Should We "Celebrate" Bigger Bodies?

I think it depends on how healthy the person in particular is. It is possible to be overweight and be technically healthy (I am NOT talking about obesity), and I personally think that's fine if your body can't help it. Becoming fat isn't just caused by carelessness, but also genetics and medication.

I think we should just accept body positivity for HEALTHY bodies. We as a society also need to keep in mind that skinny people can be very very unhealthy (and can even die from their weight) but we sexualize thin people so we don't care about their health and just demonize fat people since society finds them uglier (who can still be healthy). Same with average weight people, they can be dying of their own health because of being lazy asses consuming too much junk, and can use fast metabolism as an excuse.

I tend to be more attracted to thin bodies personally though (probably due to my taste in breast sizes) but I'm in the middle of the fence when it comes to bigger people. Big and healthy? Sure, let's celebrate it. Big and unhealthy? Don't condone it.

 

No, we really shouldn't. Usually when I see these "body acceptance" messages, they're often encouraging people who are already fat to "accept" themselves and I don't really agree with that. Being fat isn't something to celebrate and it's an unhealthy lifestyle. I do understand that there are people who are just made that way and it's in their genes. However, it seems like the people who only did that to themselves want other people to "embrace" it and that's only going to hurt them and their health in the long run. Really, this whole "fat acceptance" thing though is getting out of control. How many people did you know who were once fat and are now skinny say that they miss being fat? Almost no one because they're now able to feel better about themselves and they now have all this energy and they look better than before. (sorry if this whole thing is a big mess)

 

It's possible to be overweight and healthy, or just curvy and healthy. I don't think we should celebrate any kind of weight. I think that if people want to celebrate something, then it should be celebrating themselves accepting their weight and being happy about it and rising above the hate.

However though, I feel like obesity and being very underweight shouldn't apply to that. No one should ever celebrate being proud of a weight that's harmful to their health.

Sometimes, people just can't help it if they're a little thicker, or a little thinner, and that's completely okay, as long as their health is still fine.

 

If people are comfortable with their body size that's fine. If they don't like it and want to make the necessary changes to live healthier that's also fine. The only thing that isn't fine is feeling ashamed of your body because of what anyone else thinks.

 

We shouldn't encourage unhealthy lifestyles, but at the same time, not shame those who don't fit into media ideals. Diversity is great, and some people truly don't have as much of a say when it comes to genetics. At the same time, it never made much sense for me to be proud of something you didn't choose...

 

All I hear from the "no" crowd in discussions like this comes off as "overweight people should only ever be shamed for their bodies". Fuck that. I'm fat. I'm also disabled, which makes exercise difficult. How dare I be overweight and have health issues? To the corner of shame with me, never to feel good about myself again.

 

Many of the people I hear from the "no" crowd are like Maddy says, and tell people that they should feel ashamed of their bodies, which is at its core against body positivity for which they many times claim to support. Yes, I am overweight. No, I am not ashamed of it. It would be great to lose some weight and I plan on working out regularly when I get into University to become healthier, but if someone ever tells me I should be ashamed of myself for my body, I will politely tell them to get lost. Body shaming is never okay, no matter who is doing it or whoever the recipient of the shaming is.

 

I agree with this.

I'm technically overweight myself but don't really look it (167 lbs and 5'2" sadly), and I am trying to lose weight. I get the unhealthy argument all the time, but back when I was normal weight years ago (117 lbs) NOBODY said anything about me being unhealthy at all despite the fact I had a shitty lifestyle of eating junk food 24/7 and never exercising even once. I just had high metabolism that didn't show you my health physically.

My lifestyle has not changed at all, not even once in those years. The only thing that changed was that being on the shot slowed my metabolism down and made me gain weight. But apparently, only now that I look more overweight, are people "concerned" that I'm unhealthy. I call bull. I think people only say this because fat people are ugly and should be shamed, not that we're "unhealthy". If health is what mattered, people should have shamed my lifestyle from day one.

