Fear of the Fat

I have been eating rubbish food ever since I can remember. When I was younger, I would be made to sit at the table until I finished vegetables that would make me want to vom.  Everyone said I would grow out of it.

I didn’t so much grow out of the green vegetable hating. I just found more foods that I liked. Non-English foods. I started thinking I was just born in the wrong continent.

Now this isn’t a new argument, it’s been mentioned over and over but I’m not sure things are changing.

Women’s bodies come under a ridiculous amount of scrutiny. From the outside, it might seem like I don’t get wrapped up in this obsession.

The truth is that I find the pressure to look a certain way absolutely crushing.

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People always think I exercise a lot and that I’m reasonably fit. If I’m honest, I’m driven partly by the fear of transforming into a blob. I’ve been told that’s what happens. If you don’t exercise, you will blob out and subsequently be unattractive, unsuccessful and that most dreaded of all things… single.

So, yes, I’m driven, but in a large part by fear of the fat – because fat is one of the worst things you can be for a woman… so we’re told.

Who is driving this idea? Companies who want you to buy their crap. Companies who are employing people to market something in such a way to make you feel utterly rubbish about yourself.

We see someone who is skinnier, prettier, and happier and are told that if we buy this new product, it will rid the misery from our lives.

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Some of the ads I particularly hate are the ones for Special K. Those who watch telly with me will be aware of this hatred, as I huff and roll my eyes every time an advert dares to appear on my TV screen. Why do I hate them so much? Because, like many weight loss products, they market themselves exclusively at women. Not only is this ridiculous (I know men who also enjoy the cereal) but it is downright sexist. Call me ‘crazy’, but it’s seems to be suggesting unashamedly that only women need to lose weight, or at least worry about losing it.

Stick a Special K in you and it will turn you into a sexy, sassy, slim model.

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It doesn’t work like this, happiness won’t come from being thin; and thinking so will only set you on very dangerous road to becoming obsessive about what you weigh.

So, whilst I continue to eat my crap, because broccoli will forever make me want to vom, I can’t tune out the noise of everyone else. I have had people pick up my packet sandwich in horror, gawping at the fat content (mind your own business, it’s going in my body not yours). They will pick at plain rice crackers, celery and suck in thin air, their desperate eyes scanning the room for scraps they can pick up and pretend they’ve not had later. I get judged for eating chocolate and not going into panic mode.

I also can’t tune out the scrutinising comments I hear from guys on a daily basis. Anyone who has lived platonically with men will understand the way they can pick apart a women’s body:

‘Ooh she’s podged out a bit’… ‘She’s got fat boobs’… ‘She’s a bit teethy’…

There are a million and one things that can be wrong about a woman’s appearance. I sometimes wonder how they ever managed to get girlfriends. There is enough pressure from women who think they need to look a certain way to attract a man. Anyone who has been in a long term relationship will know that it just isn’t true; most men are pretty content with naked woman full stop.

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We can do our bit to work against this crushing pressure.

Women: eat sensibly, work out sensibly and try not to punish yourself for not getting it right all the time. This isn’t an innate fear created by the universe, it’s a fear mainly created to generate money.

Also, don’t judge other women for what they eat; everyone has different body shapes and some people can actually eat like a horse and still be skinny – it’s true.

Men, watch what you’re saying around a lady, perhaps try not to be so critical about women’s bodies. Stop for a second and see if you would fancy 5 or 6 women pulling apart everything that’s wrong with your own body – it might make you think twice about what you’re saying.

Special K – you can kiss my sizeable bottom, which will remain good and sizeable despite eating your cereal!

If you enjoyed this article, why not check out ‘“Real Women Have Curves” and Other Dumb-Ass Things People Say About Beauty‘?

Tags: body image dieting fat Joy weight women's health

Categories: Fire me up baby! Rant