The other day I posted on my Facebook page a link to a story about girls who were trying to wrap their arms around their backsides and touch their bellybuttons, it’s called the Bellybutton Challenge. They were believing that this determined they were healthy because it meant they were thin. Well, girls- in reality you’re just flexible, not necessarily healthy. While I have been on a weightloss journey and my goal was to be thinner than my starting point of a size 24, I believe that you can be healthy at a number of sizes. Health is different for everyone.
Moving on…
I was sitting in my car on the drive home yesterday afternoon and I heard an ad on the radio for cools sculpting. It’s a procedure to help with fat reduction, less invasive than lipsuction. To kick off the ad, the radio DeeJay that is a spokesperson for the facility that conducts the procedures, talked about how these girls trying to touch their bellybuttons in China. Well that’s strange, why would that matter to her or this facility. I actually couldn’t tell if this was an ad or just a topic on the radio show. Yeah, nope it was an ad.
She continued to say that you could also touch your bellybutton is you had this procedure… Fantastic, we’re taking the insecurities of teenage girls and putting them in the faces adult women which they then usually adopt as their own insecurities and are led to believe that they aren’t healthy, they aren’t thin enough or beautiful enough without some kind of procedure, whether it’s as invasive as plastic surgery or minimally invasive like this cools sculpting procedure for fat reduction.
I have worked through and continue to work through a rough relationship with food. I have had binging issues for as long as I can remember. I’ve been able to identify trigger foods and remove them. I have also identified scenarios that will trigger me as well. I have found a workout routine that works for me and more importantly I have learned that being healthy isn’t a quick fix. It’s more than physical, it’s mental too.
I was really disappointed that a large Boston radio station allowed their DeeJay so be the voice of this specific ad because it does take the insecurities of young girls and emphasizes that you every right to feel inadequate. Well, no, you shouldn’t feel bad about your body. You shouldn’t try to be something you’re not.
In retaliation of this “challenge” many women and teens are taking pictures of themselves flipping the camera the bird while reaching around their backs. There also the #BoobsOverBellyButtons.These challenges aren’t things that should be making headlines, but there are causing a little bit of a stir. Even I felt inclined to throw my two cents in because I hate seeing the pressure put on young girls today. I feel the pressure too, I’m sure many women feel it. That’s why it’s important to talk about health and educate the new generation about food, exercise, overall health, etc. I hope that it doesn’t get worse.
What crazy challenges have you seen online? What are your thoughts about fat-shaming and skinny-shaming campaigns?
<3 Cristina
