“Precious” Star Gabourey Sidibe Brings the Quote of the Day
January 3, 2010 in Beauty & Body Image, Celebrity Quotes, Gabourey Sidibe by Versus
Plus-size 26 year-old actress Gabourey Sidibe got a lot of positive reviews and loads of award nominations after her performance in “Precious” – here she is, sharing a bit of body image-related thoughts:
“I used to get hurt so badly. Any bit of criticism, I would cry. But at some point I just realized, I count more than anyone else, or anybody’s opinion, because I’m living my life — I’m captain of this ship, without a first mate. And I really, really like who I am. I really, really dig me.”
“There were no real times that I thought maybe I can do it until Mo’Nique came along,” She’s a plus-sized woman who didn’t care about one day being skinny. All my life I’ve been hearing that I’ll never amount to anything until I am skinny. And she disproved everything that everyone has ever told me.”
What do you think about her words?
Well.. That’s very unhealthy. But, to be honest, I don’t give a sh*t about her health so… If she wants to eat nonstoping until she dies… She choose it.
Ouch.
She’s saying that she’s not obsessed with becoming skinny and she’s happy with herself and you make it sound like the entire quote was her going on about eating all the fatty food she wants and not giving a damn about her health.
Honestly, I think based on her weight she might not be the best general role model, but I think what she’s saying is excellent. She loves herself, just the way she is, as should everybody.
If she stood up and said she was insecure and hateful of her body because of how big or unhealthy it may be, whatever young, overweight women like her that hear her are just going to feel worse about themselves.
And you aren’t going to get anywhere healthy when you hate yourself.
Amen Jenny. Very well said.
Yes exactly – I hate it when people saying someone overweight who promotes healthy body image is promoting an unhealthy lifestyle.
I don’t think hating oneself is going to make someone get healthy. Emotional health is important too.
I’m with you Heather.
I agree that is is unhealthy but I do believe she needs to do something about it. If she loves herself so much she should really try and be healthy. Don’t get me wrong, I think is great that she is confidencent despite the fact that she is overweight and I think she should use that cofidence to be healthy. The truth is, she can be happy with herself but that doesn’t mean its fine, ‘its like and anorexic saying, oh yeah, I dangerously skinny but its fine because I love myself this way’. No, that’s wrong.
hey, come on people…
just because she is a big woman does not make her unhealthy! there are plenty of women i know who are as big as her but keep their cholesterol and all that jazz under control. if she loves the way she is than effin let her be that way!
Agreed!!!
Good on her for talking in public about her weight when she has to deal with all the haters out there….
She’s stated before in interviews she has tried to lose weight but her body just didn’t shift the weight and she gave up on discomfort to lose nothi
I agree with Heather….This is not healthy, I would never call her plus-size. Pluz-size is Crystal Renn, this girl is obese. There is a big difference between being bigger but healthy and being so overweight that its a threat to your health.
I would say morbidly obese, I don’t see how anybody can be happy being that way. She doesn’t have to be skinny but she could exercise and eat a bit healthier.
look how happy and confident she is. she’s referring to the pressure she’s felt from our culture… to be skinny. while she may not be in a healthy weight range, her self-image is much healthier than a lot of girls who take extremes to be thin. her attitude is inspiring.
Well, I’d much rather being underweight than overweight..
How about you’d rather be healthy? That would be a great starter. How about not promoting neither extremes, since they are both wrong?! Just saying…
lol, heather, you come off as rather annoying and rude in your comments.
it’s ok not to be skinny and i’m glad she’s ok with herself but it’s about being healthy. i don’t think her size is healthy. even monique has lost weight.
sorry but being over weight is unhealthy please go to a gym and eat healthy
Why doesn’t everyone mind their own business? She never claimed she was Healthy! She said she was Happy! There is nothing wrong with that. Her health problems are between her and her doctor.
Thank you – everyone deserves to be happy!
i agree. if she loved herself so much then she should take better care of herself. i mean i think its great that she likes herself, but i seriously doubt there is anyway she could possibly be healthy at that weight.
There are 2 extremes here…everyone its easy to just look at her and say she’s a bad role model etc… but just look at how many celebrites and so called role models out there that are the other extreme too skinny… vs models which are put on a pedelstool and totally admired……….its ok to be healthy!!!
Most underweight people would be maybe 10kg underweight, she is probably close to 100kg overweight, so she is much further away from what is healthy and is at a higher extreme. and i would consider vs models to be fairly healthy. other catwalk models are alot thinner than them.
