Self Love or Self Delussion-My Take On Self Magazines "Future of Fitness" Article
Are You Kidding Me?
How many of you have seen the old Kirk Cameron videos (you know Mike Seaver from Growing Pains)? Cameron would go around and explain to people the eternal damnation they faced unless they accepted Jesus?
Well, I remember. For the record, I think Kirk Cameron is a good and decent man who loves the Lord with all his heart and soul. I am a Christian. I do not however like leading with hellfire and damnation when sharing my faith.
Due to many of my fellow believers leading with hell and not love, the secular world tends to paint all Christians as a bunch of Bible thumping idiots showing the non-believer the path to hell lest they follow Jesus.
This gives so many non-believers a great excuse to say, "I don't know Jesus, but if that's what a follower looks like, I'm out." It gives these folks fodder to make the argument that if you're a Christian you must hate gays, divorcees, people who drink, dance and basically do anything fun. You keep a black robe of judgement neatly tucked away in your purse or behind your seat and you're happy to throw it on at any time.
Well, it appears the same thing is happening in the world of health and fitness. Anyone who suggests you change your life via exercise, healthy eating and basically following what any sane human would consider good advice is now a fat shamer. The era of "safe spaces" is now hitting the fitness world. It turns out if you train, but also shovel garbage in your mow every day, consume massive quantities of sugar and as a result are fat, you need a safe space. You need a space where you're told it's ok. All that healthy mumbo jumbo is silly. You do you!
If you are fit, you hate fat and the people it covers. If you suggest eating healthy, you are judging people who plow donuts into their mouth and wash it down with Coke. How dare you proselytize someone into your cult of good health? Shame on you, you shamer! Go eat 12 Twinkies, 5 Snickers, 16 Ho-Hos and recite the McDonald’s Jingle five times that you may be absolved of your sins my thin child. Then think on your sins. This is all ludicrous.
January 11th an article came out in Self Magazine providing shelter for the fat, unhealthy and apparently those unable to deal with the laws of biology. Self is offering a "safe space" for the unhealthy. I'm sure they will be whipping out an article to make the unvaxed feel better any day now, but I'm not going to hold my breath waiting.
Here's a quote from the article:
"That’s why I’m so excited to introduce our first editorial package of 2022, the Future of Fitness Issue. In this digital issue’s articles and essays, when we say future we’re not talking about the latest fitness trackers or streaming workout equipment. We’re talking about the people who are changing the landscape of an industry that has, for too long, excluded many. Over the past few years, thanks to the body positivity movement as well as other thoughtful explorations that have challenged complacent ideas about weight and size, we’ve seen an important shift in how we discuss larger bodies."
The article says that industry has "for too long, excluded many." Really? See I'm of the belief a person in bad shape is EXACTLY who these companies such as Planet Fitness, Peloton, Ladder and Tonal are catering to. Never have I seen a gym with a sign that read, "If you are out of shape, leave." Further, I've never seen anyone in health and fitness shame someone who is making an effort to better themselves.
In typical post-modern fashion they manipulate language to mean the exact opposite of what it actually says. For example, "The positive body movement." You are not being positive by telling someone doing something negative that the thing is a good thing for fear of hurting their feelings. That's like telling a smoker, "Hey bud, it's all good. Smoke em while you got em. There's a positive smoker movement heating up, and I'm here for it."
That would be ludicrous and so is this positive body crap.
I'm a sucker for someone grossly overweight posting their progress on social media. I tend to follow them, cheer them on and encourage them every chance I get. Oh, and when I see guys like Liver King posting pics of their chiseled body pulling a 9000 lb sled across his ranch while holding a tractor over his head and eating 5 lbs of raw liver all at the same time I'm amazed. I'm motivated. I'm reminded there's more I can do!
I'm also inspired by his message of ancestral eating, living and being healthy and disciplined. Rarely do I ever hear the fitness experts discuss fat as a purely cosmetic issue. Instead they all discuss it as a sign of potential health problems.
It's like not telling the person with needle tracks running up their arm they might want to chill out on the smack. That stuff can kill you.
Not these people. Nope. Anyone who has agency over their life, has decided to own their actions and reap the rewards so much as shares their victory with the population at large they must be some sort of P90X guide thumping shamer! They must be stopped. The first step in stopping the insanity, to use a fitness phrase from the past, is to celebrate the eaters of carbs. Let's showcase the pre-type 2 diabetics. Let's encourage those folks who are hell bent on casting aside good health for one more drink, and let's tell them it's A-OK! That'll help them.
The article places all the agency for these people on outside forces. This must stop. I'm not responsible for making anyone feel bad about themselves. If they feel bad after comparing themselves to someone who is in shape, that's on them! It's not on society. Why do we admire beauty and fitness? It's because it's far more than the aesthetics. We see a person who was able to limit their calories and put aside their urge to eat more. Why do we love David Goggins? It's not because he's ripped. It's because we admire not his self love but his self ownership. HE not some magazine, social media post, movie or anything else decides the type of human he will be.
The article mentions "anti-fat encouragement" while working out. What the hell is that? Have any of you ever heard a trainer telling their client, "Ok fatty, gimme 10 more squats?" No! I don't go to gyms any longer because I workout in my garage. But I can tell you the gym is one of the most positive social environments in the world. If there's someone who feels really out of shape and at their wits end, go hang out at a gym and watch how many fit people want you to have what they have. They love being healthy. They want you to actually feel healthy and have energy, get sick less and are overall happier.
It seems more like other areas of life. A group of people feels bad about themselves. The same sort of people start noticing. They then collectively project. They make their problem with themselves everyone else’s problem. Well, sorry. I’m not going to play. My problems are mine. Your problems are yours. Oh and by the way, I will help you any way I possibly can!
You can write all the articles you want about how “fat is the new thin” “fat and fabulous” “plus equals sexy” but it will not change reality. The problem is the person who is in bad health remains in bad health. The fat is just a symptom of a much larger health risk. If I seem dogmatic on this issue, it’s because I am. We can argue taxes, politics, the price of beans in China until the cows come home. However, there still are some absolutes in this world and too much body fat being unhealthy is one of them.
Fitness better than almost anything else is a sign of agency, discipline, self “tough love” and dedication. We often hear the very people who write garbage like this talk a great deal about self love. Well, if you think you're showing anyone self love by not sharing with them tools and support to get fit and yes this means not fat, then you are not showing love. You are only enabling self dillustion and destruction. While I will never fat shame anyone, Self magazine YOU and your editors should be ashamed!
Here’s a link to their garbage article. Try not to throw up in your mouth upon reading.