One Weight Loss Diet example essay topic

Advertising Thin I love flipping through the magazines and seeing all of the advertisements. How come when I spray on Ralph Lauren's fragrance Romance that some hot, hard body guy with his shirt off does not come up and take me in his arms? If I bought that American Eagle outfit would I be as happy? Walking to my locker in between class and lunch I start talking to the boy next to me Jake. We started to argue and since the only insults we knew (since we were only third graders) were to comment on one another's looks.

Since he was bigger than most of the other boys, people would call him "Jake the Cake" -- not much of an insult, but it rhymed. I would suffice. So I called him that. He turned red out of anger and called me fat... along with a few other terms having to do with my weight and how ugly I was because of it. "Obesity is a complex, multi-factorial chronic disease involving environmental (social and cultural), genetic, physiologic, metabolic, behavioral and psychological components. It is the second leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. Approximately 127 million adults in the U.S. are overweight, 60 million obese, and 9 million severely obese" (American Obesity Association).

I covered my sliding closet doors with pictures of celebrities, whether they were actors, athletes, etc. My room was plain, a white walled cell, so I figured a collage of pictures would bring some color to my room. I even found a picture of my friend in one of the magazines I had, so I put her picture up too. At least their was one person on the wall who I actually knew. I would change the pictures I did not like with new ones in order to freshen up its appearance. Thin is in.

Hollywood now has a sort of debate about how many are curves are too many, and how thin is too thin. I go to the movies and watch T.V. constantly, allowing myself to be exposed to the idea that beauty is being thin. Those actresses are so beautiful and the always seem to have everything work for them. The television show "Friends" is my favorite. I love the episodes that flashback to when Monica and Ross were younger. Monica was obese was talked about and made fun of for her weight.

Thanksgiving dinner was over and Monica's mother asked her to finish the rest of two pies (both of which were only about half way eaten) because there was no more room in the refrigerator. Monica had just heard the guy she liked (Chandler) call her fat so she was upset; about to take the pies she stops and says no. I like these episodes because later in the show she is thin. She has lost a lot of weight. She is a success story in the fight to be thin. Looking at my closet doors filled with all of Hollywood's beautiful stars, I wish to be like them.

I need to lose weight. That is why my life is so unhappy. All of those stars look so happy, it has to be because they are skinny and beautiful. "You don't have to go very far to notice that the ideal for women's bodies at present is a thin, fit, radiantly healthy, young, and beautiful person. Just open a magazine, an advertising supplement in the newspaper, waiting for a bus or train, or merely walking down the street or the university campus.

The message of what we should look like is literally everywhere" (Szekely). Christmas is my favorite time of year, especially when I get to spend it at my grandmother's in a small town in western North Dakota. The drive through the white countryside reminds me that it is Christmas and raises my anticipation to get to my grandmother's. Once we arrive, it is getting dark out and cooling down.

The night air is crisp and the neighborhood is lit with Christmas lights. I am so excited to be there that I run across the iced cement and up the stairs into the house. We have a large family, so when I get into the house, the kitchen is full of familiar faces and everyone rises to greet me at the door. I can smell all of the aromas from what my grandma and aunts have been cooking all day.

I say hi to all of my aunts and uncles, give my grandparents a hug and a kiss and then run downstairs to the play room where my cousins are. It is so comforting to be there. Every year the house looks the same: the same worn- out carpet that has been in the house for decades, the same old furniture and beds that my mom and her brothers and sisters grew up with, and the same commotion. Everyone just seems so happy. There is an overwhelming variety of home- made food there, too. All sorts of candy, cookies, bars, rolls and for dinner there are two or three main dishes, four side dishes, noodle soup made with home- made noodles and dumplings, and fresh rolls hot out of the oven.

It is like that the whole week the family is there; every meal is huge with a variety to choose from. When we talk, we eat; when we play cards we eat. There is food for everything we do. High school is intimidating, especially when it is large with over three thousand kids. I have this feeling of being out of place, but I probably make myself feel that way rather then those around me making me feel like an outsider. All of my friends are skinny, while I am overweight.

I can never really find that in style clothes in my size, or at least in styles that look good on my body type. It is time to start dieting. I do not want to be overweight my whole life; at least for a short time I would like to know what it feels like to be skinny and complemented on my body. My mom is unhappy with her body, too, so she pushes me to lose weight with her. I go from one diet to another in hopes of finding one that I can handle and that will be successful for me. I work out with the basketball coach so that she will help me get into shape for the upcoming season.

I am a yo-yo, going from one diet to another and then not dieting for awhile. I firm up but I do not feel like I have lost any weight. I am still the overweight one of my friends. Dieting has become more and more common among young girls. It is believed that dieting among young girls due to the images of thin girls advertised to them.

"In a study of 1,000 suburban girls, Berg found that more than half of the 14-year-old girls in the study had already been on one weight loss diet. In another study, at least 30 percent of 9-year-old girls and 46 percent to 81 percent of 10-year-old girls in California were no longer eating normally because of fear of fat" (Lichenstein). One Sunday at the beginning of my senior year, a lady from my church came up to me and said that I looked so good. She asked what I had been doing to lose weight and said how her son commented on my weight loss and asked if it was "in to be as skinny as a toothpick?" I was so surprised- flattered- that someone had noticed that I had lost some weight.

I had not been dieting though for about a year; I had not even been watching what I was eating or working out. When I told her that, she looked shocked and said that I should be careful- I would not want to lose too much weight if I am not even trying to lose weight. I lost a few more pounds after that and then stayed about the same weight for a little less then a year. I thought I would get more attention by being skinnier, but I really did not. I did not feel any better about myself or any different about my appearance. I did not feel or see a difference.

When people commented on my weight I felt like they were only saying something because I had mentioned that I had lost weight and did not feel any different. I do not see any difference because I still see the same me from a few years ago and I compare that image to those that are advertised to me. The two do not compare. I realized I had to change my outlook on life in order to be happier. Losing weight may make me feel a little better about myself and a healthier person, but it would not mean more attention or happiness. Skinniness does not guarantee happiness.

The cliche "It's what's on the inside that counts" may hold some truth behind it after all.

Bibliography

American Obesity Association. 2002.
Accessed October 15, 2003.
web Lichenstein, Richard. "Teens Run Risk with Extreme Diets". 2003.
web Szekely, Eva. "Never Too Thin". Toronto: The Women's Press. 1988.