We have a myopic view of what constitutes the perfection of the body. Right now, we want super-skinny waists, big busts and a rather unhealthy pallor. But, as little as 100 years ago, plump, full bodied and nearly white skin was the rage, yet it was just as unhealthy.
What gets to me is the pictures for weight loss items that show a women from the chest to hips, as if that's all that matters. Just by the images, we know these women are young, as in late teens or early 20s, never been a pound overweight and most don't exercise. Or the image is altered and manipulated to get that look.
When a person exercises, they build muscle and in thinner people that muscle shows. Valleys and crests occur on the skin where muscle is defined. Women can have six-packs, but rarely after childbirth.
But if you have lost weight, like I have when I lost over 60 pounds, the stomach will not look like this. Stretch marks linger for years, extra skin stays longer. Muscle is there, but hidden under extra skin and stretched out collagen.
After nearly 10 years of being less than a size 10, a pant size I haven't been in since the 7th grade, I still jiggle a little. I still have a few fading stretch marks and I can bunch extra skin in my hands. I doubt at this point I'll even look like the models in the photos.
And let's not talk about BMI, or as I like to call it, busted medical imaginings. BMI doesn't work for anyone. The standards are so far off healthy, it's unrealistic. Did you know, at a size 6 with an hourglass figure, I am considered overweight? In fact, when the very doctors who swear by BMI guess at my range, I am place in the low-normal range. Yet when I step on that scale, I read as overweight.
I am large breasted, muscled and heavy-boned. These three things are not taken into consideration on BMI. Muscle weights nearly twice fat. So, for the same sized person, who doesn't work out, I weight nearly 15 pound more.
What do I get from these doctors and nurses who swear by BMI? I'm a special case.
Here's my question: A person who exercises and keeps a nice shape, who have regular healthy numbers in blood work and eats well is a special case? Has sick, overweight and full of chemicals become so normal that even doctor can't see healthy as normal?
Let us strive to be the paradigm of healthy and blow BMI and those pictures of skinny teens out the window. Let's embrace health, not the image.
Christina Major is the Naturopathic Doctor and Holistic Nutritionist of Crystal Holistic Health Consulting. Crystal Holistic Health helps people, especially women, who have Type II Diabetes, High Cholesterol and High Blood Pressure lower their numbers, get off medication and increase their energy so they can save money, take back control of their lives and improve the health and happiness of their families. You can get a free report on health at http://www.crystalholistichealth.com/
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