This just really annoys me!

[NikitaZee]

Using people in the entertainment industry as a measuring stick for weight is ridiculous. These are people who work out for HOURS a day as part of their JOB description, whereas most of us are sitting at a computer for 8 to 10 hours a day, trying to squeeze in our life around work and commute times, kids, spouses, cooking, cleaning, etc.

There are plenty of overweight people in the entertainment industry. Sigh, it seems that no matter what side of the scale we fall on, we're bound to get flak from the other side. I wish I knew how to link to a thread, because another one comes to mind - a DIS lady who wanted to lose 15 pounds, and other DIS ladies telling her to count herself as lucky - she shouldn't complain until she had to lose 50 or 100 pounds like some folks do! My doctor gave me good advice, which I try to follow to this day - don't follow BMI or weight charts - just look at your body, naked, in the mirror. If you have fat or flab, jiggly parts where they shouldn't jiggle, get to work. This was 20 years ago, and it still sounds wise to me.

 

[disneyquestions]

Excuse me? Probably ignorance like this post displays. How do you know the size sixteen is not healthy? How do you know the size four is? Because of size? I know big people that are perfectly healthy and I know thin people who are not, and I do not just mean those suffering from anorexia, I am talking about people who are thin although they eat crap and do not exercise.

Maybe the reason this country is so damn obese is we tell women they have to be a size zero and have double d cups.

You are either part of the problem or part of the solution....

Ok, maybe I shouldn't have used my past and current pant size in my OP. I simply ment health. Most people don't get into obese ranges because they are working out and eating right. Or is that wrong too??

 

[Tinkermommy]

When I hear people talk about "real women" I think they are talking about women who haven't been photoshopped, airbrushed, had multiple plastic surgeries, etc or in other words most women in the media.

Real women come in all shapes and sizes (fat or skinny, tall or short, big ****s or flat chested, etc). And size/shape does not directly translate to healthy but it is one of the main factors.

My girlfriend runs marathons and she is a size 16 or so. She is super fit, but just not a tiny person. I remember reading an article on BMI and they were saying many athletes who would be considered obese are super fit (think Picabo Street).

The truth is in the 50s designers used models that were two sizes smaller than the "average" woman. Today that gap is more like 5 sizes smaller.

 

[tlbwriter]

At the same time though it is often hard for me to find shirts that fit. Because they don't make a lot of shirts for guys that have a larger chest circumference than waste.

Do you mean dress shirts? If so, you need to go to a better department store (not JC Penney) and request "athletic cut."

 

[Hoodie]

I get the fat guys with hot wives thing but for the most part those are sitcoms that portray the guys as dim-witted buffoons so they have their own negative stereotype built in. I'm more talking about things like ads, most magazine covers, and the majority of actors in dramatic rolls. I have never seen, at least outside of a parody, people that look like John Goodman on billboards with underwear ads or in just about any clothing ads. Those are full of guys in pretty good shape just as ads for women's clothing are full of women in good shape.

That second is something I never understood. I don't understand why women's clothing isn't sized by measurement instead of size like some of ours is. It would get rid of the discrepancy between manufacturers and would get rid of the vanity sizing B.S. At the same time though it is often hard for me to find shirts that fit. Because they don't make a lot of shirts for guys that have a larger chest circumference than waste.

or women! Anything bigger than a small c cup and those babies pull across the top! I can't tell you the last time I wore a button-up shirt. I always feel bad for the buttons straining to contain the girls!

 

[Liberty Belle]

I can tell you as someone who has been overweight and normal weight, it is much easier to take care of yourself, exercise and lose weight when you feel good about yourself and about how you look. I was able to lose weight when I was able to find clothes that made me feel attractive and comfortable even at my heaviest. If all you can find are frumpy knits or sweats to fit you (or ugly garish, huge flowered polyester pieces), you really are much less inclined to take care of yourself and lose weight.

That's why shaming people does not help - in fact, it makes it worse. That's why saying a person is weak, has no willpower, doesn't care about themselves, etc will do nothing to help someone get fit.

If people really want to encourage someone to lose weight, they'll tell them they look good when they make an extra effort to do so. Or tell them they seem happier when they have more activity or something like that.

This is, of course, only what I've found in my experiences.

As far as the article goes, I think it would be better to say "average woman" versus "real woman" (don't know what that is).

 

[wvjules]

Do you mean dress shirts? If so, you need to go to a better department store (not JC Penney) and request "athletic cut."

My boyfriend has the same problem and we are not JCP shoppers. He has broad shoulders and a smaller waist. Shirts that fit well are difficult to find no matter where we shop.

 

[Liberty Belle]

or women! Anything bigger than a small c cup and those babies pull across the top! I can't tell you the last time I wore a button-up shirt. I always feel bad for the buttons straining to contain the girls!

Right! I've always had a big chest, skinny or fat. It's really annoying when you can't find button downs to fit or dresses that will fit your top and bottom.

 

[goofy!]

Ok, maybe I shouldn't have used my past and current pant size in my OP. I simply ment health. Most people don't get into obese ranges because they are working out and eating right. Or is that wrong too??

Yes.
Since I am around a lot of swimmers, I can tell you swimming is not the optimum exercise for weight loss.

However, it is an excellent activity to get into tip top cardiovascular shape.

So, yes, absolutely, you can be a size 14-16 and still be in great physical condition.

 

[FireDancer]

Do you mean dress shirts? If so, you need to go to a better department store (not JC Penney) and request "athletic cut."

