Instagram feud cosmopolitan cover

InnerMe

Thu, Jan 07 2021, 9:23 pm

tweek wrote:

I still believe that the way to cure disordered eating is through a non-diet approach and to make peace with food.

I just feel that some of the rhetoric being spewed by those that consider themselves spokespeople for the "community " are not all that ok themselves....

Perhaps they aren't actual "spokespeople"

In the same way yiddishkeit, has lots of so called "spokespeople" who just by virtue of yelling louder make their voice heard but they don't represent the heart of yiddishkeit at all. It pays to look and find those people you do connect with instead of doing away with something that has so much value.

InnerMe

Thu, Jan 07 2021, 9:24 pm

amother [ Chartreuse ] wrote:

Every single ideology has militant supporters who will nitpick and loudly criticize anyone who doesn't follow their way exactly. There are people who are very particular about whether the right way to peel an apple is starting from the top or the bottom and about the exact amount of time a layer of nail polish should be allowed to dry before the next layer is applied. It doesn't mean that everyone who shares the same general opinion or interest is wrong.

Exactly, well said.

tweek

Thu, Jan 07 2021, 9:26 pm

InnerMe wrote:

You have good points, tweek. I agree that the ones who are militant about it and shame anyone who doesn't agree with them is off putting. Still, like you say it has looots of goods parts this movement so it's up to each individual how to go about it.

Also this doesn't justify it, but I think that people are so so fed up of hearing shaming messages the other way around about how fat they are and that they shouldn't exist if they don't look like the image of a female body society likes... that it's kind of exhilarating for them that it doesn't have to be this way and they want to shout it to the whole world.

Especially in this social media age where so many teens are on it and are getting these poisonous messages about trying to shrink their body because otherwise they aren't worthy of existence. They feel a responsibility to educate and allow people to come across this info because unfortunately the diet camp is still a lottttt louder.

I haven't seen it on Instagram so I don't know exactly what went on but just based on my understanding here, this is what I'm seeing.

I agree with everything you said. I am a huge preacher of so many intuitive eating concepts. I am just so put off by the way this whole Instagram feed went down. It actually helped me realize how right I am regarding picking and choosing and not taking every word some of these bloggers say as the ultimate truth.

tweek

Thu, Jan 07 2021, 9:30 pm

InnerMe wrote:

Great comparison!

They appointed themselves spokespeople by claiming that they have a right to call out a different blogger who disagreed with them and basicallysystematicallybullied her. Im not really on Instagram. I only installed it for help with my intuitive eating journey! And I'm glad I got to see some of their true colors. It helped with my confusion about not always agreeing with every last point they so vehemently claim.

InnerMe

Thu, Jan 07 2021, 10:07 pm

tweek wrote:

I hear you. Bullying ain't good.

I'm certain there are others that would be a better fit for you who are careful not to engage in bullying, I just don't know who they are since I'm not really on Instagram. Any Imas here would know?

If I think of someone I will let you know.

amother

Sapphire

Thu, Jan 07 2021, 10:08 pm

I don't know what went down on Instagram but I have no problem with the article pictures and captions. It seems to be normalizing what "normal women" look like.

It all depends what healthy means to you.

A thin model could have a terrible eating disorder, have not gotten a period in months or years due to her poor eating habits, she could eat a very non- nutritious diet overall and have a very poor relationship with food and their body. But our society perceives such a person to automatically be "healthy " because she is thin.

A heavy or obese model could eat a very balanced diet, exercise regularly and have a good relationship with food and body. Is that "healthy"? I don't know.... it depends who you ask. I think she is much healthier than my first example.

I think the concepts of "body positive", "health at every size" and "intuitive eating" movements are wonderful. These are moving our society's perceptions and expectations of ourselves in a more realistic direction. Yeah, there might be some extremists out there but, overall I support these concepts.

And on the topic of "obesity", I heard on an intuitive eating podcast that the BMI scale was created with research using only white males.... over 100 years ago!!! Um that doesn't sound very diversified and randomized for research to me. And not current either.

amother

Honeydew

Thu, Jan 07 2021, 11:54 pm

Disordered eating is killing people. There are so many people in our frum communities who are desperately ill with eating disorders.

If you aren’t bothered by stick thin models on the cover of magazines that are touting that as “healthy” than you don’t really care about health, you are just fatphobic.

I say this as someone who weighed 105 pounds at her wedding and lived a hugely unhealthy lifestyle. I drank coke by the gallon, and very little fruit and veg., I was insanely unfit and was breathless after a fast walk, but due largely to genetics I had what was considered a perfect body.

The compliments, admiration and praise of my body, my looks and my health from my teens and twenties is something I will always remember.

I was far from the picture of health but because I ate what I wanted and was still super thin I was always praised for beings so healthy.

I weigh 140 pounds now and am infinitely healthier than before. My body is strong, my heart is healthy, my skin, nails and hair are better, I no longer have the headaches I always attributed to my period and now know are actual signs of dehydration.