Well well well …. nowadays there seem to be only two “right ways” either you are over- or underweight. There used to be something in between but I guess that’s just something of the past.
Then again some peoples opinion on these topics are just hillarious. Some call natural skinny girls anorexic and obese people “curvy”. Others think you qualify as fat as soon as you are at a normal weight and anything bigger than a size 10 should hide.
It’s a Gabourey vs Miranda kind of world ^^…
Can’t we just look at things rational ? On the one Gabourey is heavily overweight and that’s anything but healthy but on the other hand the message she sends especially young girls is great : Accept yourself like you are. ( even though a little less weight would probably do her very good )
this is just was I was thinking. It is great she loves herself, this is very very important regardless of her size. I just hope she realizes does not need to be ‘skinny’, the other extreme.. What happened to moderation? The size in the middle? She does not need to look like a model, it is ok to have some extra meat on her bones, she should not aim the impossible.
I know for a fact she would feel much much better she loses some weight: she would be able to move easier, enjoy participating in some activities she has never participated before, wear whatever she wants.. Since she has already learned to love herself, she would be much happier if she could experience all these things..
I know because I was really fat as a child, and once I lost the weight, I felt somewhat free, I became more confident with my looks.. I hope she does lose her weight while she is young, so she does not miss out much.
Excellent comment. Very well put!! Totally agree.
Exactly! She isn’t claiming to be healthy, or even necessarily love her body. But she decided at some point that whether or not she lost any weight, she had to deem herself a worthy person, regardless!
“Can’t we just look at things rational ? On the one Gabourey is heavily overweight and that’s anything but healthy but on the other hand the message she sends especially young girls is great : Accept yourself like you are. ( even though a little less weight would probably do her very good )”
totally agree
It’s all good about accepting yourself, and realising being skinny doesn’t mean happiness BUT
how about being healthy? Not in imminent danger of diabetes, and high blood pressure, of heart disease, and fatty liver disease and cholesterol (if she doesn’t already have them).
how about living a full long life? (instead of on average 10 years shorter and the last decades being spend with a poor quality life, diseased and dependant on pills)
how about using your body as the greatest tool you ever have – being able to bend at the waist and touch your forehead to your knees, and running after the bus without getting out of breath? Or going on a hike, and getting on top of a mountain by your own power, and enjoying a reward of beautiful scenery.
how about being young and strong and ache-free? Not with backpains and knee pains from the excess weight, and not being able to fit any pair of shoes side-ways due to swollen feet. And sleeping without sleep apnea and poor breathing due to obesity.
I’m sorry but skinny and obese aren’t the two only options. The only reason she is smiling and happy now is that she’s burning her fuel at twice the speed so her body can take it. Just because her young body can take the strain now, doesn’t mean there isn’t a strain. Her heart IS challenged, her liver IS probably trying desperately to keep functionality, her pancreas IS being challenged, her abdominal fat IS producing toxic hormones, her joins ARE being destroyed at a faster rate.
All those things you listed are fabulous (and important) but she didn’t mention health, she was talking about self worth.
IT IS possible to worry about your health, whilst not feeling completely worthless.
Very well said
I can’t believe some of the comments. Would her hating herself, letting mean comments get to her, and thinking she will never amount to anything until she’s thin, make her love her body enough to make healthy choices? Do people who hate themselves think about what is best for their overall health?
No. In fact I’m sure such a mindset would only lead to depression and even greater obesity. Therefore, I admire her confidence and outlook on life. I hope she takes it one step at a time and makes the choice to get healthy for herself and her body, not because she feels like she can’t be anything if she’s not skinny or because of what people tell her.
I would like to add,
It is possible that she is still healthy. Just like being underweight doesn’t automatically mean unhealthy, so it is for overweight individuals.
I have known 2 overweight individuals, who have both had normal cholesterol levels, normal blood pressure, and no diabetes. And I have known normal sized individuals who had problem with all 3.
Genes and the body’s functional flexibility goes a long way. It’s not a simple matter of, fat=heart attack/diabetes. So it’s not right to assume she’s about to drop dead any second if she doesn’t stop overeating (and even that is a huge assumption).
First of all, she is way beyond overweight, she is clearly obese.
