A Day In God's Will

Weight Lies… We’ve all done it

By ADIGW in : His Fit Temple // Nov 20 2011

…and so the conversation between two friends went as such…

Girl 1: “I am telling you, I am a size 10”

Girl 2: “No you cannot be a size 10. Look, I am slimmer than you”

Girl 1: “But I fit into your clothes, so explain that. I have measured myself and I am the perfect 10”

Girl 2: “That is just not true. You force yourself into my clothes”

Girl 1: “But we look the same size”

Girl 2: “No, I’m slimmer and smaller than you are”

Girl 1& 2: (Turning to me) “Remi, who looks slimmer? Who looks like a size 10?”

Remi: “I don’t know, eeeerm…you are both the same”

(Well, one did look bigger than the other, but I was not about to say that there and then. I valued my life.) And the argument went on and on, with both girls wanting me to check the tags on their outfits.

Hands on hips, I thought, why do we put ourselves through this? I thought about a few people I know who tell me constantly, ‘Remi, I have been exercising and eating right, can’t you see I look slimmer?’ I in turn stammer a response back because it is obvious the gym or the eating right is not working. In fact, it is having an adverse effect.

I have also seen friends buy an outfit a size smaller, having convinced themselves they are that size; never mind that the outfit will not go past the hips area. The best one I have heard so far is that ‘oh, I had to buy a size x because the sizes in this shop are irregular.’

Some of the other lies I’ve discovered we tell ourselves, were our weight and sizes are concerned are:

I am not fat, I am thick: This one gets on my last nerves.

We are all big in my family: Bearing in mind that everyone in ‘the family’ is quite small. The argument that follows this is that they lost weight recently.

I have been working out and done everything I can do but I don’t seem to be able to lose weight: yes, there might be a percentage of people who honestly fall into this category, but the percentage is quite small. I have been at points where trying to shift some holiday or Christmas excess weight was almost like mission impossible. However, when I looked closely, I realised there was always something amiss; either my diet or my exercise programme.

I am big but still healthy: I will not dispute this, but eventually being overweight has its consequences on the body. All we need to do is Google it to find out. They range from high blood pressure, to diabetes and strokes. I won’t wish these and more on anyone.

The underlying issues or fixation should not be the dress size but being a healthy weight. I have seen people of different shapes who are the same size in clothes. However looking at them you wouldn’t have believed so.

The issue of dress sizes will not go away if we stop gauging it with being slim, or slimmer. It is about being the adequate weight; not being overweight or underweight. Then there will be no need to tell lies to cover up or try to fit into a particular size; after all, we all come in different shapes and sizes.

If we know we are unfit – overweight or underweight – we must come to terms with it and settle that fact. Then the next step is to seek and ask for help and do the practical work required to rectify that. Dress sizes should be the last thing we should be fixated about.

Lies about excessive weight gain or loss for that matter has ruined lives and broken family apart. You only need to read a story of a parent who is so out of shape that they are unable to look after or run around with their children, or an individual who is too weak from dieting and self imposed starvation to have a meaningful life.

I encourage us to be truthful to ourselves about our health; regardless of your dress size. It might just be the thing to save our lives when we are pushed to seek for help.

By the way, the argument about the size 10 clothes size continues till today… God help me!

Until next time; keep it moving, beautiful people.

Much Love
Remi
ADIGW