We need to really check ourselves and if we praise the skinny girl for eating cupcakes of the buffet at a Simcha and judge the overweight one for doing the same, we need to ask ourselves why.

What can we do as a culture and society to create strong, healthy women.

Because we are failing at that.

amother

Burgundy

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 6:21 am

I am "obese" according to the BMI charts.
No, I don't sit and eat cookies all day. In fact I rarely sit and don't even particularly like sweets.
I am an extremely active person. My job involves being on my feet constantly, and a lot of bending, lifting and walking. I eat a healthy, balanced diet including vegetables, fruit, protein and complex carbohydrates.
My cholesterol, blood pressure and other "numbers" are extremely good for my age (40)
So yes, I am healthy. I do not have a small body. To do that would involve starving myself. I tried that when I was 18 and basically had a 6 month migraine fromnot fueling my body properly. I got smaller, sure, but didn't have the strength to do the active hobbies ( hiking, bike riding) I had previously enjoyed.

I came to an intuitive eating philosophy on my own when I was in my 20s. I decided I'd rather feel good and be fat than be thin and miserable. Food has no power over me. It's simply food. Movement is enjoyable not a way to punish myself.

I'm sure people look at me with my double chin, round hips and muscular calves and think I'm disgusting and have no self control. That I'm "unhealthy". When in fact I might be healthier than them.

THAT was the point of the cover. The large athlete on the cover is healthy. She. As an individual. Being fat doesn't automatically make one unhealthy the same way being super thin doesn't make one unhealthy. The cover model doesn't represent all fat people. But fat people can be just as healthy as anyone else if they live a healthy lifestyle. That's key. Not size.

There's a huge amount of bias in the medical establishment against larger people. This is a proven FACT.
Symptoms of diseases are discounted (people are told to "just lose weight and you'll be fine), life saving medical treatments and surgeries are refused (surgical equipment is designed for thinner people) This is what causes fat people to die more often of certain diseases. A thin person shows up with chest pain and is given medical tests and the treatment they need. Same symptoms in a fat person and they're sent home with a "prescription" to lose weight. (Yes, this actually happened. Luckily he went to another doctor who gave him actual medical treatment that probably saved his life)

We need to be encouraging people to care for the bodies they were given. No matter their size. Not try to change them. That's the only thing the cover was glorifying. And that's wonderful.

amother

Chartreuse

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 6:48 am

The being told to lose weight thing is real. One woman shared the story of how she was immediately weighed and told to exercise more based on the number on the scale (before the doctor even looked at her). She is a bodybuilder with a very low body fat percentage, which is only achievable with an extreme amount of exercise, but why look into a patient's individual medical situation before offering vague and generalized medical advice?

amother

Pink

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 8:52 am

amother [ Honeydew ] wrote:

Being addicted to food is also an eating disorder. People’s worth should not be based on their weight, but the developed world has dug itself into a pit with our diets.

PinkFridge

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 9:05 am

amother [ Honeydew ] wrote:

Your story is reminding me of this book:
https://www.goodreads.com/en/b.....ounds

amother

Pink

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 9:08 am

amother [ Chartreuse ] wrote:

What is called "food addiction" is a problematic eating pattern similar to binge eating disorder that has nothing to do with obesity in general.

You don’t have to be obese to be addicted to food, but nor do you have to be diagnosed with a binge eating disorder. All of us who can’t stop eating carbs and sugar are addicted to the fix it gives us. This isn’t a moral judgment, it’s a biological fact. And pretending the obesity epidemic isn’t related to this fact on a systemic level is digging your head in the sand, which is exactly what the powers that be want.

amother

Chartreuse

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 9:15 am

amother [ Pink ] wrote:

And nobody said that you do.

As for the rest, the causes of the obesity epidemic on a systemic level really is irrelevant to the general discussion. We are all individuals who are not in charge of the system; we make decisions related to our personal health, not for others.

amother

Lilac

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 9:36 am

amother [ Chartreuse ] wrote:

And people who are currently obese are not likely to stop being obese before they either get the virus or get vaccinated.

The big question is why the media weren't promoting being in good health in order to combat the virus. Why were they shutting down gyms, putting people in to lockdown, when being healthy was a big factor in being able to fight the virus. In my neighborhood they even closed up the parks.

Most of the models look OK but don't claim that an obese person is healthy. Yes, she might be doing exercise and her blood pressure is fine but all that extra fat is not healthy.

I think they go extreme because they want it to go viral:( They don't exactly care about being truthful.

amother

Burgundy

Fri, Jan 08 2021, 9:43 am

amother [ Lilac ] wrote:

PROOF that having what you call "extra fat" is not healthy?
There is none.
There is bias.
By laypeople and some doctors.
But no proof.
Learning that changes everything.
Bodies come in all different shapes and sizes.