Media + Body Image = Bad News
Headlines about weight are prominent especially at the grocery store at the checkout stands. This one lose weight, this one gained weight, check out so and so 1 month post baby or check out so and so she can’t lose the baby weight in 2 weeks and the headlines go on and on. Most of these headlines just make people feel inadequate because they focus on unrealistic ways to lose weight or portray unrealistic time frames to lose weight.
It took me a year to completely lose the baby weight after having my second daughter Abby and although I would have wanted it to be quicker, it just didn’t happen for me and that is okay. Seeing the headlines about these stars losing the baby weight in 2-4 weeks just made me feel like I was doing something wrong but in order for me to lose weight as fast as they did I would have had to do it in an unhealthy way which for me was not okay.
I now ignore these articles because they make me feel bad and I just think they put out photo shopped images that are not always obtainable by the average person. I also feel that they attack the people that can’t lose weight as fast……I mean if someone had a baby a month ago and they are not back to their normal weight yet , so what?????
Each and every one of us are different, we are human after all. We all have different bodies, metabolisms, lifestyles and responsibilities and we cannot compare ourselves to anyone else and how they look or lose weight. We all just need to be happy with ourselves without trying to emulate a body type that we may never be able to realistically obtain.
I have learned to deal with these headlines and I hope I have done enough to teach my 15 year old daughter that she should not compare herself to anyone else or listen to media outlets when it comes to her body. No one is perfect and striving for the “perfection” we think we see in magazines or on TV can lead to living a disordered lifestyle.
We are all our own person and need to learn to be happy with ourselves. If we are not happy with ourselves then we need to do something about it in a healthy way and not by following a “10 days to a perfect body” in some random magazine. Don’t allow media to make you feel bad about your body, I don’t anymore.
How do you feel Media affects Body Image?
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I struggled with this after I had my daughter too! I kept thinking it was so easy for them…why can’t I do it!
Nancy C recently posted..Body Image and Media
Great post! I think the media does distort body image… even if you look at TV show hosts/broadcasters, they are all skinny and Ann Curry came out and said she was told what she could and couldn’t wear while she was on air. It’s just hard because I think we often forget that us “normal” people have to juggle a million different things and can’t afford personal trainers that work us out for 3-4 hours a day and personal chefs that make sure we are getting the right balance of foods.
Lora @ Crazy Running Girl recently posted..FRIDAY RANDOMNESS
Thanks Lora!!
Great post! And congratulations for training for NYC Marathon! I worry about my daughter and self esteem issues too. It took me 2 1/2 years after having my son to lose the weight – I’d be crucified in the tabloids!
My own take on media/body image comes from a different perspective: I used to be an actress.
Here is my post with the video clip from my episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
http://sheslosingitdotnet.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=871&action=edit&message=6&postpost=v2
Lisa
http://sheslosingit.net
Lisa Traugott recently posted..Bogger Challenge: Media and Body Image