The Weight of Grace book

Might you actually fear being thin?

by | Feb 8, 2013 | Uncategorized | 0 comments

Women are often mystified by their inability to keep weight off even though they so desperately want to stay slim. But when you listen to women talk about what their lives would be like if they were thin, you get a hint about why they never really do stay that way.

“I hope I’m never like those women who have to watch every little thing they eat.”
“I can’t stand women who wear really tight clothes just to make men’s heads turn.”
“All she ever talks about is food and how many points/calories/fat grams are in what she eats.”

When I’ve asked women to think through what would be scary about being thin, I hear:

“I don’t think my grandchildren would find me as huggable.”
“I would be much more tempted to flirt or even fool around.”
“People might appreciate me more for what I look like than for who I really am.”
“I’d feel more vulnerable.”
“My husband would want to have sex a lot more often, and I think what we’re doing is enough.”
“I’d have to work really hard to stay thin.”

Couldn’t these beliefs about the dangers and difficulties of being thin actually motivate you to stay larger? What do you do if your fears about being “thin” keep you “fat”?  Well, that’s exactly where your relationship with God comes in – and I’ll go into more detail about that next time.