There's a fantastic article in today's G2 called "Losing It". It's an introduction to Kia Cochrane who will be starting a column on weight loss without any diet or exercise tips. Normally I shudder at the thought of any of this "one woman's journey in search of the perfect body" bollocks, and I had my sneering muscles warmed up and at the ready (especially considering the cover proclaims "The Feminist Dieter!" in response to the story) but then I actually started reading the piece. Cochrane is both funny and intensely likable - she's also incredibly honest. She tells how she had always been fairly happy with her weight but then, through a regime of eating "what felt normal, without thinking about it" she managed to put on a lot of weight in a short time.
What normally would follow would be tales of self loathing, a strict work-out regime and a diet of carrots and celery (that helpfully would be provided in a separate supplement decorated with images of a newly svelte Cochrane grinning a glazed and slightly manic "See? You can do this too!" smile) instead the author says the following:
"And you know what? I didn't mind. In fact, as I started to escape the fug I had been in, looked down and noticed my belly, I realised that being fat was kind of cool."
She goes on to explain how being properly "fat" immediately excluded her from the constant comparisons and competitions concerning body weight and dress size that most "normally sized" women are subjected to on a daily basis, conversations that are both understandable in today's society and yet incredibly depressing all at the same time:
"I no longer had to take, or fake, an interest in any of my friends' new diet plans. They simply didn't tell me about them. I was no longer part of that culture that counts calories, compares dress sizes and says, "No carbs after sundown!" as though this is a fabulous motto to live by."
Eventually though the restrictions her weight had put on her, coupled with a family history of heart disease, convinced her to lose some weight; for the health benefits. And, contrary to the majority of articles citing this as a motivator to slim down, Cochrane never talks about herself in the self loathing way that we've come to expect of women embarking on diets or fitness regimes. Throughout the entire piece the reader is given a sense of a self assured (if a little neurotic) woman who is happy with the person that she is. As opposed to the legions of women who state "I'm going to get fit, if I lose weight it'll be a nice bonus" (and I hold up my hand, I was certainly one of them, in fact I may still be guilty of this) she manages to sound sincere in her stance that she admires those who are overweight and obese but still keep fit, and there's no hint of envy in her statement that they are healthier than their "skinny-but-unfit peers".
I recommend that you go and read the article, I'll be keeping up with the columns every other week, I'm hoping that she doesn't disappoint me.
If you don't read the piece the last two paragraphs sum it up perfectly:
"Anyway, hatred of physical jerks or not, hatred of the diet industry or not, hatred of conversations about low-calorie alternatives to cheese or not, by the start of this year I knew that I had to do something about my weight. I knew that this would be difficult for a lot of reasons: said problem with sport; an inability to be told what to do; my psychological association of being thin with being depressed. But I also knew that I was not alone. Though being fat often feels alienating, the reality is that the majority of UK adults are now overweight. This means that there are a lot of people out there like me. People who feel that they should lose weight, but have done so before and seen it all go back on, and then some. People who feel that the diet industry is a vast conspiracy, predicated on failure - after all, if any diet actually worked the whole billion-dollar baby would go bust. People who feel sick at the thought of buying into anything that Gillian McKeith or the countless other preaching, screeching diet "gurus" have to say. A lot of people, then, who know that they have to lose weight, but approach the project with ambivalence.
In writing about my experiences, I won't be including updates on lost kilos (I don't weigh myself). I won't be providing fabulous tips for reducing the size of your behind (what do I know? I just plan to eat less and exercise more). I won't be declaring that Rosemary Conley was right when she said, "Nothing tastes as good as being slim feels!" (Clearly impossible, as ice cream exists.) I won't be providing endless portions of self-loathing, as I don't hate myself - or anyone else - for being fat. I know that many people consider being fat a crime akin to murder. I do not. I shall simply be charting some months in the life of a person who is, at best, reluctant about diets, and, at worst, disgusted by the very notion, but who knows, unfortunately, that something must be done. I warn you: there will be grumpiness."
Absolutely superb. And I can relate: for the first time ever I have given something up for lent. Two things actually, first up: chocolate (I have replaced my daily rations with all manner of other, non cocoa based producs, natch. I'm currently addicted to individual carrot cake bars). Secondly I've given up my scales and I must say that not obsessively weighing myself has done fucking wonders for my psyche.
I'm still exercising, which is some kind of a record as I'm now in my *counts* fifth week of doing it. My super-fit rugby playing flatmate G is very impressed with me and the fact that I seem inclined to keep pushing myself further (I decided yesterday that I need to add weights into one section of my cardio routine to make it more challenging) - he's even using RPG analogies to keep me motivated, apparently continually pushing myself to get fitter is akin to levelling up for the sheer joy of being more badass than everything in the surrounding area. He also reminded me that I'd promised to join a club when I got fitter - level 50 according to him (I really need to stop talking to that boy about my video games). After a club (where I will meet exciting new people and be motivated to go by default) I have to find a sport (if dancing doesn't count I'm screwed) and then apparently I have to get competitive.
Yeah, we'll see how that goes.
Frankly, the fact that I'm still getting my ass off the sofa three plus times per week and actually working out is nothing short of a miracle. We'll see how I feel in another month.
5 comments:
Sigh. I loved her column. There was so much of what she wrote that I could relate to.
Is this female self-loathing something handed down from generation to generation or is it the influence of advertising on the part of the diet and beauty industry? There was a great scene in "Mean Girls" about this very issue. The girls are each bitching about something that's "wrong" with their physical appearance, but Lindsay Lohan's character, raised out of the U.S., doesn't get it and can't think of anything to share beyond bad morning breath.
There is a lot of validity in the "It's not your weight; it's your fitness level." school of thought. I know that after months of non-activity I've been really struggling to get back to my old running regimen. And I'm not overweight.
Try running for a sport. I am the most non-competitive person and don't play well with others. So I run and enter small races. There's no chance in hell I'm going to win anything, but I love the solitude of running and competing in races is more or less competing with myself to make the best time I can.
Speaking of running, I'm off to do my time on the elliptical machine.
Bless you child for giving up chocolate; you are a better woman than I.
Hey Alex, speaking as a hispanic and with much experience around party-going hispanics....dancing definately counts. Easiest and most fun way to keep fit, and you get to meet people!
Hey Alex, speaking as a white person who absolutely cannot and will not dance, and who is noncompetitive, undisciplined, and lazy, WALKING is the best way to exercize regularly. It's better for your knees and posture than running, it's fucking easy (assuming you have legs), and it gets you places for cheaper than driving or riding public transportation--so you don't even have to set aside time to exercise; it's built into your schedule (weather permitting, of course). Plus, you know, the environment? It just seems silly to me that people are more willing to spend money on gas and other car expenses AND pay health club memberships than they are to replace driving with walking (or biking). That is the true lifestyle adjustment that's easy to keep up once you see that it's just logically and economically superior to the alternatives.
And to go even further with diet, the more vegetarian your diet is (assuming you don't just replace meat with cheese and white flour), the healthier it will be and--hey, it's also better for the environment. See, you're multi-tasking!
ALSO, to continue my preaching (but seriously, I really don't mean to make this a moral issue; I remain practical), pledging to only buy organic and/or fair trade chocolate (as well as coffee, tea, etc) is a great way to limit your intake, as it costs a bit more (but is often more satisfying for its quality).
(And, you know...little children shouldn't be enslaved to work on cocoa plantations? Just sayin'.)
Big people shouldn't be enslaved, either...ok, I'll stop now.
Post a Comment