How can one magazine photo stir up so much body hate?
-Carrie Seim, BettyConfidential.com
When Glamour printed a photo of nearly naked Lizzi Miller, highlighting her belly fat and stretch marks, I braced myself. Not because of the pic - Lizzi's empirically beautiful and magazines should show women of all shapes and sizes - but I knew an onslaught was coming.
The photo sparked a storm of media and impassioned comments from readers. Sure enough, most of those comments heaped praise on "real women" and vitriol on thin (presumably "fake") women.
Well guess what? I'm a skinny b---- - and proud of it. I'm 5'4" tall, 100 pounds, with toned arms and defined abs. But it's not like any of those things just appeared on my pillow from the skinny fairy. I work hard for my body, and I'm no more a "fake" woman than you are.
Man, am I tired of either having to hide my thinness or be hated for it. It reminds me of a scene from Mean Girls, where newcomer Cady fumbles her way through the confusing jungle of popular girl politics:
Regina: But you're, like, really
pretty.
Cady: Thank you.
Regina: So you agree?
Cady: What?
Regina: You think you're really pretty?
Damned if you do, damned if you don't.
I know what you're going to say - I have no right to complain in a culture that fetishizes thin women and ostracizes plump ones. You're right - it's not fair. But it's also not fair to punish me for the sacrifices I make to achieve what (for me) is a healthy body.
I run four miles a day. Every day. I eat yogurt for breakfast and salads for lunch. I indulge in chocolate - but one square suits me fine. Sure, I get cravings for ice cream at midnight, but I know I'll feel better in the morning if I stop eating at 8 p.m. I do sit-ups in the morning and stretch before bed, I pick diet soda or tea over Coke, and I eat nearly anything I want for dinner - but in limited portions. And you know what? I'm happy!
I make these choices because they're healthy for me and because I feel better for them. (Trust me, I come from a childhood of Coke for breakfast and french fries as vegetables, so I know from whence I speak. And before you freak out in the comments about how I'm depriving myself, I'm not insane - I eat everything I want on vacations and special occasions or, you know, when I've had a really crappy Thursday.)
I would never comment on anyone else's body, but strangers
on the street feel no shame in remarking on how "skinny,"
"tiny," "little," "skeletal," etc.,
etc., ad nauseum, I am. So I've decided to embrace it.
Wouldn't it be great if we could all be proud of own bodies -
in whatever shape or size - and stop criticizing each other?
I'm perfectly aware that my body will change with age and/or
childbirth, but for now, I'm proud to be a skinny b---- .
Read more articles by Carrie Seim from BettyConfidential.com: Relationships: When It's Over, Is It Really Over? and Love Notes