Second, just because she doesn’t have problems now, doesn’t mean her weight won’t cause problems in the future. Like I said, a young body is capable of fighting a lot of strain. That’s why athletes are capable of feats when they’re young. But even with the best training and diet and genetic make-up, after a certain age, your body starts decaying wether you like it or not, and as a result it can’t do the same things it did before. That’s why a young person can handle a pneumonia and get out of it alive, while a simple cold can kill an elderly person easily.
Third, of course it’s not a simple cause effect relationship. Heck, I’m a biochemist, I study obesity related problems as my job. She could very well be that statistical outlier, and be both obese, live a long life and be healthy. Yet statistically speaking, most likely she won’t. You should know better then use some random ” I know this guy”
example, since you can find atypical proofs for anything (it’s called anecdotic evidence, and science doesn’t accept it). Hey, I know this girl who tans constantly to a crisp and has done so for 5 years and smokes like a chimney, and she doesn’t have cancer yet. Does that mean tanning booths are not horribly toxic? Of course not.
Fourth, the sad thing is that in her (other) comments she said she always struggled to lose weight, trying all sorts of fad diets, until at some point she gave up and accepted herself as she was. She obviously stopped trying to get healthier. Instead of fad diets she should have invested in some medical advice. Yet some individuals have a harder time lowering their fat percentage then other people.
But weight isn’t magical. You can’t breathe air and gain 2 pounds. And you can’t follow a healthy, nutritious diet, with exercise, and NOT have your weight stabilise at a healthy point (which mind you, does NOT have to be skinny, it can even be slightly overweight going by the innacurate BMI).
The fact that she is accepting of herself is great, don’t get me wrong. Being miserable wouldn’t help her one bit, wether she was thin or obese. But let’s not beat about the bush – being obese is bad for you.
Great comment! Thumbs up!
I agree – 5 stars!
I kind of agree with everything you said. We’re pretty much saying the same thing, except I’m addressing a specific set of comments.
Yes, being obese is very bad, because it increases your chances of developing many life-threatening diseases. But at the end, it is still only a CHANCE, and I was just trying to make the people who are saying, “SHES UNHEALTHY” realize that. Being skinny doesn’t mean you’re anorexic, and being obese doesn’t mean you’re diabetic. Even if there are doctors on here, none of them have looked at her bloodwork, her hepatic panel, etc, to able to conclude such an absolute statement.
I’m sure she has a doctor, I’m sure she understands her risks if she has any. But if her doctor had told her she was about to develop diabetes and lose weight, would she be able to do it more easily and effectively loving herself or hating herself? I think she’s in a process of becoming healthy, and the first stage is accepting yourself and understanding your limitations (e.g. you may never be slim or even average, but you might be able to lose 20 pounds). It’s probably not easy losing weight for her, otherwise she wouldn’t be obese, so loving herself will give her much needed motivation.
There is a big difference between having a mental disorder and just being unhealthy so i dont think that using the skinny = anorexic and overweight = unhealthy as comparisons is fair. (and even if it was it wouldnt prove your point either because alot more overweight people are unhealthy than skinny people that are anorexic) it would make more sense to say that being skinny doesnt mean your healthy. however it is alot more difficult to be skinny and unhealthy than it is to be overweight and healthy. the healthiest foods are usually the lowest in calories, and very rarely are obese people healthy. and while i dont think hating herself would be a good thing, obviously loving herself isnt very good motivation if shes still at that weight.
You are absolutley right when you say that hating herself wouldn’t make it any better. And I hope I didn’t make you believe that I think like that.
Good for her to embrace her body and to have such a strong mindset but why always these extremes. I don’t say that “thin is the only way” – that is just ridicoulus but don’t you think that going from obese to overweight would do her good ? No starving , no food restrictions , no super strenous workouts. Just some small lifestyle changes that would help her in the long shot.
Sure people would still call her fat – but so what , she seems to have a very strong personality , I hope she can take manage itsince I’d love to see her some other movies – she was brilliant in Precious
I’m with Casey. I think she knows very well what kind of health problems being that obese can cost her, but it does her no good hating herself. It’s important to accept yourself with all your flaws i think, and after that maybe it’s easier to try and correct the things in your life that need correction. And if she feels like she doesn’t have it in her to lose weight just now, i think she still sets a good exemple of loving yourself, as long as she’s not implying that being fat is merely a question of looks. It’s not quick and it’s not easy to lose weight or to change your eating if you’ve been overweight your whole life, there’s no point waisting your life obsessing about that one thing only. She has the right to life as full a life as possible, and IMO that’s what her quote sounds like.
