I'm 250 Lbs. And I'm Beautiful!

[MorningStar]

Whoa! There's a lot of opinions about this topic. I'll just add this: I have a best friend whose 115 and tiny, but it's because she has an illness that doesn't allow her to gain weight. She does not exercise and eats the highest fat diet I have ever seen! Due to issues with my thyroid and other medical problems I am a little overweight despite eating a very healthy diet and exercising constantly. IF you put the 2 of us side by side I'm sure most people (including most of the posters here) would point to her as the healthy one.

You can't look at a person and say, 'They're overweight, they must be lazy french fry eating pig!' First, it's none of your business why they look the way they do, but you don't know anything about them. Weight gain and loss is way more complicated than many of you give credence to. I hear many people who are overweight, or very underweight, express the wish to wear a sign around their neck that says "Hypothyroid...not fat!" or whatever the reason may be.

So from a person who once was on Weight Watchers for 3 months, never cheated, ate healthy, exercised daily, and still gained 7 lbs....let's follow church/prophet/scriptural counsel and not judge each other.

Amy

I feel your pain! :)

[MorningStar]

Geez, what is it with you guys lately. Stud, you are not the first guy this week to think I am, well, a guy!

What's up with that????

I told the last guy "You're just mean because you got beat by a girl!":p

I really am nice! Ask Iggy or Gwen from this thread!

Elphaba

I knew you were a woman.

[MorningStar]

I wanted to mention too that PCOD (polycystic ovarian disease) also causes weight gain and that is becoming more common today. I wonder if it has to do with the hormones in our food? One of my best friends, her sister has knocked herself out trying to lose weight and she just keeps gaining. She has PCOD, hypothyroidism, and diabetes. Her sisters look like models. Another friend of mine has hypothyroidism and she has lost some weight, but she can't seem to get past a certain point. It doesn't help that her husband keeps asking her, "When are you going to lose the weight?"

[MorningStar]

Also, never met a woman who didn't gain weight taking "the shot" (depoprovera or however you spell it). I gained weight on the pill too even though I was nauseous and had no appetite. Many doctors claim it doesn't cause weight gain. Me and most of my friends beg to differ. I avoid hormonal birth control like the plague now.

[Elgama]

I still maintain how you feel about yourself is what causes beauty - not what you look like, I am overweight and as of very recently I don't care,. I now have a vested interest in insuring that big is seen as being beautiful given as my four year old seems obsessed with not putting on weight and has refused to eat certain food groups. That is even less healthy starving yourself kills you and makes you sick much quicker than overeating. I'll stop saying big is beautiful when the goal is no longer size 0 and its no longer affecting my daughter, I'd rather have a happy fat teen than a child obsessing about her weight and body size

Was it a Young Women General Conference where the YW General President advised Mothers to have a good self body image? That is way more important than anything - women in the church seem to be depressed enough.

-Charley

[MorningStar]

I'm not terribly upset about being overweight either. In college I vomited for 3 months like I had the stomach flu, went down to 109 pounds, doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong, they figured it was my gall bladder, removed it, gall bladder was healthy, and I had finally stopped puking two weeks before the surgery. I looked horrible. My eyes were sunken in, I had no energy, and I felt so bad at the worst point that I was Ok with dying. I just wanted to stop feeling that way. Well, feeling pretty good and being overweight, I'm just happy not to be in that position anymore. That was an absolute nightmare. I much prefer to be fat and jolly.

[WillowTheWhisp]

I'm not fat and jolly. I'm fat and hate being fat. If I could become thin I would be delighted. I am trying very hard to lose weight but it's very very difficult. If I eat too little my body just goes into starvation mode. I wish there was an easy solution. I*f it was possible to lose weight by eating nothing I would happily eat nothing.

[MorningStar]

I cared for a while, but then I just decided that I needed to eat healthy and exercise because it would be good for me whether I lost weight or not. I was tired of focusing on it.

[Moksha]

I was just thinking about jeanetics. Thank goodness for fat jeans or I would never remain clothed.

[Misshalfway]

I'm not fat and jolly. I'm fat and hate being fat. If I could become thin I would be delighted. I am trying very hard to lose weight but it's very very difficult. If I eat too little my body just goes into starvation mode. I wish there was an easy solution. I*f it was possible to lose weight by eating nothing I would happily eat nothing.

Oh my dear! Amen and Amen!! I wish I could say I don't care about my weight. Maybe someday.....

[Elgama]

Oh my dear! Amen and Amen!! I wish I could say I don't care about my weight. Maybe someday.....

see I actually think there would be less obesity or it would be less of a problem if people who were overweight felt good about themselves - I hate the fact my husband dislikes his body - I like it just the way it is lol

-Charley

[MorningStar]

see I actually think there would be less obesity or it would be less of a problem if people who were overweight felt good about themselves - I hate the fact my husband dislikes his body - I like it just the way it is lol

-Charley

Hmm, interesting. I guess people do get caught in a viscious cycle of, "I eat because I don't feel good about myself and I don't feel good about myself because I'm overweight and I eat too much."

