FITNESS, NOT FATNESS
Amie Richardson feels like the same person inside, regardless of what size she is. For her, the key to feeling good is getting fit and staying healthy for her children.
For all you fatists out there, here’s some vital information. Fat people aren’t stupid. Just like you, they understand what food is, the basic relationship between energy in and energy out, and that poor food choices and limited exercise results in weight gain. There’s no need to speak to them as you would a sick child, explaining how a diet shake could work to reduce calorie intake and shed weight. Save your pity or disapproving looks and know that you don’t hold any special secret that we have yet to learn.
I’ve been fat. I’ve been thin. Right now, I’ve lost 16kg in six months, so I’m somewhere in the middle – strong, fit (I’m running most days), healthy, but nothing like the models I spent years idolising.
What I’ve learnt is, 16kg heavier or lighter, I feel like the same person, but people see me differently, especially strangers, and weight loss almost always evokes a positive response.
Those oohs, aahs and encouraging smiles fuelled years of disorderly eating for me as a teen. When I was 12, one boy said he would “never go out with me because I was too fat” (in front of the whole class) – this haunted me. At 15, the boys joked they couldn’t lift me for a musical number, which led to months of compulsive exercise and sporadic bulimia.
Approximately 1.7 per cent of Kiwis will suffer from an eating disorder during their lifetime and Health Ministry data shows numbers are increasing. Once thought of as a teen illness, more surprising is the rising number of middle-aged women battling eating disorders – a new UK study shows that one in 28 women aged between 40 and 50 identify as sufferers.
A preoccupation with body image – and achieving the “ideal” shape – has consumed me for most of my life. Stepping onto the scales for the first time after two pregnancies, and after my husband died of cancer, was like confronting a burglar in the dark. Inside, I felt strong and fit, but the scales showed that if I was to get within a healthy weight range, I had a further 20 kilos to lose. I was about to turn 40 and the extra weight put me at risk of some serious health issues. I had to ensure that my boys didn’t lose another parent…
Losing weight is tough and time consuming. It also takes support – which I have in bucket loads – and realistic goals. It’s no longer about what I look like, but what my body can do when I’m fitter and leaner. I’ve spent the summer running, jumping and swimming with our kids. I’ve hauled furniture. I’ve trained for my first half marathon, which I’ll run next month.
I’ll never have anyone’s idea of the perfect body, and I was still beautiful when I was bigger
(hell, I nabbed one of the hottest guys in Dunedin!) – but getting real about weight extends beyond body image. Fat isn’t a dirty word. It’s as much of a reality as having a lung or kidney. And it’s up to you what you do with it.