*Originally published on my personal blog Turkish Delight
Once upon a time, or rather this morning as I was getting out of the
shower and looking/admiring my naked belly in the mirror (we all should
be able to look at ourselves in the mirror with love!), I overheard the
local newscaster say "The obesity epidemic is at an all time-high and on
our show today we have an expert to help us get fit!"....or at least
they said something like that. Honestly the second that I heard
"obesity epidemic" I could feel a spasm of eye-rolling starting. But I
took a short break from my mirror-gazing-vanity to walk over to the tv
to watch.
They were interviewing this guy about his
"new" book (cause 2010 is new apparently) called "Die Fat or Get
Tough". To summarize the 2 minute interview....fat people are fat
because they think like fat people and that in order for their life to
improve dramatically they have to get 'mentally tough' and think like
"fit" people. The female newscaster tried to ask him about how people's
bodies are different, genetics, nature vs. nurture, etc.... but he
promptly cut her off with his assertion that fat people think all the
same and that if they just had the mental toughness they could be
thin....and of course that their life would be full of butterflies and
roses instead of a dun....dun....dunn......an early grave.
I
had a brief.....BRIEF.....moment where I thought that I should read his
book before making any judgements about it or writing a scathing review
of it, etc. Instead I looked up his website....his
gimmicky, cliche website. Because he's deigning to you, reader of his
website, by sharing his 'life changing' secrets with you in this book.
He had to take precious time out of his busy, successful motivational-
speaking career in order to write this book. He felt morally called to
this task apparently. He also "gets it" because he once gained 40
pounds when he was traveling for work and had some unhealthy
habits.....he went from a 32 waist to a 36 (gasp! horror!). And then he
exercised and was 'mentally tough about his fitness', lost the weight,
and is now your new weight-loss savior.
I would like
to note that I read his website while eating a particularly delicious
chocolate cake doughnut. Incidentally, I have some left over if anyone
wants to visit me at my office today....
But I digress.
After
reviewing his website, I decided that I didn't need to or want to read
his book. He mentioned in the news interview that he had received
'death threats' because of how difficult his message was to hear. And
while I don't condone anyone giving death threats in general or over a
fat-shaming diet book....the guy seems like a bit of jerk.
What
I would rather do..... is love myself. I want to see and look at
myself with love and possibility. And yeah....my chunky knees and
thighs bug me. But they are still part of me, part of my legs that
allow me to move about this world everyday....they hold me up, support
me, and are bendy and soft and seem to be constantly changing. And
ultimately, they are pretty damn awesome.
I would also
rather listen and spend my time reading the words of people who don't
need to scare and shame people so that they can live a lavish
lifestyle. I want to read the works of people who are human and average
and not 'well-off'. I want to connect with people that I can relate
to, and people who can relate to me as a person.....and not some
statistic that they think I fit into.
You know
what else I would rather do? Tell you about the strangeness of my
clothing choices today. I decided to put on the one pair of bluejeans
that I own....which I haven't worn in a couple of years. They fit, no
problems there....no weird laying on the bed to zip them up or holding
your breath for a minute while you try to inch up the zipper.
Wow....are blue jeans restrictive! I can still bend over and touch my
toes and all that....but it is by sheer force of will! This just adds
to the superiority of skirts, dresses and yoga pants....
....and of course....
.....shame-free doughnuts.....
......and a whole lot of self-love!
