Fat/Thin and that's it
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snarlingcoyote
Posts: 399 Member
I just read an interesting article on Facebook where the author talks about "thin privilege" and basically says "I'm thin, we all know it's real; thin girls are not oppressed. Yeah, people can be jerks to thin girls but we still are the privileged, not the oppressed."
That's absolutely fine and I think the author is right, butttt. . .
Never once does she say "healthy weight" or "normal" or even our moniker "not-that-heavy" or anything like it.
No. She references fat girls and she reference thin girls. Period.
It really got me thinking - in our society you're either "fat" or you're "thin." The concept of the middle (at a healthy, normal weight, but not skinny) has somehow gotten totally lost in our culture. My thoughts are the majority of people now ARE overweight, tending towards obese, and so anyone who is at a healthy weight is now lumped in as "thin" to them and that the media reinforces this - you're either thin (low normal to underweight) or you're fat (overweight) in their depictions. The only exception to this rule that I can think of is Harper on the Children's show Wizards of Waverly Place. She was a healthy weight, and kudos to that show for having her - her weight was never, ever referenced; she was presumed to be of a normal weight. (Her fashion and sartorial choices were the joke instead, and oh did those costume designers have fun with that!)
I'm taking "healthy" weight back. You really can't say "average" or "normal" weight anymore when the majority of people are overweight, but I am NOT skinny. I am NOT thin. I am curvy and have a little jiggly fat, but I am NOT overweight either and I will NOT be lumped into either camp anymore!
That's absolutely fine and I think the author is right, butttt. . .
Never once does she say "healthy weight" or "normal" or even our moniker "not-that-heavy" or anything like it.
No. She references fat girls and she reference thin girls. Period.
It really got me thinking - in our society you're either "fat" or you're "thin." The concept of the middle (at a healthy, normal weight, but not skinny) has somehow gotten totally lost in our culture. My thoughts are the majority of people now ARE overweight, tending towards obese, and so anyone who is at a healthy weight is now lumped in as "thin" to them and that the media reinforces this - you're either thin (low normal to underweight) or you're fat (overweight) in their depictions. The only exception to this rule that I can think of is Harper on the Children's show Wizards of Waverly Place. She was a healthy weight, and kudos to that show for having her - her weight was never, ever referenced; she was presumed to be of a normal weight. (Her fashion and sartorial choices were the joke instead, and oh did those costume designers have fun with that!)
I'm taking "healthy" weight back. You really can't say "average" or "normal" weight anymore when the majority of people are overweight, but I am NOT skinny. I am NOT thin. I am curvy and have a little jiggly fat, but I am NOT overweight either and I will NOT be lumped into either camp anymore!
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I think thin includes being at a healthy weight. At least when people use that word the context suggests that "Thin" means "not overweight."
I actually think of myself as thin even though my body fat percentage has gone over 20%. I think that's because the rest of the world has gotten much more overweight that anything not visibly overweight is considered awesome.0 -
I tend to agree with @snarlingcoyote. I think the media puts the ideal "thin" out there as just plain skinny, sometimes bordering on unhealthy. I find very very few standards of regular, healthy-weight women out there in the media. If you really look at most of the celebrities and models, they actually are extremely thin, often with arms so skinny they look emaciated, etc. I know part of this is because the camera adds pounds, but it makes it hard to set reasonable goals for regular folks like us.
I am at a healthy weight (BMI), and I have a healthy bodyfat, probably around 25-28%. I don't look like a celebrity (skinny), and I don't look like a fitness competitor (ripped). I am a size 4-6 with a slight tummy/muffin top and a big bust and some curve to my hips, but not pear shaped. I have muscles but not a six pack. Probably, I am that average, healthy and fit middle aged woman. But because I have only Hollywood to set my standard, when I look in the mirror, I see "big and fat". This is a struggle for me. I believe a realistic picture of healthy and fit in our media would be a very good thing, and would prevent all kinds of body image issues and eating disorders. (I've never struggled with ED's because I like to eat! But self image and feeling like I never measure up can sure be an issue).
Thin does not equal healthy!
Thanks for posting, OP. This is actually something I have been thinking about a lot as I continue to set goals for myself.0
