is a myth

http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20131202/healthy-obesity-is-a-myth-report-says

Definitely agree with this... that said, there is a difference between fat and obese. Our current culture sees overweight and obese as interchangable. One can be overweight and athletic and, yes, healthy. However, being obese is never healthy and is definitely should not be promoted.