How do you feel about fat pride?

Options
12467…26

Replies

  • velvet_violence
    velvet_violence Posts: 51
    Options
    I'm not into shame, it's how I got fat in the first place. At age 8. I am proud, and getting healthier. It seems it's only people well-served by CICO who have an issue with that. I think, "rock on, you are proud!" Maybe I got a little lilt in my step when I told my cousin I lost 20 pounds in 3 months. But it was because of a heck of a lot of work. I had to do astoundingly little to gain weight.... at age 8.

    xx
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    Options
    "Fat acceptance" =/= "Fat celebration"

    Fat acceptance doesn't mean that you can be proud of yourself BECAUSE you're fat, it means you can be proud of yourself EVEN if you're fat. There's a slight difference.

    Nicely said.

    I believe that people should love themselves and shouldn't associate weight with self worth.

    But I don't believe being tremendously overweight is healthy, and I don't support people gaining weight and then saying they're totally healthy when in the long run they won't be, and then celebrating it.
  • moya_rargh
    moya_rargh Posts: 1,473 Member
    Options
    Everybody has the right to feel comfortable in their own skin.

    However, expecting a congratulatory pat on the back irrespective of ones' personal choices is amother matter entirely.
  • Escloflowne
    Escloflowne Posts: 2,038 Member
    Options
    People should feel pride in themselves no matter what body shape they have (exclusions for really horrible people, like pedophiles and those who talk at the theater).

    God, those people should be put to death! I'm serious, I can't stand people who talk during movies!!!
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    Options
    "Fat acceptance" =/= "Fat celebration"

    Fat acceptance doesn't mean that you can be proud of yourself BECAUSE you're fat, it means you can be proud of yourself EVEN if you're fat. There's a slight difference.

    ^^ Nailed it.

    Yep...the only thing I would add is that it's actually a huge difference.

    Honestly, I can see both sides.

    On the one hand, no one should be made to feel bad about themselves or discriminated against or treated differently overweight. Fat people have every right to feel good about themselves.

    On the other hand, being overweight is so harmful, both to the individual and the culture, that I don't think it should be celebrated. Accepted, perhaps. But not celebrated.
  • JShawSarah
    JShawSarah Posts: 22
    Options
    This is a tricky one. Obviously we do not want to promote an unhealthy lifestyle. For example "smoker pride" would be a dumb concept. But some people are considered "fat" when they're actually perfectly healthy, they're just curvy or aren't stick thin. And in those cases I think it's good to be proud of who you are. I however have been overweight my whole life, was never teased or bullied for it so I had pride in the fact I was a bigger girl and nobody cared. But unfortunately that mindset got me to a very unhealthy place. So I guess really it depends on how much "fat" we are talking about...
  • workout_ninja
    workout_ninja Posts: 524 Member
    Options
    Im all for accepting yourself no matter what size you are, the problem I have are the super mobidly obese people who think its perfectly ok to be lifted out of their home using a crane and draining the dwindling NHS fund. I have been obese, overweight and now "healthy BMI" - I am by far my healthiest now but not because of my dress size or weight, but because i am active and I eat right. I was also told that I dont look as good now that im a "skinny *****" - it goes both ways.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    Options
    "Fat acceptance" =/= "Fat celebration"

    Fat acceptance doesn't mean that you can be proud of yourself BECAUSE you're fat, it means you can be proud of yourself EVEN if you're fat. There's a slight difference.

    this seems to sum up my feelings on the matter.
  • Awesomers
    Awesomers Posts: 144 Member
    Options
    I don't take any pride in being fat, but I do wish people would accept me for who I am, regardless of my size. Fat acceptance, to me, is exactly that. People look at me and assume that I am lazy and unmotivated. The looks that I get when I tell acquaintances some of the things I've accomplished in my life seems unfair. They made the leap that my physical appearance tells a story of failure and sadness, when that's so far from the truth. Instead of calling it fat acceptance, it should be human acceptance. Everyone is different, and our physical characteristics do not define who we are, as people.
  • meganjcallaghan
    meganjcallaghan Posts: 949 Member
    Options
    I was far happier as a fat person. With my looks, with my health, with my overall mental well-being. Being thin has made me look like a small person wearing a giant wrinkly skin suit, my blood pressure went up and my blood sugar levels did the same (despite eating less sugar and no longer being obese which is supposed to bring it down), and I'm just generally sad all the time....probably mostly because of how gross I think I look. At least changing isn't such an ordeal since I got rid of my mirrors....as long as i don't look down......all that to say, I had a much easier time mustering up pride in myself for any reason when i was big. Going back to that isn't an option for various reasons, but I'd be all over it if I could. More power to 'em

    I just wanted to say that I don't think you look gross at all, and I hope you find happiness again! You've done a lot to get yourself healthy and I am keeping my fingers crossed that the numbers that frustrate you will even out over time. Be patient with yourself and be proud of your majorly significant accomplishment! Being a healthy weight doesn't solve everything, but the longevity it's given you and options? I think that is pretty empowering, too.

