I know today isn’t Weight Loss Wednesday, but it is International No Diet Day, so I thought we’d chat just a bit about weight loss anyway.
INDD seems to have been around since 1992, though I’ve only heard of it in the past few years or so. It’s a day all about acceptance—accepting the diversity of body shapes/sizes in the world, and accepting ourselves if we happen to be one of the shapes/sizes that doesn’t quite conform to the mainstream idea of pretty or fit. It’s a pretty good idea, except . . .
Image courtesy Wikipedia
Should I feel ashamed that I’m not happy with myself the way I am? And I suppose a large part of that could be because of society and its perpetual presentation of the perfect female form, I don’t know. I’ve been around a long time, soaking up the subliminal messages. But I don’t think I’ve been brainwashed. I know I’m not trying to be a stick figure. And I know I don’t judge others because of their size. But I do judge myself.
I especially judge myself, who worked so hard to lose weight a couple of years ago then slacked off and gained so much of it back (one of the primary reasons many don’t believe in “dieting”) and now cannot seem to find the motivation to make it happen again. I judge myself because I know that I was happier when I was smaller, even though I still wasn’t as small as I wanted to be. And I really judge myself because I know that I simply felt better when I was carrying around less weight, even though I still weighed too much. And isn’t feeling good really what it’s all about?
And, yes, INDD does support the idea of healthy eating and activity; no one is saying it’s okay to cram crap food into your mouth all day long while sitting on the couch watching television. Even the organizations that don’t want us to focus on constant weight loss or to strive for an unrealistic idea of perfection still recognize that too much weight can cause health problems. Everyone wants people to be healthy. And I’d certainly like it if everyone could feel good about themselves while they were just feeling good.
But I guess the thing that sort of niggles at my brain about INDD is that it’s bad enough that I do feel bad about myself many days because of my size; I really don’t need another day making me feel bad because I feel bad. Know what I mean?
