"I'm tired of books where a self-loathing heroine is teased to the point where she starves herself skinny in hopes of a fabulous new life. And I hate the message that women can't possibly be happy until we all fit into our skinny jeans. I don't find these stories uplifting; they make me want to hug these women and take them out for fizzy drinks and cheesecake and explain to them that until they figure out their insides, their outsides don't matter. Unfortunately, being overweight isn't simply a societal issue that can be fixed with a healthy dose of positive self-esteem. It's a health matter... I've learned I have to make changes so I don't, you know, die. Because what good is finally being able to afford a pedicure if I lose a foot to adult-onset diabetes?" -Jen Lancaster (book blurp for "Such a Pretty Fat")

"Real men go for meat, only dogs go for bones", "Skinny girls are for wimps", "Real women have curves"... It's amazing to be able to love ourselves no matter what size we wear, despite what society might consider beautiful and regardless of what media is having us compare ourselves to but is this new found high self-esteem causing more damage than good? Is all this self love even when you're 50 pounds or more overweight, really healthy for you? Not really. It seems that this whole "Big and Proud" movement which began to spread confidence to fuller figure body types is now taking an ugly turn and just becoming an excuse to remain where you are and eat what you want because hey, you're beautiful anyway right? I know I'm always talking about being ourselves and loving who we are no matter what but once it crosses over to unhealthy, it's a whole different case. It's great that you love those extra pounds on your curves but what about the fact that you feel heavy and sluggish most of the time? Is the extra weight you're carrying around really more important than having energy to run around with your kids? And have you thought about how your overweight little ones are affected by the extra weight? Impacting not just their self esteem but also their health. My motive behind this post in not to have anybody feel attacked. What I want is to get something in your mind going and to help at least one person realize that fitness and nutrition is so much more than having a nice body; it's about working on yourself from the inside out to make sure you can live a healthier, more fulfilling, life. So yes, love yourself but love yourself enough to know what is really good for you.

Like I've said in the past, when I began my weight-loss journey I had absolutely no idea what I was doing so I just took basic baby steps. I eliminated the junk food as much as I could and started going to the gym for an hour, 4 times a week, and just like that... the pounds started coming off. So get off that booty, stop making excuses for yourself and get to working on a healthier you. Good luck lovelies!

Updating blog while enjoying my PB&J sandwich with "Such a Pretty Fat", which inspired this post, on the side.

Is your high self-esteem doing you more bad than good?