 

So you're saying we should "celebrate" and be "proud" of increasing rates of obesity, diabetes, cancers, due to our diet and lack of activity? I grew up around plenty of fat folk, and in fact, got more crap for being slim, since my culture sees being chubby as cute or attractive.

I want to scream, "This isn't about you!" If you have no choice in the matter, due to genetics, injury, or whatever, it doesn't apply. Is it something others should aspire towards? Probably not.

The only reason people don't shame those who look "normal" for having unhealthy lifestyles is because they can hide it better.

 

Extra weight runs in my family. I love my curves. Yes, I'd like to weigh a little less, but, I'm not fussed by it. I'm not sure what I weigh or my size, as, we don't have a scale or measuring tape. Based on my clothes, I'm probably a 20 or something. I just try to eat balance & in moderation (with some indulgences) & be as active as possible.

I believe we all should be proud of, confident in & embrace how we were created. Our bodies naturally go toward a certain weight (with some fluctuation). I like & respect myself. That includes being bountifully blessed. I figure, if someone dismisses me based on appearance, that's their loss. I don't have time for people who choose to limit themselves when it comes to their friends. I believe, our bodies are just the receptacle that contains the true essence of our being. That's what is important.

 

Lol what? No, I didn't say that. I think being obese/fat/whatever is unhealthy and it shouldn't be accepted, unless you're obviously at a healthy weight. I'm simply saying that I am sick of the disgusting double standards where we shame fat people and overly celebrate thin people- which newsflash to society, being underweight is incredibly unhealthy as well and you CAN die from being thin. It is nothing to celebrate more so than fatness just because it looks "hot". Being thin and being fat are BOTH equally wrong.

And simply because they can "hide it better" is not the case at all. EVERYONE knew about my unhealthy lifestyle and that I was killing myself over it and wasting my dental bills. Yet nobody said anything simply due to the fact I weighed 117 instead of currently 168. It's alarming and it shows an agenda if you're only going to care about me now that I "look" fat and "less attractive now". If someone cares because I'm legit unhealthy due to my weight, that's fine, but don't obsess over fat people while you turn a blind eye to thin people killing themselves in their weight.

 

I think everyone should celebrate the body they have, no matter the size and shape. Our vessels work hard at performing tasks and activities, and go through a lot of shit (literally), and rarely get the recognition they deserve.

However, we should not encourage unhealthy lifestyles, especially to youth who are more susceptible to peer and media pressure. I've sat in on many of these conversations, and one thing I've seen a lot of is people saying that you shouldn't worry about what you eat or that you shouldn't feel obligated to be active. As someone who has the deepest respect for the human body, I can't support these ideas. I think you should care about how you fuel and maintain your body. I believe in body positivity, not body flippancy.

Spoiler

I feel as though I didn't explain my thoughts well enough, so here is a simpler parallel:

Smoking can cause a plethora of health issues. Idgaf if you smoke, but don't encourage others to partake in the practice, especially if they don't understand the possible repercussions.

But hey, I'm a just hippie Live your life however you want

 

This, more or less. Admittedly there are different reasons for a person being fat, and some people are in no position to do anything about it, but most fat people are usually fat because they eat too much and exercise too little.

This doesn't mean shaming fat people - but obesity is a national pandemic in numerous countries.

 

Bigger bodies? Sure. Unhealthy bodies? Hell no.

I do agree that society puts an unhealthy image of beauty by favorizing underweight bodies, but that does not mean we should celebrate the other extreme.

I have seen people hate on thin people because they're thin, out of spite from the media. Well, it's not really their fault if they are naturally thin. It does not mean they are underweight either.

However, it's not because someone has a bit of fat in their body that they are overweight either. They just have a different body type. Different bodies have different shapes, and none is better than the other.

So, I don't think unhealthy bodies of either side should be celebrated, far from it. Though, that does not mean we have the right to shame anyone. This kind of behavior only makes things worse.

 

We should encourage health to the fullest extent possible. I have heard many a person who drinks more than they should and eats fast food criticise fatness for health reasons. Clearly, much of this discussion is about something more than the health implications of fatness, if health is even an actual deciding reason for criticisms of fat people's bodies.

