Summary: This episode is not really about a specific weight-loss technique, but more of a philosophical discussion of some of the attitudes that surround the people who are on this journey (and those who should be on this journey but are not.)<br> I think I need to cover something that has been bothering me (and others on LoseIt.)<br> Words. Actually, not just any words. Adjectives.<br> Adjectives are, according to the dictionary: a word belonging to one of the major form classes in any of numerous languages and typically serving as a modifier of a noun to denote a quality of the thing named, to indicate its quantity or extent, or to specify a thing as distinct from something else. (I will be giving the definitions for a few more words later in this episode.) An adjective modifies another noun.<br> Okay, so what adjectives do we commonly see in our weight-loss journey?<br> <br> * Obese. (I’ve actually seen one person say “the ‘o’ word” instead of obese. Seriously.)<br> * Chubby.<br> * Plump.<br> * Rotund.<br> * Portly.<br> * Big-boned. (More on this phrase in a little bit.)<br> * Large-framed.<br> * Fluffy.<br> * Pudgy.<br> * BBW<br> <br> And all those words are are used in place of one other word. Who among you cringes every time you look in a mirror? When you cringe, do you think to yourself “I’m so fat.” (It’s okay. We are all adults. We can–and will–use the “f” word here.)<br> Go to any weight loss site and use the word “fat” in any way other than “I only eat low-fat chicken breasts”. Go on. I dare you. If you refer to yourself or someone else as “fat”, you will get a storm of angry comments, telling you that you have a bad self-esteem or are being mean and derisive to others.<br> Words Have Attitudes<br> Why do we say that using the word “fat” shows a “bad self-esteem” or demonstrates being “mean”? It’s because the word “fat” has been applied to us in the past. And we hated it. Why do we give that word more power than it deserves? It is a simple descriptor. And some people react badly to other words, such as obese. However, few people react to “chubby” or “portly”, and many people rationalize their body size with the phrase “big bones” and they have no problem with it.<br> (The phrase “big bones” will probably be a future episode, because when a person has both a BMI and body fat percentage greater than 30, it has nothing to do with their bones. But again, that’s a future episode.)<br> Why do we give all those words so much more power than words like:<br> <br> * Tall. Short. Squat. Lanky.<br> * Tanned. Pale. Freckled. Pimply.<br> * Happy. Sad. Angry. Manic. Depressed.<br> * Old. Young. Middle aged. Juvenile.<br> * Blonde. Brunette. Ginger.<br> * Sexy. Homely. Plain. Pretty.<br> * Rural. Suburban. Inner city.<br> * Wealthy. Impoverished. Middle class.<br> * Democratic. Republican. Independent.<br> * Conservative. Liberal. (Okay, these last eight have a lot of power and meaning, too.)<br> <br> Here is why. (I know this because I’ve heard people say it.) People see someone who is overweight, and they frequently will automatically infer that other characteristics are also present, characteristics that have nothing to do with weight. What characteristics am I talking about? How many times have you heard someone say about an overweight person—particularly one that they don’t know—“He must be lazy to get so fat” or “She must be ignorant—that’s why she is so big.”<br> Have YOU ever thought or said things similar? I’ll be honest. I have. I won’t deny it. When I see a very large person riding a cart through the grocery store, and they are filling their cart with less than healthy foods, I do judge them. I know—it’s not right. But as a person who is working so damn hard to drop my weight, measuring and logging everything, it annoys me to see people who give the appearance ...
