I've been meaning to share an anecdote concerning body image/fat. A couple weeks ago I was working out by a woman who was probably around 70. She was very short and scrawny and wrinkled and really not "hot" by society's standards. However, she seemed like someone with a lot of spirit. She was really "going for it" with her workout and joking around with some other women. One of the fitness coaches came by and this woman told her that she had lost around 150 lbs. over the last several years due to health concerns. She also told the instructor that she wouldn't be coming in to workout the next week because she was going on her honeymoon. She said that her fiance carried around a picture of her when she was fat and showed it to his friends as a joke before he showed a current picture when he told them he was getting married. She was laughing when she said this, indicating that she appreciated the humor of his "joke" and didn't find it at all offensive.
I guess what this anecdote made me consider is how much and in what way do I consider myself to be represented by my body? I think I differ from HP in that I would much prefer that my H found me sexy because I think sexy or act sexy or talk sexy rather than because I look sexy, though I do recognize the reality of physical attraction. This might be because though I do truly appreciate a nice bicep when I see one, I am much more sexually attracted to sexual confidence, humor and intelligence in a man than pure "looks". In fact, if a guy is too good-looking, it might actually be a turnoff because I might assume that he spends more time at the gym or in front of the mirror rather than developing himself otherwise. Therefore, I would lack respect for a man who doesn't think similarly.
"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" - Mary Oliver
