You’re not necessarily judging the other person. You don’t know their situation. But when you see someone else with a lot of extra fill in the blank you just might think to yourself “I don’t want to look like that.” You’re not saying that person should change or that there’s even anything wrong with their fill in the blank. But you are realizing that you’d personally like to avoid that size of a fill in the blank. You don’t think you’d “carry it well.” Arms that continue to wave after you’ve stopped, ass cheeks that spread to your hips, love handles you hate, fupas, cellulite (no explanation necessary), whatever your case might be.
Eye of the Beholder: Apples, Pears and Bananas
You see genetics had not been as kind to me as they could have been. The women on either side of my family are uniquely beautiful. Faces aside, you have apples and pears. My mother’s side of the family generally rocks the apples. Red delicious, granny smith, pink lady, take your pick. Top-heavy w/ smaller bottoms and, dare I say it, skinny legs. That shape may not be everyone’s ideal but it is what I saw growing up and expected to resemble. My dad’s family on the other hand were the classic pears. Petite tops and small waists poised upon “thick” bottoms. While one side struggles to find button-ups that don’t gap, the other struggles to find bottoms that fit the ass AND the waist. I could’ve been the classic coke-bottle, big-little-big. Instead, and in keeping with the fruits, I ended up a slightly deformed banana, straight up and down with a butt, only one of the desirable curves.
Eye of the Beholder: Health vs. Vanity
So, I have bad knees and shoulders. And I refuse to watch what I eat any more than the short trip it takes from my plate to my mouth. Yes, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity run in my family. Yes, salt and butter are my favorite ingredients for any meal. Yes, I know that genetics are not in my favor. BUT somehow that collection of facts is not enough to get me into the gym on a regular basis. But give me a muffin top sighting or mid-30s looking thighs 10 years too early and you’ll soon see me huffing and puffing, breaking a sweat on the leg press with my iPod in its armband and my red Nalgene water bottle at Gold’s Gym.
