When you look in the mirror, what do you see? I’ve always had a bit of a strange relationship with my body, and for years what I saw in the mirror was a stark contrast to what I am told I looked like in person. View Post
Body positivity: not just for fat people
Yesterday I got an urgent call from a Seven Sharp producer asking me to come on the show to talk about gorgeous model Tess Holliday and to give some advice to two women who had entered a beauty pageant. Despite being on vacation with my family, I said I’d love to – because I think that any occasion to speak to the general masses about the importance of body positivity and versatility in the media is extremely important. They found a cameraman and a place for me to do a live cross, while I went home to wash my hair (because really, who wants to go on TV with greasy hair?) and answer a list of questions to help guide the interviewer.
Tess Holliday © Charlotte Hackett / MiLK Management
Real women have curves
One thing that’s been really getting me down lately is how often I see people putting down one body type in order to raise another up. Comments like “real women have curves”, are commonly said with the intention of celebration more voluptuous women with fuller figures, however they imply that women with smaller body types are somehow lesser. Seeing as there is so much conversation about beauty standards, body positivity and body shaming lately, I thought this might be a good point to add into that discussion.
My body is not your business
As a woman*, people seem to think that your body is a free for all discussion topic. They give you their opinion on your weight, on their perception of your health; they share unsolicited “advice” about what you should/shouldn’t be eating, how you should/shouldn’t be exercising, what you’re wearing and how you treat your body in general; and if you are pregnant everyone is going to touch your belly whether you want them to or not. In fact, stories from friends indicate that people might try doing this when you’re not pregnant, just fat. Awkwaaaaard.
I want to start out by saying that unwelcome comments about your body and health are not limited to fat women – but I write about this from the perspective of a woman who is fat. Women of all sizes get comments about their bodies (and their health): there’s catcalling in the street (and on the internet); there are snide comments about how she looks in that red bodycon dress; there are thousands of magazines and websites that pass judgement on women’s bodies every day – too fat, too thin, cellulite, weight gain, weight loss, pregnancy… We need to learn that it’s not okay, and we need to start making a change to the culture we’ve created.
More often than not, these kinds of comments can make us feel like crap. I’ve had times when passing comments from strangers have reduced me to tears … and when it’s my own family? That’s a thousand times worse. So I thought I’d share a few tips I’ve picked up along the way about how to deal with situations like this. View Post
Club Physical’s Body Shaming Ads
This is what you see when you visit Club Physical’s Facebook page at the moment. A message that tells you “you belong” while simultaneously body shaming. It’s not the first time Club Physical has employed body shaming in an attempt to get customers to join their gyms – I live near one and bear witness to their awful roadside advertising. In fact, it’s not even the first time that they’ve run an ad using this idea – their own website said it was their “second most offensive ad, as measured by complaints to the Advertising standards Authority. But it worked.” They’re proud of this behaviour. View Post
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