Even finding a t-shirt that fits my chest area without having way too much fabric around the waist is pretty hard. With dress shirts a lot of the time they are too long. The hardest though are casual looking button down shirts that I can wear untucked. Finding the right combination of V-cut and length is pretty hard.

We all have our crosses to bear I guess, unless you pay to have every piece of clothes tailored or custom made.

I remember reading an article on BMI and they were saying many athletes who would be considered obese are super fit (think Picabo Street).

BMI should never be used as gospel, it is one tool out of many to gage health. BMI doesn't take body composition into account, just measurement and weight. Since muscle weighs more than fat often time athletes, who tend to be most muscular, end up with an elevated BMI. The normal, sedentary adult though will usually have a more accurate BMI.

 

[palavra]

See this is my point. It has nothing to do with money and personal trainers!!! If you WANT to be healthy (not talking about weight, I'm talking about health) you can do it. Its sad that people think that the only way you can do this is by being rich, and having others do the work for you. Thats my point (or at least one of them). Its called dedication - and its something that to many people have lost when it comes to themselves, and their health. Of course, I'm not talking about anyone on the Dis, because here, we are all perfect.

But you are the one who brought weight into the mix. We don't all have to spend hours at the gym and by special food to be fit and healthy. Some days, I have no time to myself at all. On other days, I squeeze in a walk with my daughter. We eat healthy because my husband has Diabetes. And still, I weigh 145 lbs and wear a size 12.Believe me, I am dedicated; I just need about 10 more hours in my day!

 

[MinnieFan4ever]

What bothers me is all the talk of size 0 or size 2 being some completely unrealistic, unattainable, "must be anorexic" size...with all the "vanity sizing" that has gone down in the last couple decades, a size 2 is a lot bigger than it used to be. I currently wear a size 2, but if I lost enough to wear a size 0, I would still be within the "healthy weight range" and not underweight at all.

I totally agree with you on the vanity size issue. For the majority of my adult life I have been a size 6. I have a 20 month old baby, so I have not bought any summer clothing in over 2 years. I set out last week to buy some shorts, it seems I am now a 4 or 2 in some brands. It is just crazy that brands now have 0 and 00 to fit small women.

 

[Luv'sTink]

Weight and health do have something to do with each other, however, your right, they don't 100% = each other. You can be naturally thin, and never exercise, and be about to have a heart attack because you eat all bacon all the time. On the other hand, I've never seen someone in a size 20 or even a size 16 be truely "healthy" and still not be able to get into a heathy weight. Maybe they could be on their way to it, but not there.

And just to say - I'm talking about people who are sitting around, being unhealthy, and thinking its OK because they are "real women." Not people who are trying to be healthy, watching their portion control, and exercising.

Really? Women who play professional sports that are a size 16+, they are not healthy, huh?

The weight charts say this lady is "over weight" http://www.disabled-world.com/artman/publish/height_weight.shtml

2010 Statistics
PPG 2.1 RPG 0.40 APG 0.1 EFF + 1.00
Born: Jun 25, 1988
Height: 6-1 / 1,85
Weight: 201 lbs. / 91,2 kg.
College: Duke
Years Pro: R

 

[Buckalew11]

The media portrays "real" woman (waifs) to be extremely small and that just isn't the real world. While 16 would be large for me at 5'4", I've known woman who are size 16 who are healthier than I am.

I'll tell ya, my DH asked his doctor recently how come he is considered overweight by the chart but does everything "right"--finished an Ironman for God's sake--and yet the charts say lose some lbs, fatso. The doctor replied, "Well, you have to understand that when they started doing these height/weight charts for doctor's offices that it was done by the insurance companies. And there's your answer."

 

[DizBelle]

Can a heavy woman be healthy? Yes.
Can a light woman be unhealthy? Also, yes.

Weight is but one factor that contributes to health.

But, I think it is far less likely that a heavy woman would be healthy than a lighter woman would be unhealthy. i.e. the percentage of heavy women that are also healthy is less than light women that are unhealthy.

 

[The Pink Cupcake]

Really? Women who play professional sports that are a size 16+, they are not healthy, huh?

The weight charts say this lady is "over weight" http://www.disabled-world.com/artman/publish/height_weight.shtml

2010 Statistics
PPG 2.1 RPG 0.40 APG 0.1 EFF + 1.00
Born: Jun 25, 1988
Height: 6-1 / 1,85
Weight: 201 lbs. / 91,2 kg.
College: Duke
Years Pro: R

LOVE this Thank you! Thank you!

 

[The Pink Cupcake]

I think it is unhealthy to be a size 4 (or any size, for that matter) and have a magazine article convince you that you are "Not a real woman"

That is where the "glamming it up" part comes into play You need to feel good about yourself so silly articles don't make you feel badly about yourself.

 

[walden]

It was someone on this thread who threw away those donuts, wasn't it?

Or ate them all!

Just what I was thinking!

Join me in some of this, no butter, of course.

 

[Conservative Hippie]

Join me in some of this, no butter, of course.

Mmmmmm......butter............

 

[mhsjax]

The OP isn't attacking anyone other than the person who chose the title of the article. Her post was asking why it is that plus size = real which implies that anyone who isn't plus size can't be real.



You're probably right. I don't see how anything I typed could be seen as an attack on anyone. I do make health a priority and tend to run in circles that have a lot of health conscious people so perhaps my POV is different but that doesn't make it less valid.

I am a woman, I completely agree with the OP and FireDancer. FWIW, I am over weight, but I am working on it.