Body positivity in and of itself is a good concept. The idea that we shouldn’t care about societal and media beauty standards and that being big doesn’t make you ugly, are all valid points. But there are some big issues with the movement itself and what it advocates for.
The movement itself is exclusive, bullying and manipulative, and destructive.
Exclusive
You can’t be any size and be body positive in the body positive movement. You could be a healthy bmi and you will not be accepted in the movement. It is for the extra large. It is in fact biased against healthy weighted people. Not very body positive really.
Bullying and manipulation
It’s a club. and the unwritten rules are that you are beautiful just as you are. Any attempt therefore to lose weight is fairly harshly cracked down on. They don’t want to lose you from their group and your choice to lose weight brings up many of their own insecurities.
Unsupportive and destructive
As stated above they will not support you in your healthy weight loss goals because it means you are no longer like them in in accepting your body with no changes, even if you are making changes to get healthy and live longer. This makes it very destructive. It is much like being in a group of smokers who constantly encourage to smoke when you have told them you are quitting. Their motivations are selfish.
Can you be healthy at any size?
I’ve thought about this many times and of course there are varying levels of health and our genetics can mean that for some despite our weight and eating habits we may not get many of the ailments that are common with obesity. But the chances of this are low according to science. Also even if you are lucky genetically, the burden of weight on our bodies does create musculoskeletal issues leading to discomfort, pain and immobility over time. Unfortunately the idea of healthy at every size is a fallacy not grounded in Science or reality. Health metrics such as body fat percentage and bmi exist because they give us an idea of what a range of health and this is a good place to start
Be positive without the drawbacks
Instead of embracing body positivity that does not support health, choose to accept your body how it is right now, be positive about what it can achieve and move forward empowered. Your body is amazing and capable of so much. On your way, appreciate how hard it is working, it supports you every day and you want it working optimally. When you get to optimum health you will truly appreciate how the body you live in got you here.
