Changing the Subject

I am only about 2 pages into “Health At Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight” and I’m hooked. The book is written by Linda Bacon, PhD (You can check out her website here).

Here’s the paragraph that had me reaching for the computer immediately:

“Many of us have a disturbing preoccupation with food and an intense fear of being fat. Instead of eating for enjoyment and fuel, we regard food as our enemy, as a test of our resolve and willpower-and even of our moral superiority.  Instead of moving for the sheer joy of feeling our bodies and our power, we view exercise as a workout, our penance for eating or weighing too much. Instead of putting our energy into thinking about how we can improve the world, we obsess about how we can change our bodies.”

This paragraph simply states how I’ve been feeling lately. I haven’t read the book in its entirety yet, so I am very intrigued. Ultimately, I (as most other women in America) have dieted, watched our mothers, aunties, and grandmothers all diet. We’ve all jumped on the scale and let it determine our mood for the day. I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of the “I hate my body”, “I can’t have that ‘bad’ food because I’m on a diet for a special event”, “How can you eat that? It’s so fattening!” type of conversations. Blah, blah, blah, yawn. I don’t want to be 90 years old and on a damn diet. I want to live my life. I’m tired of the kool-aid drinkers who swear they have the “miracle fat cure” and want to sell it to me. I’m especially tired of the folk who think that their way to lose weight and live life is the ONLY way to do it and become elitist and snobby.

Let’s change the subject, shall we?

I want to know about how good it feels to connect with another person, even when it’s scary to step outside of a comfort zone.

I want to know how exhilarating it is setting a goal, and then achieving it!

I want to hear about how spectacular you feel, because you can keep up with your teenager.

I want to hear about your amazing recipe – because it tastes good, not because it only has x amount of calories.

I want to hear how you felt so confident that you danced with abandon with your spouse and had a ball!

I want to hear less about rigidity and rules and restriction and more about people living life; having fun moving and fueling their bodies, enjoying their families and being healthy in the fullest sense of the word.

How about you? Are you ready to change the subject?