    Thanks. Unfortunately, the bits you can see in pictures aren't the problem. Its everything under the clothes. To which my friends respond "at least you look good in clothes". That's nice, but it doesn't bode well for the possibility of luring a dude into marrying me when the nightmare that lies beneath means I can't even look at my own self. Crossing my fingers for a hefty inheritance from some unknown relative somewhere so I can get me a buttload of plastic surgery.
  • healingnurtrer
    healingnurtrer Posts: 217 Member
    Options
    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:

    Loved your comment.
  • swat1948
    swat1948 Posts: 302 Member
    Options
    I think it's important to accept your worth no matter what your size. It is healthy to be fat? Well of course not but some people feel it's beyond their control. I did for many years but I finally came to see the light. :happy:
  • martinbeks
    martinbeks Posts: 255 Member
    Options
    When I was in high school, I wanted to lose weight to be beautiful. I didn't believe I could be beautiful without being thin. When my grandmother died from complications from her Type-2 diabetes, I was in college, and decided that rather than being "beautiful" (Which I'd already accepted that I was), I wanted to be healthy and extend my life. Being healthy is the most beautiful thing I can think of, because you're working hard to extend your life, and to live well. So many members of my family are on a lot of medications (they had a long conversation about what works best at our annual camping trip this year), and I just don't want to be that person. I want to stay of medications for as long as I possibly can.
  • in_the_stars
    in_the_stars Posts: 1,395 Member
    Options
    hmmmm... Is it socially acceptable to be fat? Does the media make it socially acceptable or unacceptable by the people it portrays? Does society want obesity to be socially acceptable?
  • Inkratlet
    Inkratlet Posts: 613 Member
    Options
    HaibaneReki, political correctness means using terminology that people don't find offensive to describe said people. For example, using non-offensive language to describe racial groups.

    It is perfectly possible to disagree without using abusive language, so there's no political correctness issue here at all.

    aha, I understand - call me medieval, but what I was trying to say is that the more quirks society tolerates and the more it encourages differences the quicker it'll eventually degenerate.

    I couldn't disagree more.

    Let's all be sheep! That way society won't degenerate :wink:
  • twiggypal
    twiggypal Posts: 439 Member
    Options
    fat and healthy not possible....plus im in a mood
  • jjplato
    jjplato Posts: 155 Member
    Options
    I agree with those who've said that no one should be bullied for being obese. However, our society's negative attitude toward obesity is so deeply entrenched, I don't think that any "fat acceptance" movement is going to change it at all. The day you can stand in the supermarket checkout line and not see tabloid covers of celebrities who got fat, and people stop laughing at pictures of fat people at Wal-Mart, then maybe.

    The only problem I have with the fat acceptance movement is their insistence that the health risks of obesity are overblown. How many 80-year-olds do you know that are 150 pounds overweight? The health issues tied to obesity are well documented -- high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, joint problems (particularly in the knees and hips), etc. Sure, not all obese people are unhealthy, and not all non-obese people are healthy. But not all smokers contract lung cancer, and some non-smokers do. That doesn't negate the fact that smoking is a leading cause of lung cancer and other diseases. Most of the obese people I know are on all kinds of meds for various conditions -- in their mid-forties.
  • MrTolerable
    MrTolerable Posts: 1,593 Member
    Options
    fat and healthy not possible....plus im in a mood

    being obese and healthy is not possible.. being healthy & heavy....

    I mean I know skinny alcoholics that are far from healthy as well..

    People should be able to take pride in themselves if they work hard, have good character, have a super hot mate... I mean there are tons of things they should feel proud about regardless if they have a few extra-pounds on.

    I think you can be healthy and heavy.. your just not at your bodies ideal..

    as for an obese person feeling pride ^ idk how they could have any of the above without being filthy rich... and then again if they are rich they should feel pride.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Options
    What are your thoughts on fat pride? Do you think fat and healthy can go hand in hand? It seems to be an increasing (pardon the pun) movement at present.

    I think healthy is a relative term. I know people who have been overweight their entire lives and are in their 60s, 70s and 80s without major health problems. But every single one of them has major joint problems and decreased mobility/quality of life from it. I don't want to be riding around in a scooter when I'm middle-aged because I ruined my knees and hips from weighing too much.

    I also think it's important for people to love themselves, no matter what their bodies look like. I don't think you can get to a healthy weight if you hate your body or yourself because of your body. Weight doesn't make a person good or bad, dumb or smart. It's just a physical state.

    All that said, I see a LOT of denial and rebellion in this movement and I don't think it's healthy any more than I think groups of anorexics and bullimics cheering each other on is healthy.
  • ZOOpergal
    ZOOpergal Posts: 176 Member
    Options
    HaibaneReki, political correctness means using terminology that people don't find offensive to describe said people. For example, using non-offensive language to describe racial groups.

    It is perfectly possible to disagree without using abusive language, so there's no political correctness issue here at all.

    aha, I understand - call me medieval, but what I was trying to say is that the more quirks society tolerates and the more it encourages differences the quicker it'll eventually degenerate.

    :huh: :noway: Lemmie gues, Mitt Romney supporter?

Categories