First, I have to say that right now I am at home sick, class is happening and I am sitting in bed writing this post. Okay now that I got that out I will continue. . . So for the past few months I have worked out almost every day and been watching what I eat. I do not think that I am obese, but I definitely feel that I need to lose some weight to be healthy. Also, I am Catholic and right now Catholics are celebrating Lent, a time when each person gives up something for forty days. This year I gave up gossiping, fast food/ restaurant food, and alcohol. With all of this I have lost a few pounds, but not what I want, and recently I cut sugar from my diet. The only sugar I get from food now is natural, in fruits and vegetables, no refined sugar. I keep track of my food and exercise, so I do not over eat, and I think not eating sugar has been a good change. However, I can not help but wonder how much of this weight loss is for me, and how much is it for what I see in fashion?
Every day we see advertising for quick fixes to lose weight, programs, home gyms, and skinny people in general. I can not help, but think that this has played a role in my decision. I have heard that the average woman is a size 12, and I can not say that this is a good or bad thing, because I think that everyone needs to be comfortable in their own skin. But seeing all these actresses and models has really warped my mind at what is right and normal. It is sort of funny that skinny girls are the ones modeling the clothes, when a body like that is more rare than a profession athlete!! I do not understand why average girls are not walking the runway, as average girls are the biggest market. Honestly, I feel like I may be talking in circles, but all I know is what I want to look like. . . I am just not sure whether it is attainable.
I really like this post and I wish you would have read it in class, but I understand how personal this is.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that what we see in the magazines, TV, movies, and fashion runways don’t seem to represent the average woman who apparently wears a size 12. I can wear a size 12, depending on the piece of clothing, and I’ve never seen anyone the same size as me, or with even the same look as me, in mass media.
I used to struggle with wanting to look a certain way (look like my friends who were always smaller than me, or like women in videos and on TV) and I was very self-conscious and uncomfortable because I did not look the way that I thought that I should.
But over time I began to come into myself and see who “I” am. I began to love myself as I am now, because whether I lose 50 pounds or 10, I’m still the same person and I wouldn’t want the way that I look to determine the way that I feel about myself, because beauty comes from within.
Who you are comes from within first, and who you are and how you feel influences the way that you look on the outside. I encourage you to continue with your diet and exercise to develop a healthier lifestyle and way of living, while you still enjoy the goodie foods in moderation just so that you can live a nice, long, and healthy life. Don’t strive to diet and exercise so that you look like what is projected to us through Mass media.
Be you, be Whitnee, because there will never be another you. Love yourself from within. :)
Raenik that was an amazing comment, and I am so thankful for it, because you made me feel so much better about myself!!!!! I wish everyone could see things the way you do! Thank you so much!!!! :)
ReplyDeleteI also really like this post and it's a very sensitive topic, I think, that every girl faces, I know I do. Even my little sister who is only 13 is self conscious about her weight and body but she hasn't even reached puberty yet! Every time I see pictures of women who have amazing bodies, I look at myself and wonder why I can't look like that. I know that everyone says to be comfortable in your skin and love everything that makes you YOU yet I can't help but stray away from that thought when I turn at every corner and see women in magazines and movies that look better than me. How can I be comfortable in my body when I know people judge other people all the time. I know this because, I must admit, I am pretty judgmental. I don't want to sound like a "debbie downer" but this is how I feel sometimes.
ReplyDeleteI mean there are other times when I can honestly say I don't care about what other people think and that's when I'm definitely the happiest. I wish I can be like that all the time and I'm trying to better myself by doing so. I have great family and friends that love me for me so that can only motivate me to feel the same. I think just as long as you have the confidence, nothing else matters.