the health and fitness counterrevolution

The user info says this comm was last updated 2012-05-21, and yet the last post I see is from 2010. I am a member, just joined, so I should see locked posts also. Where's the bug? Or is this comm not active anymore?

Well, in case it's... temporary, or something: hello! I'm Aura, 25, Finnish though living in Sweden now, hoping some day to be fit and without all these bally body image issues (which are getting worse, which why I'm here). Yeah, I know - "hoping" instead of "working on it" - but I need breast reduction surgery before that can totally happen, so... anyway, nice to meet you! I hope I will be able to see your posts, a comm like this is sorely needed in the world. :)

I bet you've seen videos where they show how they take an average looking woman and make her look glamorous and - almost always - thinner.

They do it to men, too. Here's an interesting short clip on "before and after" photography:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQZ…

Im new here and always looking for new friends! :)

This is an excerpt from an article. I have cross posted it, I hope that that is allowed...

[...]

Dehydration increases body fat! Every thing we eat our body tries to convert to glucose, it is the only fuel for our brain. Water contributes to energy storage along with glycogen. The more dehydrated you are, the more glucose remains in your bloodstream and will be stored as FAT. When your body is dehydrated it pulls water from the cells to hydrate the body. This includes your FAT cells. When your Fat cells are dehydrated your body will not use that fat for energy, instead it will use whatever fuel is readily available in the body.

So if you put in hours at the gym and aren't seeing much of a change it could be that your actually really dehydrated and no amount of activity will allow your body to use its excess fat for energy.

Not only that, but it is our kidneys job to filter toxins, waste, water and salt out of the blood stream and our livers duty to metabolize stored fat into energy. The liver however, CAN NOT WORK if the kidneys are not functioning properly. The liver must work harder and thus, metabolizes less fat.

It is recommended to drink 8 glasses of water a day. This is not enough water at all. We need water to function properly and if you're not peeing clearly and guzzlin the stuff throughout the day than you need to be drinking more.
[...]

To read the whole article and more problems that arise with dehydration, go to www.effortlesshealth.net!

1. I'm a "Kids in the Hall" fan, and I noticed the other day that they'd posted a short video interview with Paul Bellini, the silent character from their skits who walks around in nothing but a towel. He talks about being a fat kid and how he got somewhat liberated from body woes by being repeatedly taped in nothing but a towel....

2. I'm doing some research on the Detroit Derby Girls because I will likely end up interviewing them for a newspaper story soon. I ran across a slideshow (I can't find the exact one now) that showed them in action, and I was happy that they include a pretty wide range of body types from thin to chunky, all looking strong and fierce.

I was writing a piece for publication about plus-sized clothing, and got sidetracked doing some research on clothing for tall women. I'm not tall, so maybe I'm unaware, but it seems like there are few, if any, brick-and-mortar stores dedicated to tall women's clothing. Fat women have Lane Bryant and The Avenue and Torrid and such. But in my (admittedly limited) research, it seems like clothing tailored to taller-than-average women is confined to online retailers for the most part. Sure, J.C. Penney and Target and so on have clothing marked P for petite and M for medium and T for tall, but their "tall" clothing for women is not specifically designed for tall women the way clothing in chains for plus-sized women is. (Yes, I realize that it's hard to find clothing that fits petites and that clothing tailored for big women doesn't always fit either...)

Anyway, long story short, I did run across a few resources for tall women's fashions, and thought I'd post them here just in case someone here is interested:

Amazona Blog- Fashion and lifestyle resources for tall women
Family-owned and operated clothing retailer for tall women "Simply Tall"
More sophisticated fashions for tall women at tallcouture.com
And Tall Elegant Legs, good-fitting clothing for tall women

Anybody have any body positive resolutions, or just goals, for the New Year?

I gained a few pounds last year, just enough that most of my clothes still fit, but a few things that were form-fitting are just a tad too tight now. Instead of beating myself up about it or vowing to lose a bunch of weight, I'm resolving to just suck it up and buy some better-fitting clothing. I'm on a budget, so I plan to hit my favorite vintage clothing shops and the clearance rack at a couple other places and pick up 3-4 pieces of clothing that fit well and make me feel fabulous.

You?

Back in March, withoutscene posted about COFRA's "Dare to Show Your Face" challenge. I just went back and clicked the link, and really enjoyed the videos. They made me smile, cry and think. Love this. Would like to see more!

http://www.youtube.com/groups_vide…

The Gender Public Advocacy Coalition is pleased to announce the release of its 2008 GENIUS Survey in partnership with Ernst & Young. GenderPAC works to ensure that classrooms, communities and workplaces are safe for everyone to learn, grow and succeed.

The Gender Equality National Index for Universities & Schools (GENIUS), GenderPAC’s most recent effort to end discrimination and promote awareness, encourages colleges and universities to recognize the benefits of a GenderSAFE campus - supportive equitable and protective for all students. Choosing to participate in GENUIS sends a strong public statement that bullying or discriminating based on the race, sex or gender of a student, faculty, or staff member is not tolerated at your institution

Fill out the survey at: www.gpac.org/GENIUS2008survey, and make sure that we have data for as many schools as possible. Your voice will help us continue to work towards a safe and welcoming environment for every student

You may have already seen this article linked if you read "Shapely Prose," but if not, here you go.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008… 

If you’ve watched any news segment about fat people, ever, you’ve undoubtedly seen the video that accompanies any such news segment: the parade of headless fatties. Fat people in public, shown from the neck down, voiceless, stripped of their humanity—most likely without their permission. It implies that it’s shameful to be fat, that we ought to be ashamed to show our faces in public.

COFRA, the Coalition of Fat Rights Activists, wants your help in turning this portrayal inside out. That’s why we’ve started a project called Dare to Show Your Face. The goal is to show the world that we are people, first and foremost, no matter what our shapes. Fat people have voices, they have stories, they have faces.

We’ll be putting together a series of promotional videos for COFRA spotlighting the everyday lives of fat people in all walks of life.

How can you help? It’s easy: just upload a 1 or 2 minute video of yourself to our YouTube group.

http://youtube.com/group/fatrights

Tell us about your life. Show us what you do. There’s no need to get fancy with video effects (but if you want to, go for it) – just your raw story is what we’d like to see.

For more information on COFRA and to join us in our campaigns for fat rights, sign up at fatrights.org.

Watch our first video by Carrie:



Feel free to repost anywhere you see fit!

PS--We do accept photo mashups for those without access to a video camera.  Also, some libraries loan out video cameras, especially at universities.