By Jennie
New year’s brings the inevitable (and at times dreaded) new year’s resolutions, the most common of which is to lose weight. This week, many will embark on diet and exercise plans that will probably be abandoned by January 31, if not much sooner. The lack of consistent success with traditional weight-loss plans has caused some to reevaluate the way we approach diet and exercise programs. Health at Every Size (HAES) is a model that focuses on intuitive eating and the pursuit of fun physical activity as an alternative to traditional diets and exercise plans.
Is it really possible to be healthy at any size, though? My instinctive answer is no, and indeed some of the criticism of the movement seems to focus on the idea that it’s disingenuous (even dangerous) to suggest that one can be both, say, 100 pounds overweight, and healthy. Part of the philosophy of HAES involves body acceptance and promoting a positive self-image, which reinforces the idea that HAES is part of the Fat Acceptance Movement, a movement that is in itself controversial as it’s seen as promoting an unhealthy lifestyle.
Reading more about what the HAES movement espouses, though, it seems that the tenets of the philosophy are reasonable and rather sensible. I couldn’t find an official HAES website, but this site, Body Positive, appears to be a pretty good source for information. The philosophy is distilled by Jon Robison, a professor with a masters in nutrition, into the following key points:
- Self-Acceptance: Affirmation and reinforcement of human beauty and worth irrespective of differences in weight, physical size and shape.
- Physical Activity: Support for increasing social, pleasure-based movement for enjoyment and enhanced quality of life.
- Normalized Eating: Support for discarding externally-imposed rules and regimens for eating and attaining a more peaceful relationship with food by relearning to eat in response to physiological hunger and fullness cues.
None of that sounds too radical to me. And I do agree that the BMI sometimes seems rather restrictive and unrealistic. I’m not sure that any of this adds up to “healthy at every size”, but it seems like a program worth trying for those who have tried and failed traditional diets
Tags: Body Positive, Fat Acceptance Movement, HAES, Health At Every Size, Lifestyle changes, Weight loss and New Year's resolutions
I don’t think you can be healthy at any size. You can be unhealthy at a size 6 or size 26. I’ve never been tiny- I never will be. I gained a lot of weight during and after pregnancy that I still carry. I was always healthy before, lots of muscle and well toned (Still lots of muscle!) but my frame did not lend itself to being a size 4. Even after gaining weight and the tone flying out the window my blood pressure and cholesterol are still better than many of my thin friends, but I’m not deluded enough to think that will last forever. I know that too much extra weight, especially in the middle can lead to heart disease and diabetes. At any size you can take healthy steps and make healthier choices. This is the time to make those soon forgotten resolutions. I always resolve to make healthier choices. Hopefully 2010 will be the year.
If you want to know about health at any size, I suggest reading Shapely Prose, starting with this article, Don’t You Realize Fat is Unhealthy? – http://kateharding.net/faq/but-dont-you-realize-fat-is-unhealthy/ and The Fantasy of Being Thin -http://kateharding.net/2007/11/27/the-fantasy-of-being-thin/
Also recommended: Joy Nash’s Fat Rant- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUTJQIBI1oA
Glad you’re interested in this. Health at Every Size is a wonderful model that can help people improve their health and well-being. I just want to correct one misunderstanding in what you wrote. HAES doesn’t suggest that everyone is healthy at the weight that they are currently. Instead, it encourages people to take the focus off of weight, to adopt healthy habits, and to let your weight fall where it will naturally. There is a (free) community website where you can get links to many HAES resources: http://www.HAESCommunity.Org. I’ve also written a book called Health at Every Size (www.HAESbook.com) and you’ll find lots of free resources on the book’s website.
Thanks for the article and the additional resources mentioned by the posters.
At any size you can take healthy steps and make healthier choices. – Samantha
I very much agree. What I like about this approach it is based more on action – making healthier choices – than reaction – waking for Monday morning to weigh ourselves to be see if we have been “successful.” Too many people lose motivation when they don’t see quick results. If the focus is just on making the best possible health choices in the majority of instances, I think the chance of making a longer term commitment to health improves.
