Reductionism: Why They Want Us Smaller

Yup, those dogs sure like to chase!

A friend of mine recently started experiencing a lot of success and positive attention in her career. She started doing really well, and began to realize some of the dreams she’s had for decades. But she also started seeing a lot more criticism for her weight, and found that that criticism had become nastier than before.

In addition to the increase in body shaming she received, she found that she was also feeling especially vulnerable to these negative comments. She found that things she might have easily shrugged off a few weeks ago were now hurting her deeply. She found herself frustrated both with herself and her peers. And she found herself yelling at herself for her hurt and her tears. It led her to ask me, “what is going on here?”

I think that as we get larger in the world and as we make a bigger impact, forces both within and without conspire to make us want to be smaller. I think this is true for two reasons:

Many of us women have been taught all our lives to be smaller. Think about it. From the time of our birth, many of us girls were taught to fade into the background. We were taught to sit with our legs together with our handbag sharing the seat. We were taught not to brag, not to make too big of a deal of ourselves, and not to make too much noise. So I think, for many of us, as our lives become larger, we are triggered by a desire to make our bodies smaller. We feel so conspicuous and so exposed by the new attention in our lives, we want to shrink back down, curl up, and not expose our luscious bellies to the enemies.

Dogs don’t bark at a parked car. And it’s not so surprising, really that our enemies head directly for our soft underbellies just as we start to see some success. Most of our enemies were taught the same thing we were taught. They were taught to be small and humble and inconspicuous. So what happens when they see somebody who starts to grow in stature and achieve many of the dreams they may have had for themselves? What happens when they see the car speeding away from them? They start chasing, and they start barking. And oh my goodness what a racket they make! When folks see somebody achieving something they wish the had the guts to go after, do you think they are introspective and use it as a life lesson to get themselves off their butts? Well some folks do. But most folks just run along side, nipping at the tires and yipping their fool heads off.

So my dear chicklettes, this week I’d like to talk about reduction. I want to talk about making our doubts smaller and our lives bigger and louder and even more amazing! Because I don’t want you to let the yipping dogs slow you down. Oh no. I want you to speed on ahead in your gorgeous, great big convertible and leave all those other dogs panting in the dust.

Love,

The Fat Chick

OM: Using Meditation to Help Manage Stress

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For better health, find a few minutes per day to just breathe…

The idea of meditation may seem a little “woo woo” to my Midwestern upbringing, but there is more and more evidence that it actually does lower blood pressure, improve attention span and help manage stress. There’s even new evidence that indicates that meditation actually changes physical aspects of the brain over time as well. But our lives are crazy busy, and sometimes it seems impossible to add even one more thing to it. So how do we add meditation to our lives without stressing out about adding meditation to our lives?

Many experts suggest that you begin by adding just ten minutes per day. Meditation is an incredibly rich practice which can be deepened and enriched over years of practice. But you can get your start by simply focusing on your breathing. I sometimes use a really terrific iPod app called “Breathe Together”. It’s a very simple app that simply provides a breathing noise. You just synchronize your breathing to the app with the added benefit of knowing that you are synchronizing your breathing with others who are meditating throughout the world. At certain hours of the day, a specific focus for your meditation like “peace” or “joy” are suggested. One word of caution, it can sound a little odd to innocent bystanders. The first time my husband came across me using the app, he was convinced that either A) I was dying or B) Darth Vader had taken over his wife’s body.

Meditation is simply a time of quiet directed focus and can encompass many things including introspective prayer, repetitive prayer (like saying a rosary) or even a guided relaxation. In fact, I’m currently creating a special body love-inspired guided relaxation track. It will be available free for members of The Fat Chick Clique, so if you’re looking to get your OM on, hop right over to my website and join already.

In any case, my little chicklettes, I want to invite you to find just a little time, maybe just a minutes per day to take a deep breaths and relax your mind. It’s a little bit like bicep curls for your brain. You’ll feel better and be better able to manage stress better. Both of which are powerful tools for better health.

Love,
The Fat Chick

Thursday Theater: Knee Stress

The Stress of Stigma and Body Dissatisfaction

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Loving your body can really help reduce stress in your life!

Over the past few weeks we’ve been talking about satisfaction and stress. Today I’m going to stand at the intersection of these two ideas and talk about how feeling bad about your body is bad for your health. There’s no question that many of us are dissatisfied with our bodies. The cult of media and celebrity focuses our minds on a body ideal that is not even achieved by the most beautiful of the “beautiful people”. The vast majority of images in magazines are digitally altered to even more impossible beauty standards. And it’s a not so carefully guarded “insider secret” that a number of film and television stars demand that the image be “vertically stretched” to make themselves appear even taller and thinner on TV and the silver screen. It’s no wonder that so many of us have negative thoughts about our bodies. We’re not talking about a few minor thoughts now and again. A recent survey suggests that young women have an average of 13 seriously negative thoughts about their bodies per day–nearly one for every waking hour. And a surprising number of us have a lot more negative thoughts than that with 35, 50 or even 100 brutal thoughts about our bodies every day.

Unfortunately, all this body hatred is very bad for our health. Aside from the well known ties to depression, anxiety, and even suicide, body dissatisfaction leads to increased stress and ultimately to poorer physical health. Research at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver links women with poor body image with increases in the stress hormone cortisol. And increases in cortisol can lead to higher blood pressure, sleep disturbances, digestive problems and can negatively impact virtually all body processes.

So one important element in dealing with stress in our lives, is learning to love our bodies as they are, rather than constantly comparing them with impossible ideals. One way to do this is to put yourself on a media diet, and minimize exposure to fashion magazines and prime-time television. Another is (not surprisingly) to get regular exercise, as women who exercise tend to feel better about their bodies. And finally, don’t hesitate to seek advice from amazing healers like Golda Poretsky who help you make peace with your size and shape.

