02 March 2013

why i don't believe in scales

at the conclusion of national eating disorder awareness week, i want to share some of my personal experiences. none of this is scientifically proven, it is based off my own experiences and insights. 
this is why i don't believe in scales, or in weighing myself. 

there was a time when i weighed myself twice a day. once in the morning and once at night. i wasn't obsessed about my weight, but i didn't want to gain.  i wanted to stay at 100 pounds. luckily, my obsession about weight never turned into anything more. i don't know how or when i realized it, but one day i woke up and realized that i hadn't weighed myself in a while. i didn't know how much i weighed! and i really didn't care. as i've gotten older i have weighed myself less and less. i don't own a scale and i honestly worry that if i did that i would become an "obsessive weigh-er" again. as i see girls weigh themselves i see myself in them, and i worry. when did we place so much value on a number that really is quite meaningless? especially when we, for the most part are at a healthy weight and shouldn't worry about it?
in high school i was always a size 1 jean size. i liked the fact that i was the smallest size in the store. it was awesome. somewhere in the two years after i graduated high school, i filled out. it's not that i got fat, because i'm not fat. but my body changed, and suddenly i wasn't a size 1 anymore. i avoided buying pants because i thought i was going to be huge. i didn't know what size i was anymore and was scared of being bigger than a size 1. finally one day i got some pants that actually fit, and surprise! they weren't huge, they made me feel good. and i've learned something valuable. it doesn't really matter what size of pant you wear. or what dress size you are. or your bra size. what matters, is that you embrace your body, no matter the perceived imperfections. 


the truth is, we are never going to be as perfect as the media portrays women to be. [newsflash: that's 95% photo shop. just sayin.] we are beautiful daughters of God! we are worth SO much more than that little number on the scale. or the number on the tag of our clothes. no, this isn't a call for everyone to go out and only never eat healthy or exercise again. this isn't saying we should not take care of our bodies. because we should. but remember that it's ok to be a size 4. and it's ok to weigh more than you did in high school. it's ok to have a piece of pizza for dinner and not feel guilty about it. and it's ok if you miss a day of exercising because you were too busy studying or you had a friend who needed your help. there are things that are more important than being the smallest person. 
"Let’s (quite literally) have our cake and eat it, too. Let’s savor the cake and the kale. Let’s get more exercise by dancing more with friends. Let’s love our bodies because they’re ours, because they’re a gift, and not have our self approval depend on how well they meet some totally arbitrary societal standard."

let's take the challenge. 
be the cake eaters. the dancers. the scale smashers. the lovers.

will you join me?

2 comments:

  1. Rebekah,

    You are so right. Thank you for sharing these insights. I think the real victory is when we cease to think of ourselves as a body, but as a soul of infinite worth. Then our bodies become a gift to keep healthy as we can so we can serve others.

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  2. Oh I hear you. We are FIVE YEARS out of high school! Weight is so sneaky and by the end of last year I didn't even realize how much my body had changed and was amazed at how much more effort it takes to maintain a small figure. I did like nothing in high school and really just credited my parents..haha. This fall I was so bummed that my jeans were getting a little snug and it was TOUGH to accept. However I was so excited to start a 'Great in 8' health challenge that helped me streamline my efforts of 'trying to eat healthy' and 'trying to exercise' and it has been great. I've honestly been doing my best and that means more to me than any number on a scale! It has required a ton of changes, sacrifices of delicious food that other people offer, and time exercising every day but Sunday, but it has really been a reminder of how I want to always have a healthy lifestyle. And the jeans fit a little better too which is nice ;) but I have felt awesome inside and that's the best part! You're awesome for posting about this!

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