Truth be told, I’ve always found the word diet to be a bit annoying. I feel like it’s a particularly anti-feminist word — especially in the way that it’s used nowadays. It’s almost always about depriving yourself in order to get skinny and fit the media’s view of what’s ‘sexy’.
You’ve seen the headlines. “The Bikini Diet You Must Try”, and “The Diet That’ll Get You Looking Sexy in Two Weeks”, etc. It’s pretty much always next to a photo of a woman in a swimsuit or skimpy clothing, and a tagline that reads something like this: “You’re not good enough the way you are. Stick to this deprivation diet and you may get the chance to be what every woman wants to be — skinny! Then, thanks to this diet, you can snag a hot man and have people envy you.” Ok, well maybe I’m reading into it a bit too much. But the message is certainly always superficial and never empowering.
Wondering what you can do about it? We’ve found a way for you to take a stand. Lean Cuisine has started an initiative to help women break free from the word diet. They want women to define their self worth not by what they weigh, but by the accomplishments they’re most proud of. To wit, they filmed a wonderful video asking women what they’re proud of. It made my cry. Seriously. Check it out:
Touching, right? They’re asking women to share what really matters to them, with the hashtag #WeighThis. I’ve done it, and I’d encourage you to not only check out what others are posting, but post what you want the be “weighed on” — ie. what really motivates you — with the hashtag #WeighThis. Because it’s up to us, as women, to stand up and tell the world that we’re not defined by our bodies or our weight. That we’re defined by our actions. Our love. Our personality.
Stand up and tell the world that you will not be defined by external superficialities!
Not sure what to post? Lean Cuisine was so overwhelmed by the outpouring of response from their video that they decided to take the #WeighThis submissions, all the things that people are proud of, and celebrate by creating a massive art installation in Grand Central Station. Scales were used to showcase each #WeighThis submission because it sends a powerful message about valuing the amazing things women do over the number on the scale. Check out the video for some touching inspiration:
To further their initiative to promote healthy self-esteem and remove the word diet from our vocabulary, Lean Cuisine has made a TV plugin (which is currently being beta tested by influencers) and a Chrome browser extension (which you can download now) that will block the word diet from whatever you’re watching or reading. When you filter the word “diet” using the Chrome extension, Lean Cuisine will give back to Girls Leadership, an organization that teaches girls the skills to know who they are, what they believe, and how to express it — empowering them (and us) to create change in their world.
Here’s more about that:
Imagine never having to see or hear the word diet again. Would that make you feel empowered? Stronger? Sexier? Would you start weighing yourself based on what matters, instead of your appearance? Comment below and let me know how it makes you feel!
Disclosure: Although this post is sponsored by Lean Cuisine,
all words are my own and I fully support their initiative.
Now this is a post I can relate to. Sadly, I ALWAYS use the blasted scale to determine my self worth. Depending on the number, it will dictate my mood for the day. I hate it, I know this, yet it is a tough habit to break.
I am working to learn how to love myself even as I am now and start making changes toward improving myself. This was very encouraging.
That’s great! All women should make self-love their #1 goal. It’s hard in American’s current media culture, but it’s a goal worth achieving. Meditation helps!
This is a very interesting read! I want to be healthier and I want to feel beautiful! I’m always motivated with your posts and advice. thanks!
I am so fortunate to have a man in my life that loves me for who i am. He’s always complimenting me and telling me all of the things he loves about me and my body.
i have to agree.Thanks for the motivation, I want to learn how to be good to myself. I will now stop wasting my time on feeling bad about my body. I think that our bodies are amazing creations and should be celebrated. Thank you a ton for this! i will share this to my friends!
I already have one kid and i’m a single mother. It is really hard to look in the mirror and still love my body. After giving birth to Clarence, stretch marks started showing up on my tummy and i have gained extra pounds. But today when i woke up and looked in the mirror, i though of how lovely I looked standing there and I just now realize that even though I’m not perfect, I have Clarence to show for it. Now, i look and feel amazing.
I am all for this movement about being comfortable in your own skin. Everyone should love their body. Anybody who judges you for doing so should take a good look in the mirror first. Worrying too much about how much you weigh can stress you out, affect your health and may lead to gaining more weight. Don’t let your size define you.
I totally agree. Don’t listen to the haters! Here’s my advice on that: urbanette.com/how-to-overcome-haters/
A cliché “change is the only permanent thing in the world” makes me feel positive when it comes to “diet” issues! Indeed, diet is a word I’ve been hearing since the start of the year! I don’t really care about my weight, but I’m very much concerned of how healthy I am. Being thin doesn’t equate with being healthy. So I don’t really watch my weight, but I do watch what I eat!
It’s great to know that there are movements like this one, being done by Lean Cuisine, with the main objective of “changing” how one views herself/himself.
If people, especially women, would learn to weigh themselves based on what matters, based on achievements and based on personality, I guess that “stronger” feeling would emerge 🙂
EMPOWERED!!! That’s what I’m going to feel if I won’t hear or see “diet” again!
Yeah, weighing oneself based on what matters instead of appearance is better but realistically speaking, it remains to be ideal at present! I would really want this to happen because I’m sick and tired of hearing complaints from friends: “Oh, I’ve gained weight!!!”
Filtering diet from TV and Internet is a great way to start. We should also stop patronizing magazines that indirectly say, “You’re not good enough!!!”
I’m taking a stand, from now on I’ll be using #WeighThis in my social media accounts and I’m really excited to check out what others are posting and how my friends and family members would react!
It’s really high time that we start empowering women! Young girls should be taught that personality and behavior matter most and weight does not define who they are as a person. Yes, we really need to take an action!
Checking out Girls Leadership…