So whenever you’re stressed my little chicklettes, consider the notion that body dissatisfaction might be a central cause. And resolve to love the skin you’re in.

Love,

The Fat Chick

4-Legged Stress Relievers

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There is a lot of evidence out there that pets are a great way to relieve stress in our lives. That’s not to say they are stress-free. As anyone who has ever blotted desperately at Grandma’s hand tied-wool rug or stared despondently at the back of their once pristine leather sofa knows, pets can certainly be the cause of stress as well. But there is more and more research linking pet ownership to lower incidence of heart disease, better stress management, lower cholesterol and lower blood pressure. One study indicates that people who owned cats were 30 percent less likely to have a heart attack.

So my little chicklettes, here’s my prescription for stress relief: spend some time with some four legged critters. If you already own them, spend a little more time loving on them. And if you can’t own a pet, why not spend a little time volunteering at your local animal shelter? There are lots and lots of wonderful dogs waiting for walkies. And you get a 3-fer the price of one: exercise, stress relief and making the world a better place, all in one go!

Love,

The Fat Chick

Dealing with Stress

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It’s so interesting to me that so many discussions about health begin and end with losing weight. As I mentioned, the need for a decent night’s sleep is rarely discussed. And the need for managing stress rarely gets even a passing mention.

This is astonishing to me because there is so much research indicating that how we manage stress can have a profound effect on our health. There are many kinds of stress. Some kinds of stress seem to be positive, giving us an immediate boost of adrenalin to deal with something dangerous or just exciting. But some kinds of stress, especially chronic stress, seem to cause a lot of problems in the body.

Chronic stress has been linked to changes in t-cells and a weakened immune system. Other studies link chronic stress and anger to higher incidence of cardiac arrhythmia and sudden cardiac arrest. Chronic stress is also linked to higher incidence and poorer management of a host of other diseases including diabetes, cancer and hypertension. I’ve heard statistics suggesting that over 90 percent of doctor visits can be linked to stress. Yet how often has your doctor asked you about stress? So many of my doctors have repeatedly asked me about how much I exercise and recommended a diet. I have had doctors repeatedly recommend pills and radical, invasive surgery. But I’ve only had one, truly amazing doctor, who regularly inquired about the stress levels in my life.

I’m not entirely sure why this is. Maybe discussions about stress take too long for our overscheduled and overworked medical professionals to manage. Maybe being “stressed out” is still something of a badge of honor for our amped up, caffeinated, type-A culture. In any case my little chicklettes, we’re gonna talk about stress here this week. Because getting your heart thumping because you’re shaking your tail feathers or looking at a particularly hot and sexy bird can be a good thing. Getting your heart thumping hard all the time because you’re anxious, worried or stressed out–not so much. So this week we’ll take a deep breath, search for our Zen and cultivate peace.

Love,

The Fat Chick

The right to bare arms

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In my previous post declaring body independence I asserted “I have the right to expose my fleshy arms as I embrace my freedom”. And I firmly believe this. Yet I sometimes still have trouble doing it. I am now coming to love my upper arms after a long time of disenchantment. I have what my dear friend calls “hello-goodbye arms” (because they just keep on waving). But you know what? It’s HOT out there! I don’t like hot and I certainly don’t like wearing extra clothes when it’s hot. I’m coming to terms with my arms. Instead of “hello-goodbye arms”, I’ve got “guns” (pew, pew). I’ve got biceps. They are powerful and strong. I can lift babies. I can lift groceries. In fact my arms are almost strong enough to hoist my insecurities.

So my little chicklettes, ask yourself in these sweltering days? What gorgeous part of you are you hiding from the world? What are you keeping under wraps? Why not use this summer heat to shed a little insecurity, and just a little more clothing?

Love,
The Fat Chick

Thursday Theater: Choosing what Kind of Exercise is Right for You

Too Pooped 2-pl(a)y? Get some shut-eye!

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It’s hard to run around and have fun if you’re too sleepy!

Whenever I talk about the many dimensions of health (aside from and beyond body weight) I always mention getting enough sleep. As a nation, we in America suck at getting enough sleep and there’s no doubt in my mind that it has affected our health.

There are more and more studies showing an association between getting less than seven hours sleep with various conditions including diabetes, heart disease, and certain forms of cancers. More work needs to be done to determine if the link is causal, or if there are other mitigating factors. However there is some concern that chronic deprivation affects hormones in the body which in turn affect how our bodies cope with appetite, threats to the immune system and managing disease.

Aside from the studies, I know this. If I go without sleep for too long I’m not as creative as I could be. And I’m very, very crabby. (Just ask my hubby.) So this morning you’re getting your blog post a little late. Not as late as yesterday’s post pizza afterglow, but late nonetheless. Because I slept in. I enjoyed it. And I feel great!

So my little chicklettes, if you’re not getting enough sleep on a regular basis, you may want to focus some attention on this area of your life. Find ways to find time to sleep. Manage coffee and soda intake. Meditate. Whatever it takes to get enough ZZZZzzzzs and wake up fresh as a daisy. You deserve it.

Love,

The Fat Chick

Exercise Animals: I Cannot Tell a Lie…

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A kitteh haz to do what a kitteh haz to do…

Sure, I did some exercise today. I taught my class, and it was super fun and awesome. But sometimes you just need some pizza. I did that too. Went to Zelo, pretty much the best pizza place EVAR and had a slice. It was heaven. So my little chicklettes, I highly recommend that you get regular exercise. I ALSO recommend that you get a piece of pizza pie every now and again too. Cuz’ when the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie that’s amore. And amore means love. Which is what I feel for you, and, er, pizza.

Love,

The Fat Chick