Good’ay mates!
Great hockey game last night. It is so nice to have some of my favourite Canadian players all on the same team!
I received a great response to one of my answers in yesterday’s FAQ post.
Someone asked me what size I am and I responded, ‘Size Healthy’
Since I recovered from disordered eating, I have tried to stay away from numbers. I never liked the number on clothing. It is so inconsistent and it varies so much by the store. I could walk into a clothing store and leave upset because I wasn’t the size I thought I should be. Some stores have vanity sizing and in some stores the clothing runs really small. You just can’t win!
I think it is important to realize that sometimes the number really is just a number. The number on my clothing does not reflect how happy I am. When I was struggling the most with my eating disorder and when I was the smallest in body size, I was also the most unhappy I have ever been. A small number on one’s clothing does not necessarily equal happiness.
The tag on my pants now reads healthy because I know that I am being good to my body and that is all that I need. I know that the size my body is at today, is the size that it should be. I eat when I am hungry and I stay active and challenge my fitness. My confidence has also gone way up since I started being nice to myself and not expect perfection.
I thought it would be a really fun idea to write this message on my pants!
I took a black permanent marker and went to town. It was actually really liberating and fun…
Size Healthy Contest:
I thought it would be fun to have a little contest today!
My challenge to you is to take a permanent marker, write ‘size healthy’ on your clothing tag(s)!
TO ENTER:
1) Email the picture to me: angela [at] ohsheglows.com. Make sure the subject says SIZE HEALTHY CONTEST.
OR
2) Post about it on your blog and email me the link to your post: angela [at] ohsheglows.com. Make sure the subject says SIZE HEALTHY CONTEST.
The prize:
THREE lucky people will receive a gift certificate worth $15 CAD for Glo Bars!!! Draw will be random.
Contest ends: Friday Feb 19th, 2010 at 8pm EST.
I’m going to have a big size healthy blow out post after the contest is over featuring your pictures!
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I’m curious about your thoughts on these questions:
- Do you think there is too much pressure on women today to attain that size 0 or even 00?
- What do you think about vanity sizing?
- Have you ever been asked by someone what size you are?
The next time you are asked what size you are…you can say with a big grin on your face ‘SIZE HEALTHY!’ :)
I LOVE THIS. I will be emailing you my picture shortly and have a post up a little later. You’re so encouraging!
What a great contest!
I do think there is too much pressure on women to be the perfect size, whatever in the heck that is and I think vanity sizing just perpetuates it.
Yes and it always bothers me. I’m just not sure why it matters.
I’m going to do this right now!! (after my comment)
I think sizes in stores are awful. I know that depending on the store, my sizes can be wayyy different, so I try my best not to pay attention to them. It’s still discouraging though, I think just because of the mindset that is out there today. But since starting my recovery, I have become so much healthier in my thinking about clothing sizes. I look at some jeans now, and think, “wow, I feel sorry for the girl who can wear those.”
Size healthy is a wonderful sentiment :)
Love this idea!! I was the same way with my disordered eating- I was my thinnest but not my happiest! Can’t wait to see all the photos- would submit mine but I’m in Puerto Rico for the week : )
What a great idea!!! I’m going to enter :)
Yes there is far too much pressure to be a size 0 or 00!!
I don’t really care how stores size their stuff. Like you say – I know I’m the size I should be!
I have been asked my size before – It doesn’t really bother me and I answer truthfully.
I think this is a GREAT idea and I will be marking and photographine tonight!!! I hope I win!
What a great idea!!! I struggle with my “size” all the time. Sometimes I feel really good going into a store only to find out that my “size” has not changed or it’s even gone up and it makes me so upset (grrrr).
I’m still struggling with this
Ohh my word…I’m just imagining you inbox in a couple of hours, lol ;) I have pants that vary up to THREE sizes..it’s quite ridiculous! I also go by how my jeans feel..and not by the scale. Love this!
this is the best idea ever!
i think it’s hilarious (in that sad way) that one of the size descriptions is “normal”. what is normal, anyway?
i do get asked what size i am, but only because i’m detoxing and healthy-ing up my lifestyle all the time and i have a lot of long distance friends who are supporting me.
Love it!
I can totally relate going into a store and coming out upset. My “size” can differ by four sizes depending on the store. Frustrating…
I love the idea~ I will do this later when I’m at home! I think there is a lot of pressure for a certain size and can admit to feeling that pressure. There is a size I have in my mind that I don’t like to buy although I know it’s totally silly. We all hold weight and muscle differently so there is no way a pants size can be a universal metric of a body. I haven’t bought new pants in awhile (for budget purposes), probably since I really started reading blogs and internalizing the body acceptance message that is so prominent. I am training for a MARATHON- does it matter if I’m a 2 or a 10!? My body is letting me do amazing things!
I’ve never felt pressure to be a certain size in clothes, but I’ve certainly wanted to change the shape of my body before. At this point in my life (I’m 35), I just focus on maintaining good habits. I can’t change my genetics but I can do my best to stay healthy. I try to remember how lucky and grateful I am for a body that works. :)
I’m with you. I’m 37 and though I’m healthy and fit, size just doesn’t matter anymore. I just want to have healthy habits for a healthy mind, body and spirit. People get so caught up in their weight and physical health, they forget about the spiritual health that should come with it. About a year ago, I was the thinnest I’ve ever been due to some health issues. I didn’t like how I looked and was shocked when my girl friends would tell me how good I looked….I was miserable.
And sizes are so nonstandard now how can they mean anything? I have 3-4 different sizes in my closet – by the same designer/clothing company…
Such a great post!!! You’re so right– my size can vary SO much from store to store. It’s not about numbers, it’s about the way you feel!
Lovin’ the SIZE HEALTHY idea!!
Awesome idea Angela! I love how you are embracing what is right for YOUR body, instead of an arbitrary number on a clothing tag. What a wonderful idea.
I love this I’m going to be doing this for sure!
I love this idea!!!! I have struggled with eating disorders for a very long time. I am now in recovery but when I was in treatment and bought new clothes the first thing I did was cut out the tag that had the size in it. Only downfall to that is I have forgot what size they were and had to try on different sizes at the store when I bought new ones. However, it was well worth it to not have the size staring me in the face every day. I am off to go write “SIZE HEALTHY” in my jeans!!!!
This is a great idea! After I recovered from my ED and went up a size, I was devastated. I felt so overweight already; unfortunately, since I was between jobs I couldn’t afford to buy any new pants, I also had to keep wearing my too-small clothes which only added fuel to my “I’m so fat” fire! Now that it’s been a year I realize that the size I was at was unhealthy and that I look better at this size…at the beginning, it was a nightmare.
I absolutely hate the idea of a size 0, not to mention 00. Why doesn’t it start at 1?!?! The idea that 0 is “perfection” is ridiculous. It’s completely unhealthy for most people! I was a 0 in middle/early high school, but *surprise*, once I finally grew hips they became impossible to fit into.
What a great idea. There is definitely a lot of pressure to stay in the single digits! You know what is interesting? Sizes in Canada are much more realistic than here. A size 2 here equals an 8 in Toronto. I am always amazed at the number I wear there versus here.
what?? i am shocked to hear that!!! i had no idea the huge difference. i can see why people would be upset about the sizing issue. just goes to show that size doesn’t matter one single bit. they can put any number on a pair of jeans, but you’re body is the same shape.