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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]No. I am naturally very thin (5'4", fluctuate naturally between 110 and 115). I don't diet or restrict. I am active in that I walk most places and go running a couple times a week, but otherwise I don't work out. This is just what my body is like. I also have small boobs and a flat butt. I think it is best to accept your body for what it is and aim for balanced good health. I think most women who work really hard to get down to my weight, when it is clear that their bodies would be more comfortable at a higher weight, don't look better than they would be at a higher weight. Some clothes fit better, but others don't (this is true for everyone -- I look good in some clothes and terrible in others and always have and always will).

I am tired of spending time with female friends who are always dieting and restricting, who act like weighing less is some great accomplishment or gift, who complain about their weight constantly even though they are not overweight or unhealthy, or who assume I am judging them for their weight (I'm not). Being thin is not the same as being pretty, or sexy. It's just thin. Why is this such a goal of so many women? I have been thin my entire life and it's not that great! Yes, some people admire my body (but often in unkind ways -- it's not fun to be told "I hate you for being so thin" especially when it's not even something you picked for yourself), but many people still criticize it, both men and women. I have been told I'm "too" thin, that I look like I don't eat enough, been made fun of for being flat chested, told I'm not a "real woman" because I don't have curves. I've had women in my life who told me they could not be friends with me because my weight was triggering for them.

Do what you want with your body but I really cannot emphasize this enough: however much you think you look better at a weight that you have to seriously restrict your food to reach, no one else cares. Obviously if it's worth it to you, that's your choice. But if you are doing it for other people, you are wasting your energy. Your husband doesn't even care. Your friends definitely don't. Even those mean ladies you think judge you for not being thin? They'll just judge you for losing weight because they are mean, vindictive people who are looking for reasons to hate.

Anyway, back to your regularly scheduled programming.[/quote]

I'm 5'1", and losing 15 lbs to drop from a size 6 to a 0/2, people are nicer to me everywhere. I get treated like I'm more competent professionally by men and women. Men smile at me on the street (not now, obviously, but pre-covid.)  My husband tells me how hot I look regularly. At the gym, hair salon (again, pre-covid), people are just friendlier. But the big differences are professionally and with my husband. I'm sure other people have different experiences, but if you've always been thin, you really don't know whether it would be different if you weren't. The qualities many people associate with fatness are not positive, and weight discrimination is a real thing.[/quote]

A size 6 is not fat. Weight discrimination is real, but you have never experienced it even at your heaviest weight if that was a size 6. Maybe you have encountered men who preferred you at a skinnier weight or preferred skinnier women. That's probably sexism on some level, but it's not weight discrimination. It drives me crazy when average-weight women talk about weight discrimination (again, a real thing) to justify why they want to be a size 0. A size 0! Even at 5'1", that is very, very small.

A lot of what you describe is subjective perception and may not really be happening. Being thinner may just make you feel happier and more confident, which makes you perceive others as nicer or more deferential. They also may be complimenting your because you seem happier.

It would be different if you were visibly overweight. Studies definitely show that people who are fat are treated worse across the board -- in customer service, at work, by doctors, etc. It's a real issue. But what you are are referring to as weight discrimination is like when white people with Greek or Italian heritage claim to be victims of racism in the US. Just, no.[/quote]

I was the biggest woman on my team for two separate work teams. No, this was not just my perception - in certain industries, that's not atypical. It was the women as much as the men who were rude to me. I am not making this up. Obviously it would have been worse if I were bigger.  But 'average' is totally relative to who you are around, and average sometimes is small.

I'm not "justifying" to you or anyone my current size. I like how I look and feel and get treated, but also no one has to justify their body to anyone else. You think I'm really small? Cool, have at it, enjoy. [/quote]

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