Criticising sexy people for the way they look won’t make you thinner

Nowadays it seems everyone is crying about the body types shown on television or in advertising. 

Whether it be in response to the slim waist-lines of Disney princesses or the use of athletic models in adverts, image police feel the need to force their vision of a “normal” body image down your throat.

A more worrying trend is people – especially feminists – criticise fitness models, body builders and even amateur gym goers just for being focused on a body image which disagrees with what they class as “normal”.

Is it realistic for a highly trained adventurer and explorer to be fat?

It’s difficult to shake the suspicion people who complain about this do so because they’re unhappy with the way they look. The kind of people who photoshop Lara Croft (a fictional character) to make her fatter are probably dissatisfied with their own bodies.

It’s much easier to claim dieting and gym obsessions are dangerous than to admit envy at the results they achieve. It’s certainly easier to criticise other people’s bodies than to put some work in down the gym to make your own look better.

This point may seem controversial but how often do you see someone who is in good shape and confident within themselves complain about this sort of thing? The way to address an insecurity is to work hard to change it, or to accept it’s not a big deal and get on with life.

Constantly labelling the body types we see in the media or advertising as being unrealistic may temporarily tape over the cracks in your self-esteem but it will not help you find self-acceptance in the long run.

Whether we like it or not, appearance is reality. It’s shallow, it’s unfair but it’s also the way things are. The average person is more likely to buy underwear modelled by a fitness model than cellulite Sally. That’s just life. The chiselled abs and double D’s presented to us daily have played their part in creating the looks orientated society we live in.

It takes hard work to look this good

The result of this is many people are obsessed with altering their physiques to fit a similar mould. However, aesthetics isn’t the only reason why people workout. In fact many do it because they enjoy the health benefits such as increased fitness, energy and self- esteem. So if you don’t share the same passion then don’t feel the need the label them as ‘self-obsessed’ and make naïve assumptions about how dull and dissatisfying their lives must be in order to make yourselves feel better.

One of the main arguments against the physiques shown by the media is they have caused eating disorders like anorexia. This problem has been largely addressed however. Underweight models were banned from fashion shows in Milan and Paris way back in 2006. Fashion icons such as Tyra Banks spoke out and condemned the size 0 physique.

Whilst the danger of illnesses like anorexia should not be understated it cannot always be used as a makeweight to support criticism of how media portrays body image. The majority of supermodels today eat healthy and their figures come from, having an active lifestyle and fitness routine. In fact, they are probably healthier than me and you. Going on starvation diets to become slim is an unhealthy and ineffective method results from a mind-set obsessed with shortcuts. The media may be the catalyst for some eating disorders but ultimately it is the mind-set of those involved that’s to blame.

What should constitute the ideal body type is one people find attractive and attraction itself is subjective, therefore there are many ideal body-types. The physique you should have is the one you find appealing and makes you feel confident, if this requires dieting and gruelling workouts then so be it, you should be allowed to do so without judgment.

As for the media, there’s no use complaining about the images they show because those will always remain, people will always want to see a body image that may not be the most realistic or common. A better use of time would be working hard to get the body which makes you happy.