What I got from this quote is that your size is the determining factor of how successful you’re going to be. Despite her size she has still managed to accomplish an acting career and despite her size she still loves herself.
There’s no rule that obese people aren’t entitled to self esteem until they’ve shed the pounds. If we all waited until we were ‘practically perfect in every way’ until we had any confidence then this world would be worse than it already is! We all have strengths and weaknesses and we need to learn to enhance the former.
Yes, she is very obese, but there’s nothing in this quote to suggest she doesn’t realise it’s an issue. If she doesn’t, then she’s got problems.
If she’s a bad role model, then she’s typical of the Hollywood stock. I cannot fathom why people expect actresses and models to be good role models for young people.
Exactly!
I totally agree with you! And just to add, her quote is reminding us that a physical imperfection (such as obesity) is never a reason to hate ourselves! You should always love yourself, and that doesn’t preclude her wanting to lose weight, what she is saying is that she loves herself regardless of what size she is.
I’m just concerned for her health. Good that she’s positive about herself, bad if she means that she will actively maintains the bad dietary habits that cause her obesity and underlying future health problems. Nobody’s asking her to lose 100 lbs and be a video vixen, but almost everybody wants her to be strong and healthy and live as long as possible so she can bless us with her immense talent for longer.
It’s so frustrating to see people constantly hate on thin models and actresses for their size and then applaud this chick for having a “good attitude.” She is knowingly eating WAY, WAY too much food…how is that respecting yourself in any way? She obviously does not follow a healthy lifestyle and doesn’t care about her body, yet because she says she’s secure in it, it’s okay for her to be obese! Furthermore, at a basic level, both obesity and anorexia are just very different manifestations of an self-abusive relationship with food. In order to be that big, it’s not that just that you “enjoy” food anymore, it’s that you’re eating out of deeply ingrained habits or because of some emotional problems.
Don’t think I’m a skinny-lover, either. As most of the discussions on posts of, say, Tori Spelling and Gisele Bundchen point out, they’re not exactly poster girls of healthly weights. Yet they are attacked even if they project a healthy self-image (Gisele, for instance, has always seemed confident and radiant despite her thinness), simply because they project a unreasonable body image to young girls. Is Tori Spelling a good role model? No! She’s obviously insecure at her natural weight and clearly restricts herself enormously for what she looks like. Yet if you read quotes by her, she claims to be healthy and happy. Same with Gabourey. Just because she says she embraces her obese size, it does not mean that she is healthy, both physically and mentally.
I’m with you on this.
I agree with you about the double standards on this site regarding thin girls, but just because people slate thin girls for having self confidence that doesn’t mean we should slate obese people to compensate for it.
Being secure does not make it okay for her to be obese (not in my book anyway). However, many people in her position are very down, have no confidence and don’live, regardless of what their size is.
I, for one, applaud her ability to be optimistic, despite her size and the social and physical problems it must cause her. I do not admire her size nor do I think she’s a good role model for others (but I don’t think any Hollywood star is). But I still think we can learn from her that you have to keep on striving, regardless of your downfalls.
Monique used to go on about ‘skinny women being evil’ but now she has lost 40lbs, having come to her senses that the health implications were grave. It takes a while for some people. Hopefully, Sidibe will come to realise that she can use her confidence and determination to take steps towards a healthier lifestyle.
I think it’s really disgusting that she says she’s happy and stuff looking like this, she is clearly EXTREMELY unhealthy and girls that have got themselves into the same situation will now just think “oh well, if i’m happy it doesn’t matter”. I agree with what everyone is saying that people talk so much crap about thin “anorexic” models, but being THIS obese is just as unhealthy, if not even worse. YUCK!
You know, I don’t believe she requires any unsolicited advice about her weight/health. I’m sure she’s perfectly aware that her health is unhealthy considering her weight at that size.
But what she’s saying here doesn’t indicate that she doesn’t know that. or that she isn’t trying to do anything about it like some here are incinuating – she is merely talking about confidence and how she’s dealt with criticism conrcerning her size. Just because of her weight she doesn’t deserve not to have confidence in herself and that she shouldn’t achieve the things she wants career-wise.