[Elgama]

Hmm, interesting. I guess people do get caught in a viscious cycle of, "I eat because I don't feel good about myself and I don't feel good about myself because I'm overweight and I eat too much."

thats what I mean I am off to find the talk about body image I know it was given in general conference a few years ago probably in YW or RS part. I think if people have good self esteem, its then an easy decision whether to lose weight or to stay as they are, loving ourselves is part of what I call the three great commandments because you need to love you neighbour as yourself - if you don't love yourself then that is not a very high standard to keep.

After I have put the Shepherds Pie in the oven I will go and look.

-Charley

[MorningStar]

It helps me to think of all the overweight people I love and ask myself, "Do I love them any less because they are overweight? No. When I'm with them, do I think about their weight? No. Am I less lovable because I am overweight? No. People probably feel the same way about me - They appreciate my humor, talents, service, etc. Sure, they would like me to be at my healthiest because they love me and people who don't know me might judge me, but what do I care? They're missing out!" :)

[Elgama]

LDS.org - Liahona Article - The Sanctity of the Body

LDS.org - Ensign Article - The Body, a Sacred Gift

the bottom one was the one I was thinking about but found the top one whilst looking for it

-Charley

[WillowTheWhisp]

That talk is beautiful, how different to the attitude we hear from some that fat people are lady greedy sinners.

[Elgama]

I loved it when I first saw it it was directed at Mothers - the thought that struck me as a new Mum was that if I don't respect my own body and love me how can I truly teach my daughter about the law of chastity. This was heightened by baby massage classes last year where we were taught to ask the baby if they wanted a massage and to ask before we massaged each part of their body. A Mother who loves her own body will hopefully pass that onto her daughter and that daughter will have a much easier time saying NO because it her body who cares what anyone else thinks, she will also dress more respectfully etc

-Charley

[michaela]

I've been more than a little shocked and dismayed by many of the responses in this thread. Shocked that newcomers may read many of the responses and feel unwelcome (to put it mildly). Dismayed by rationalizations offered for being overweight.

There is a tremendous difference between being morbidly obese and simply not conforming to society's expectations for women. We have unrealistic images of women crammed down our throats constantly on television and in magazines. The majority of those women go to extremes to maintain their small-size figures. And as soon as they gain an extra ounce, they're attacked in the tabloids.

A normal BMI (body mass index) probably isn't going to be a size 0. I believe the average in the U.S. is a size 12. It's incredibly important to love yourself and have a positive body image---and that's much easier when you have a realistic view of what a healthy body (BMI) is.

For those of you who are large, I feel your pain! I'm working hard to lose 15 pounds, but I understand that it took two years and some significant personal set-backs to gain the weight. I won't lose the weight overnight. The fact is that you're at a much greater risk for health problems as your BMI increases. Do you give up? Goodness, no. But you have to combine a healthy diet with movement. Will you see results overnight? No. But you keep trying.

Love yourself for you. Work at making your body the healthy temple it needs to be.

michaela (feeling like everybody's mother)

[Elgama]

you know we have several obese women in our RS their BMI is definitely not healthy, but they are still very beautiful attractive women and it hurts me that their weight causes them misery, and some have health problems they cannot exercise - I lose weight very quickly when my illness is remission as I start walking everywhere again it takes me about 3 weeks to lose the 9lbs or so and go down to a UK size 10 which is I think a US 8. I know one obese woman who in her 80s still ski;s and plays tennis, her skin is as unwrinkled as you can get, and aside from depression in which her weight plays a part she has never been sick,

We also have a truly beautiful overweight YW she is beautiful, kind, and very talented wrote her first novel at 12, and she loves herself and her body and that makes her attractive.

Yes it is unhealthy but I would rather be happy and big, than miserable and skinny -it would be nice if instead of focusing on losing weight the focus was on being healthy, eating well, early to bed early to rise and exercise, we are tackling it in our RS by having a yoga class. I would love this years General Conference to have a few lets feel good about ourselves talks, President Monson's talks nearly always are, less depression would reduce many illnesses not least of all obesity

-Charley

[Kalola52]

To be fat is a sin. Most church members do not obey the WoW, including me, because of that. To take pride in it is, quite frankly, beyond me. For almost everyone (not all, so don't be offended if you have a medical condition) fatness is the result of laziness and gluttony. Period. And aren't those 2 of the 7 deadly sins?

You do realize that our new Prophet is a large man and would be considered "fat." Would you then say President Monson is a "sinner?"

Also, Barbara Thompson, Second Counselor in the General Relief Society Presidency, is a large woman and would be considered "fat." Would you then say President Thompson is a "sinner?"

Perhaps you might want to rethink your statement. When it comes to "fat," how fat is fat? Is five pounds overweight "fat?" There are young women who think being a pound over some preconceived ideal weight makes them "fat."

