As a personal trainer and former overweight woman I sometimes find it hard to reconcile my weight loss and profession with my belief that there is nothing wrong with being on the heavy side. As long as you are healthy and happy then it's actually pretty awesome. Who wants a world filled with people that all look the same anyway?
It's definitely possible for thin people to be unhealthy, just as it is absolutely true that overweight people exercise and eat right.
When I was 50 pounds heavier I wanted to lose weight primarily for weight loss (re: appearance) with health coming in second. Looking back my health should have been my first priority, since I was eating horribly and seriously unfit.
I don't think losing weight changed me as a person. Being thin in itself never made me happy or more successful. What has given me positive results in other aspects of my life has been working towards goals, learning perseverance and following through on the things I have set out to accomplish.
Exercise has given me much more than a toned body. If anything, physical appearance is now very low on my list of why I love fitness and nutrition.
This Time article discusses a group that I'm a very big fan of called the Body Project. They are a group of high school and college "body activists" that help young women understand that being thin does not equal a happy and successful existence. They spread the word by handing out flyers, leaving signs in bathrooms and by slipping messages in to fashion magazines, to remind girls to love their bodies. Brilliant!
October 10, 2008
Big IS Beautiful
As a fitness professional I would make a horrible salesperson in a commercial gym. They try to make people feel bad about their body to make a sale. They are just as bad as the fashion magazines and cosmetic commercials. Bleh!
Exercise should be about feeling great, creating new experiences and knowing you can do anything you put your mind to.
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