Sometimes when I hear comments like that I wonder if they really mean it… I dont wanna be mean but I really doubt she is that happy with herself, i am not saying she should conform to any standard or change who she is, but I would clearly be really uncomfortable with myself if I was in her place and I honestly think anyone would. I think its great she is saying she loves herself just the way she is ( and I realize she is not necessarily talking about appearance), but I am just not sure if deep down she really means that. When you are morbidly obese like that, even if you have a successful carreer, healthy relationships, how can you have that good of a relationship with yourself when your body doesnt reflect that ? Usually when you are comfortable with who you are you also treat your body right by maintaining a certain balance.
I say good on her, if she feels right and comfortable in her own skin.
But, I think she should aim to be healthy, not necessarily losing weight.
I get tired of people proclaiming they are just concerned about her health. You are appalled because of the way she looks. Skinniness will not save you from illness. One day you are going to die. Maybe some have chosen to enjoy their life in the way they see fit. Most people have addictions. It’s just a question of what your neurosis happens to be.
From my own personal experience-She would be treated better if she was thinner. That’s just the truth. The disgusting shallow nature of humans never fails to manifest itself.
Lol, nonsense, I don’t care how other people look. I’ve read her interviews and she seems like a genuinely nice person. And I completely sympathise with her, I grew up hating myself too, for other reasons, and had to find a way to accept myself. Why can’t I care about the health of a stranger and why couldn’t others too? Just because you can’t wrap your head around such a notion, doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.
If you didn’t care you wouldn’t comment so often on the looks of other women.
I responded to posts regarding me – aka, stuff being said about the readers and posters here. OF COURSE I’d care if someone comes here and says – duh, everyone here is a fat-apologetic or an anorexic. Because, surprise surprise, I’m neither.
I also responded to your arrogant post declaiming everyone here is unfeeling. Like you can see through the screen and identify people’s real intentions of posting. Yes you totally caught me, I wanna be skinny and I am appauled by how she looks like…NOT
Get over yourself.
I’m with you on that suzushii
“I also responded to your arrogant post declaiming everyone here is unfeeling.”
Because most (westernized) human beings are “unfeeling”, “insensitive” and get off on belittling others and if you spent about 10 minutes looking at this objectively you’d see it.
“Like you can see through the screen and identify people’s real intentions of posting.”
No, most of you make yourselves pretty well known when you call women of normal size “fat” and declare their bodies “mediocre”. Your actions reveal you every time. If you cared about this woman’s health I think you are going about it the complete wrong way. You should go talk to her.
Do some people care about her health? Maybe, i doubt it’s most of the people here. I think most are hiding behind good intentions and would do better to be honest.
You know what, yes, I’m appalled by the way she looks. And I’m embarrassed that I’m so appalled. My sister was tipping the scales close to 300 pounds, for no known medical reason, and could not lose weight for years. I should know better than to judge someone based on their looks. But I judge. “too thin, too fat, to muscled, too bony, too many curves there, not enough muscle there”, and on it goes. Call it human nature, call it bitchiness, humans tend to be a judgmental lot. Too fat seems to be the worst; we recoil from it like it’s a contagious disease. Why? I don’t know, but I know that I do it, and I know that I’m not alone in that.
I’m glad she likes herself, but I don’t believe she loves her body, and I do believe she works hard to cultivate a pleasant and likable demeanor to “make up for” being fat. Because let’s face it, I’m not alone in my instinctive repulsion of her body, and fat people have to work harder to make people like being around them. Its the horrible, shameful, sad truth.
::shrugs:: Some people might actually be concerned about her health. But I agree with you, most people are just trying to cover up their repulsion to her weight.
I agree with you for the most part on this one – being a healthy weight does bring a better quality of life, but that’s not what most of these commenters are concerned about.
I say good for her. I think truly learning to dig yourself despite all the images of what an “ideal” woman looks like is the hardest thing. I have not mastered it yet.