 

This was brought up in a thread a while ago (I can't find it for the life of me, but it was called something like "Do you find fat people attractive?"). BryanM made an excellent post there about people hiding their distaste for larger people behind the guise of health concerns. At least, I'm fairly certain it was Bryan. If anyone could locate that thread, I think it would be beneficial for it to be linked here.

As an aside, it's rather difficult to discuss things like this without hypocrisy getting smeared all over the walls, as very few of us indeed are in actual perfect health (I certainly amn't). It's a tricky situation, and one that doesn't really have a correct answer.

 

There is indeed a fine line. I have a female friend who is such an athletic badass she plays water polo and runs, yet she's not stick-thin. People like her should absolutely be embraced and celebrated.

On the flip side, and this sounds so mean but I'm against celebrating and embracing very overweight people. The argument against this opinion is that they may be fat due to health issues. Yes, that happens, but it's SUCH a smalllllll percentage of overweight people and we often overestimate how common that reason for being big is.

If any of you know what Eurovision is, this year's Serbian entry was a woman who was around 300 pounds singing a song about accepting yourself. I'm sorry, but that angered me, because being 300 pounds is NOT acceptable. I'm saying this as someone who used to be 15-20 pounds overweight. If the people around me were so lovy-dovey and telling me I was perfect the way I was, I never would've changed! It took some tough love and hearing that it wasn't okay, and I thank my family soooo much for that. I wouldn't be this happy as a thin person if being fat was so great.

 

I like how people throw around the idea of healthiness when it comes to overweight people. I seriously question whether or not people care about the health of someone they barely know, especially their mental health and if they did I doubt the need for peoples bodies to be celebrated would even be an issue.

That being said I think bigger people need to learn how to accept the body they have. It's more about loving the body they are in. If an individual wants to lose weight then they have all the power in the world. If they don't then they shouldn't be insulted, made fun of, or hate themselves because of their size.

 

I think there is a dangerous reduction of all body related issues to "weight problems".
What really matters is the general level of fitness, muscle proportion, and fat proportion, as well as fat distribution.

Eg. I need to lose some fat- currently I am ca 12-14lbs overweight- but not all of it is fat.

In the past year I have been cycling quite a lot, and even though I have not lost much weight as such my general shape has improved & I've also developed a bit of muscle and tone, in places which were kind of flabby before, so despite my weight not dropping I feel better about myself.

I still have work to do- notably to cut down my general percentage of fat, and be more consistent about the amount of exercise, but I do feel not just 'better about myself'- but actually physically better and this is not due to my looks- but to a general improvement of my fitness, core strength etc.

I do think this is the difference between the acceptance which comes with feeling better due to the improvements you've already achieved- and the idea of "body acceptance".

I think "body acceptance" sounds like trying to feel ok about yourself without doing anything, which I think is a phoney concept.

Nobody will feel good about themselves, if they don't have some form of exercise- even if you or I were of the 'slim weight' - we'd still feel bad without exercise: weak, flabby due to flabby muscle, rather than fat.

(I suspect this is the case with OP- you probably don't need to lose weight, just work out more and tone+ eat a bit more lean protein to help recover and rebuild the muscles after exercise)

On the days I feel bad about myself I usually have not exercised at all- and even a short 20min mix of yoga + weight exercises makes me feel much more comfortable in my skin- I think about it, in a slightly hippy way, as aligning my soul with my body- unless I've done it, I feel kind of mentally out of shape and 'misaligned'. No amount of telling myself to 'accept myself' will create the feeling that I need, and which comes from the physical sensation I get after some working out.

Because of this, I don't think 'body acceptance' works *unless* you looking after your body. Exercise is not just there to "lose weight"- it counts as basic maintenance, even if you don't have to lose weight.

If a person does it regularly, it will lead to acceptance, because they will feel better generally, but if they don't, no amount of telling yourself to feel good, will actually make you feel good.