I’ve been thinking about comments people make.
It started when someone I know peripherally & hadn’t seen in a while (let’s call her Barb) lost a lot of weight.
Barb was never what one would consider ‘overweight’. I hate even saying this, but if anything, she maybe looked ‘soft’. Like she hadn’t been exercising a ton & wasn’t being super strict with her eating (like nearly everyone in the last couple years at some point or another).
When I saw her recently, it looked like she lost 30+ pounds.
I heard many people commenting on her weight loss & telling her how good she looks.
To me, she looked *healthier* with a little extra weight than this very tiny version of her.
Now, it doesn’t matter what I think. I don’t know whether she is healthier now or not. But most of the people I heard making comments didn’t either.
What if the weight loss is due to an eating disorder? Or maybe she’s having trouble in her marriage? Or has a terminally ill family member? Or is terminally ill herself?
I know many people who lose weight when they are unhappy or stressed & eating is not a priority.
I know that not every weight loss is healthy.
I know that skinny does not necessarily = healthy.
The research says that someone who is slightly overweight and physically active is healthier (blood markers) than an inactive person at or under a medically deemed “healthy” weight.
Also, can we just stop commenting on weight? & the way a woman looks? Ask her instead how she’s doing, how her summer was, and what she’s reading…
For the love of Pete.