Anya (not a single digit dress size)
Instead, it encourages people to take the focus off of weight, to adopt healthy habits, and to let your weight fall where it will naturally. ~Linda Bacon
I like that. All of my childhood, I remember my mother and older sister dieting and talking about their weight. In my 20’s it was all so important to be thin, not to be healthy. I like this because it’s not stressing an idealized weight and it’s a realistic approach. Health is beauty.
Thanks to TWOP_fan and Linda Bacon for the links. I find the model really interesting and sensible. I still find the name “Health at Every Size” a little counter-intuitive, but whatever. Maybe “HealthIER at Every Size” would make more sense to me, since the focus seems to be on making better choices, whatever you weigh, rather than suggesting that you can be healthy at any weight.
I do think fat acceptance and accepting your body as is are important steps. I caught the beginning of the season premiere of “The Biggest Loser” last night. I have a LOT of issues with that show (I watched the first season or so but haven’t watched it regularly since). One of the contestants was talking about how he didn’t feel that anyone could love him at 450 pounds. I thought that was so sad. Because it’s bullshit, if you’ll excuse my language – being 450 pounds does not make someone categorically unlovable. That his solution to this was solely to lose weight struck me as problematic – is he really going to feel lovable at 185 pounds? What about if he’s 200? Obviously this person is at an unhealthy weight, but it bothered me that his self-loathing was being tacitly endorsed by the show. Ugh. I really, really hate “The Biggest Loser”.
The Association for Size Diversity and Health is an international professional organization committed to the principles of Health At Every Size (HAES). We wanted to thank you for bringing the HAES approach to your readers and encourage you to explore further.
Emerging research confirms that taking care of oneself without pursuing weight loss leads to better long-term health. We are seeing empirical documentation of the health impact from stigma and discrimination toward larger people and the deleterious effects of medical bias and barriers to care for people with higher BMIs. As professionals from diverse disciplines we recognized the need for a weight-neutral approach to addressing health issues for people across the weight spectrum.
We encourage you to explore our website at http://www.sizediversityandhealth.org. If we can be a resource to you for future exploration of the HAES paradigm, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
Deb Lemire, President
The Association for Size Diversity and Health
Jennie – I have alot of issues with “The Biggest Loser,” too. Season 1 (or maybe it was 2) winner has a new show called “reality show loser” – he gained ALOT of his weight back. I might actually watch that one.
My weight has fluctuated my entire life. I was a tiny sickly kid and then started having on again, off again weight issues beginning in high school. I’ve been on just about every diet imaginable – Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Nutri System, SlimFast, etc. and the only thing that has ever worked for me was just adopting a healthier lifestyle – watching my calorie intake and exercising more.
One issue that I have always had was trying to find pants to fit me – even when I was a size 8 – I always had trouble because I’m petite and curvy. I recently found these jeans and pants called “The Right Fit” at Fashion Bug (Lane Bryant and Catherine’s) and I feel so “normal” now. I have jeans that flatter my curvy figure and small waist. Talk about an esteem booster!
I’m wearing flattering “hip” pants now! I never wear pants because I can never find ones that aren’t too long or too gappy in the waist.
Thanks for this story Jennie! Thanks to Deb Lemire and Linda Bacon for their input, too.
Thanks Deb for the link. I particularly like this statement on your website:
HAES promotes balanced eating, life-enhancing physical activity, and respect for the diversity of body shapes and sizes.
Those are really important principals to remember. I am overweight but I do strive to eat healthy and to get exercise. My husband is somewhat overweight but he walks a fast clip outside or on the treadmill for 3 miles five days a week and rides his bike for about 2 hours on Saturdays. He also tries to eat healthy. I think it is most important to be aware of the positive steps you take every day and not be tied down to how much you weigh or what size your are.
I gained weight eating healthy a few years ago. I started eating the Superfoods diet (naturally nutrient-packed foods.) I needed omega 3’s to help control inflammation from Rheumatoid Arthritis. Well, omega 3’s are fats, found in fatty fish and nuts especially. Too much of that will put pounds on, but I found the weight gain was definitely worth the health benefit of reduced inflammation. I felt so much better! I can now work fulltime and my joint stiffness is barely noticeable. Best of all, I am now on NO MEDICATION for RA. After four years of eating slamon and flax seed and nuts (along with the other great Superfoods) I was able to stop my injections of an immunosuppressant drug. I’d rather be plumper and feeling great than thinner and stiff and aching.