In Texas it’s just cool enough not to sweat at 9 in the
morning, but it’s still hot enough for the masses to walk around in strip tease
clothing. People that have been told they are fit by society’s standards walk
around in workout clothing, even if they haven’t worked out in weeks.
It’s not enough to work your tail off. You have to be this image that coincides with bodyweight and shirt size.
The battle of insecurity that stems from societal standards
used to be a battle waged more by women than men. Now both genders are forced
to link arms as they walk into an onslaught of social beat-downs.
Female models and actresses are skin and bone mannequins
that impose an idea of frailty. However, our society has attempted to thwart
the idol worship of stick-figure people by condoning health hampering habits.
I applaud anyone who tells the world that skinny isn’t the only way to be beautiful, but I scowl at them when they tell girls to destroy their bodies and ignore fitness in pursuit of “self-worth.”
The propaganda is equally disturbing on the male side. Buff
gym-rats are taunted as ignorant sub-humans that spend more time doing curls
than reading. What do male models normally look like? Square jawed men who have
shapeless “skinny-fat” bodies. Even the male fitness models look as if they
forgot to eat because they were running and doing pull-ups all day.
The idea that being strong is manly has been executed in an attempt to cure insecurity.
Athletic-built women everywhere struggle to look in the
mirror and say they are well crafted. On one side of the spectrum are these
tiny-frail girls who bust their tails to stay miniature. On the other side of
the spectrum are the crowds of females that justify body-abuse with claims of confidence.
In the middle are the hard working, muscular, and strong women. Society has no
place for women of this stature, and that’s disgusting.
Even more gut wrenching is the concept that what number pant
size she wears, or what the scale says indicates her fitness level.
Fitness should be recognized by the improvements she makes at every workout, not by how many pounds she weighs.
Now picture the world around you, supersaturated with nearly
invisible clothing trying very hard to cover the bare minimum. Athletic women
have few choices when it comes to fashion. They can either spend days lookingfor one outfit that works, they can wear baggy clothes, or they can opt for the
“show the world what’s supposed to be only for my future husband” look.
Unfortunately the world would rather you show your butt so
that a random male can get a sense of empowerment. Even workout shorts attempt
to show as much and as little as possible at the same time.
But I’ll be honest. I used to wear cut-offs each time I lifted.
Now I wear sleeves, and so does the entire MSU powerlifting club. My fiancé used
to wear those short running shorts, but now she opts for the modest pair. She is
a beautiful strong women who is very athletic.
She falls in the middle category that society has ignored.
She works her tail off and has an impeccable fitness level. Although society
claims that the fit look anorexic and sick she would prove otherwise. Fitness
cannot be determined by size, but only by improvement in the day to day
struggles.
As long as anyone continues to lift, run, and push
themselves to be better they will gain fitness. Being built like an athlete is
not a curse; it’s a blessing from God.
Ephesians 2:10 - "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus..."
A woman who works out is definitely more attractive than a woman who is skin and bones. To me women who wear less revealing clothes are better people than ones who wear revealing clothing. Guys that are buff are not always ignorant meat heads. Some of them just care about their appearance a little more than others.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. The phrase, "modest is hottest," comes to mind.
DeleteI heard recently that the French were trying some law that required models to be a certain BMI to be "licensed to model" (or something like that). Some hailed them, but then some instantly attacked them at how unfair it was to put some standard like that. Both sides were probably right to some degree. However, I think the intent of the law was good, but our society no longer abides by the intent. We've become overly legalistic. While not a "health" article, this blog on our nation's "divide", dovetails into your thoughts. I think we need to be sure that we articulate the debate correctly, while at the same time promoting unity as a society and not having another issue divide us. Read more here, A 50-50 Nation .
ReplyDeleteThat's a good point and I remember when I first read that post you made. There is obviously a divide between people of different bodytypes/lifestyles. I do agree that we should be coming together more than pulling apart, but in this aspect there is a healthier lifestyle that should be followed. What would your solution be to steering more people towards the middle?
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