Home Articles Aticles Index Articles for the Mind, Body & Spirit  1. Mission Statement  2. What Do You Want To Know About Sex?  3. Shame, Guilt, Fear… Who Needs Them .. Not you  4. Violence Against Women  5. You Have a Right To Be Angry  6. You Have a Right to Question ... To Speak Up  7. Finding Your Voice - Claiming Herstory  8. Money for College ... We Need You to Be Smart  9. Under the Constitution All Men are Created Equal 10. Becoming Your Authentic Self ... The Process 11. Emergency Hot Lines - Call Now, Don't Wait 12. Check This Out - More answers to Questions Speak Your Mind Blog Share Your Thoughts Here's What Others Are Saying Contact Us Emergency Nos./Links Emergency Phone Numbers Web links, More Answers to Your Questions Books to Read for Insight & Understanding A Note to Mothers A Note to Mothers About Ms Jo Help Support This Site Support Us So That We May Support Others

You're too fat!...... says who?

Who? The fashion industry, the "in" crowd at school, the latest issues of a dozen fashion magazines?

Weight should not be about how many pounds you weight or if you can wear a size 2 or a size 0. Your ideal weight is the weight you have the most zest for life at. Your mind is clear and it's easy to stay focused. You feel good and have lots of energy to do all the things you need to do, want to do and choose to do.

The female body is all about survival of the species. Your body at the cellular level is not interested in what the insurance industry charts say you should weight or what the fashion models weight. It's only concern is survival. At the individual level, you and your survival and at the big picture level, survival of the species.

The ideas of what is the ideal weight has changed through the years. Only recently, in 1967, when a 16 year old model named Twiggy, arrived in New York from London, England, did the image change. Now suddenly, thin was in. Unfortunately, thin has been carried to the extreme. Today, all over the world, people are starving themselves just to reach some unrealistic ideal weight. Anorexia nervosa can have dangerous psychological and behavioral effects on all aspects of an person's life even leading to death. People who suffer from anorexia have an intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat. They believe that they are too fat even when they are underweight. Their self perception becomes grossly distorted. Any weight loss is not acknowledged and when they look in the mirror, they still see a "fat" person. Roughly 6% of these people will die from complications due to self imposed starvation. Another 20% never fully recover and remain chronically ill requiring treatment over their entire lives. (www.MedicineNet.com).

For hundreds and hundreds of years, round and soft and voluptuous was considered beautiful and the ideal. In the 1940's Betty Grable was considered one of the most beautiful and desirable women in the United States. Her most famous picture, taken in a bathing suit looking over her shoulder was the original "Pin-Up Girl" During World War ll, many of the soldiers had "pin-up" pictures of their sweethearts or Betty Grable or any one of the many pretty pin-up girls, They helped the soldiers feel connected to home. And again,these women were round and soft and voluptuous, and the soldiers couldn't wait to come home to them. Marilyn Monroe is probably the most famous world wide of all the round and soft and voluptuous beauties.

So .... are you really too fat ....... or have you succumbed to the trillion messages that bombard you constantly, all of them implying that who and what you are isn't good enough. Well ..... what if they are wrong? What if .... just what if .... they have a hidden motive, a hidden agenda, one that is not in your best interest? A hidden motive that keeps filling their pockets with money, lots and lots of money at your expense. If they can keep you and millions of other girls and young women just like you, feeling bad about yourselves, you'll keep spending your dollars on this new lipstick or that new shampoo or the latest diet pills.

So .... do you really believe your too fat, or has puberty added curves in places you didn't have before. Your goal needs to be to have a vibrant and healthy body at whatever weight that happens to be. Loosing weight is not the answer. Are you aware that dieting makes you fat. I will say that again... Dieting Makes You Fat !! At the cellular level, your body "panics" when you diet or skip a meal. Do it often enough and your body will take action to protect itself. What does it do? It slows down your metabolism. So, say for example, your body needs 2600 calories to do all the things you do each day. But you are dieting so you are only eating 1500 calories. Your body will slow down it's metabolism to survive on only 1500 calories. Then, if you eat 2000 calories, it will store the extra 500 calories to protect itself against possible future starvation. Then you notice you are gaining weight and so, you reduce your food intake even more, creating a vicious downward spiral, the yo-yo syndrome. You wind up tired, cranky and hating yourself.

There is a way out. First accept yourself. Forgive yourself and let your current weight, what ever it is be ok. You can jump start your metabolism, but first your body needs to feel safe. And start moving. Go shoot some baskets, or put on a CD and dance, dance, dance, or whatever it is that invigorates you. Drink water, lots of water. Make 5-6 glasses a day be your absolute minimum. 8-10 glasses a day is better. Sodas, coffee, tea, juice don't count. They actually cause you to become more dehydrated. Take a multiple vitamin, one that contains Folic acid. And most important of all is no more skipped meals. 4-5 smaller meals is better for you than no breakfast, a light lunch and then a mega dinner because by now, you are starving. After a while, your body will get the message and your weight will balance out. Hate breakfast, don't have enough time, you'll miss your ride. Then grab an apple or a banana and a bagel to eat between classes. String cheese fits nicely in the pocket of your jeans. So does a sandwich baggie filled with raisins and nuts. Granola bars come in all flavors. Cook several hard boiled eggs for yourself over the week-end and grab one on your way out the door.

Start reading food labels. How much protein does it contain? Does it have any vitamin C, iron or vitamin E ... what vitamins or minerals does it have? Read the list of ingredients. If it has too many words you can't even pronounce, it's probably not your best choice. Your body needs nutrients. When you eat healthy foods you will find that you aren't hungry all the time. When you eats foods poor in nutrients, you body will push you to eat more trying to get the nutrients it needs. When you don't drink enough water, your body will push you to eat more, because it want the water that's in the food. Last, get enough sleep. 7-8 hours of sleep each and every night is what your body needs.