In the end, how does anyone being "fat" impact another person's salvation? Honestly, it doesn't.

[michaela]

Yes it is unhealthy but I would rather be happy and big, than miserable and skinny -it would be nice if instead of focusing on losing weight the focus was on being healthy, eating well, early to bed early to rise and exercise, we are tackling it in our RS by having a yoga class. I would love this years General Conference to have a few lets feel good about ourselves talks, President Monson's talks nearly always are, less depression would reduce many illnesses not least of all obesity

-Charley

When we were in high school, we called those women sweet spirits, and that wasn't necessarily kind. Being morbidly obese doesn't make you unattractive, ugly, or stupid---unless you're being judged by people who can't get beyond outward appearances. (And to be truthful, do you really want to be with people like that?!?) However, being morbidly obese is unhealthy, no matter how wonderful and accomplished you are. I bold-blacked miserable and skinny above because being anorexic isn't any healthier than being morbidly obese.

(I would add a walking club to the yoga class. 10,000 steps!)

michaela

[Kalola52]

I bold-blacked miserable and skinny above because being anorexic isn't any healthier than being morbidly obese.

Very true.

I remember reading Joe Montana's story about his finding out he has high blood pressure. In looking at photos of him, there is no way you could tell he has this "silent killer."

Believing you are at a "healthy" weight is no guaranty that you will be free from physical ailments.

Halle Berry is extremely petite, yet she has diabetes.

[Elgama]

When we were in high school, we called those women sweet spirits, and that wasn't necessarily kind. Being morbidly obese doesn't make you unattractive, ugly, or stupid---unless you're being judged by people who can't get beyond outward appearances. (And to be truthful, do you really want to be with people like that?!?) However, being morbidly obese is unhealthy, no matter how wonderful and accomplished you are. I bold-blacked miserable and skinny above because being anorexic isn't any healthier than being morbidly obese.

(I would add a walking club to the yoga class. 10,000 steps!)

michaela

Yoga is pretty effective for losing weight because it should include change in diet as well - but we'll take it one step at a time lol - right now personally I am walking just under 30 miles a week so more than beating my 10,000 steps most days I take it and average it out over the week. I am particularly worried about us targeting weight instead of fitness because I have known from when she was about 2 my daughter was a candidate for anorexia (she is more than capable of going to sleep hungry), and now at 4 she is unnaturally obsessed with not getting fat for such a little one, not sure where its come from, she is far from fat.

I just feel that weight is less important than being healthy - weight has nothing to do with the church teachings in itself. Its like Spencer W Kimball had throat cancer, and I had a friend who is LDS who had AIDS through no fault of their own. Being overweight, various forms of cancer, STDs can come from breaking the commandments but they can also come through other means.

I just love those two talks I posted. -Charley

[flower]

I am overweight, but do to medical reasons. I know this because I am a Registered Nurse (RN). There are several conditions and medication that can contribute to significant weight gain.

But weight is not my issue.

I am also an investigator, and it sickens me to read the posts from the "anti-fat" people. I was drawn to this church because I respected it and saw love and compassion, but you make me NOT want to be a member. I fear I am making a huge mistake by joining a religion that contains such stereotyping and hatred. I've obviously been mislead - I don't want to associate with such negative people. Your posts certainly do not portray you in a positive way, and it makes the church look bad as well. I didn't think the church had members like this.

[Elgama]

I am overweight, but do to medical reasons. I know this because I am a Registered Nurse (RN). There are several conditions and medication that can contribute to significant weight gain.

But weight is not my issue.

I am also an investigator, and it sickens me to read the posts from the "anti-fat" people. I was drawn to this church because I respected it and saw love and compassion, but you make me NOT want to be a member. I fear I am making a huge mistake by joining a religion that contains such stereotyping and hatred. I've obviously been mislead - I don't want to associate with such negative people. Your posts certainly do not portray you in a positive way, and it makes the church look bad as well. I didn't think the church had members like this.

Flower one of the best things someone can learn before they get baptised is Latter Day Saints are humans and have human failings - so many people go inactive or fall away because either they can't keep up with their own high expectations or someone around them is offensive, we all do upon baptism you start to improve, move on and understand the gospel to best of your ability, but not everyone's ability is the same some of us are better in some areas, others are better in others. Many of the people who seem anti-fat are in fact good people this is just the area they struggle with - its unlikely they would treat someone badly because of the way they feel, but as an internet forum we get to express views we wouldn't necessarily let have free reign in real life.

We should be Latter Day Saints because thats what Heavenly Father wants of us, no other reason matters, the people around us should not be more important to us than Him - I have had trouble with a rather unpleasant sister over a period of about 5 years and I struggled going to church, today I realized that I was committing Idolatry and placing that rather unpleasant human above my Heavenly Father and that will not be happening again.

-Charley