:S her legs look like my grandmother’s….(who is 76 btw)
LOL my grandmother’s legs are better then hers (she’s 73)
The way I took her statement was that she’s proud of her accomplishments despite the obstacles facing her (thinness is a criteria for success in Hollywood). She was in no way saying that she was happy with being overweight. Rather, she’s come to appreciate herself/personality. Loving yourself does not mean loving being overweight and definitely does not mean that she’s not working on it. I think the best thing anyone could do for themselves is love themselves despite their faults. From there other things will come naturally..in this case, her becoming healthier.
great interpretation
Okay, true–she’s not healthy. But I admire her. I think she’s beautiful regardless, and more importantly, she always looks so happy! Every time I see her, she’s glowing. I’m much healthier than her but have also always felt insecure aboutmy body. She says in her quote, “I really, really dig me.” That’s worth a lot and it’s really pretty cool. So she may not be the picture of health, and for that reason it’s not something to a aspire to. But her confidence IS inspiring, and I hope one day I can as comfortable in m own skin and that girls all over the world take her cue to love themselves as much as she does. Go Gabourey!
ewww
I call BS. Anytime a plus-sized/obese person says they don’t care what others think and they are happy with their size they are lying. While not everyone may want to be stick thin they do want to have a nice thin figure. I believe this to be true 100% of the time. No one wants to be heavy. Forget healthy it’s all about how you look. People are just afraid to admit it.
Agreeeeeee a lot
Thanks for this comment.
You are so right! They just want people to think that they don’t feel bad when they are being called names, and made fun of… And yes, excluding the fact that she must be terribly unhealthy, she doesn’t look good at all! This is way over the plus size model problem, I think it is evolving into hypocrisy.
I’m so sorry if I was mean, and I am really sorry for her, but she should try to make her life healthier, and happier.
Maybe you’re right in some cases but please please don’t always generalize everything . In the end we have got no idea what’s going through these peoples heads. Why shouldn’t plus size models be happy about theire looks ? They are very well proportioned and they arn’t in the tight spot to limit theire food intake.
Maybe there are people who are truly happy about being a us size 12 ? We can’t tell them how they have to feel about themselve. And who are we to make them out to be some negative envious lot ?
Maybe there’s some truth in what you say.
In this quote she just says she’s happy with herself. That doesn’t mean she likes being big but it rather she’s happy regardless of her size. Even if people do desire to be in shape that doesn’t go to say that they can find no happiness until they’ve reached that goal. It’s like a spinster wishing to be married. She’s not necessarily going to be unhappy until she’s hitched. There are millions of things in the world, other than a banging body, that can bring a person joy.
Another thing, just because a person doesn’t like their size it doesn’t mean they care what other people think about it. When I was a teenager I had enough spots for me and my two sisters (thank God that’s cleared up now) and though I hated them I didn’t give a damn what other people thought about them after a while. I had other things going on for me like, good grades and compliments on my shoulder length afro hair!
I am totally on the “support-curvy-women” side but she is not healthy. And I don’t think being unhealthy in any way, whether it’s being too skinny or too big, is any good.
As many have written, I am all for curvy women, but this girl is OBESE! She cannot love herself if she lets her body get like this. I would be terrified of dying every second if I were her. Hope she can get some help and loose, like 150 pounds.
I think size is irrelevant. You can be physically appealing on the outside and seemling healthy but your insides are rotting. On the otherhand you can appear overweight but be within normal limits and in a healthy range regarding cholestrol and such (as someone else pointed out). women and men come in all shapes and sizes and there is no ideal size for everyone. Its great that she accepts herself but she should also be sure to get medical check ups to ensure that she is in fact healthy regardless of what size she is now or in the future.
her weight makes me sad for her, for her genetic predisposition for diabetes, hypertension and renal failure for sure. It’s sad to see people kill themselves with food – she is one of them. If there weren’t any health consequences for her great, but she is playing with her life being this heavy. I hope her eating herself to death is worth it and she’s “happy”.
This young woman is in denial – no one needs to eat that much and be sane, she has a problem…. do you think she even knows what it is like to listen to hunger cues and stop when she’s satisfied??? are you kidding me??? She has a problem, your body has a set point and she has gone way way beyond this. She doesn’t love herself, she loves food more… end of story.
i’m sorry but deep down she must want to get thinner and healthier. realistically most women wouldn’t be so confident and content at her weight. i think her message is great but she should try and get healthy.
I think that is good that she says she accepts her body for what it is, but honestly, she isn’t healthy (from what we can tell) and while what she is saying is all lovely and nice sounding, she is obviously obese, and therefore not the best role model for anyone out there. But I don’t understand how she can be satisfied there, is any one every completely satisfied?
We humans are shallow as can be. This has little to do with health and inner happiness.
End.
Like everyone else has said it is about the way she looks. She may say she’s comfortable and happy with herself, and I think that’s great, but she needs to realize that she’s not healthy. Being that big you can tell she’s unhealthy. I hope she takes her confidence and uses that to lose some weight.
but i bet she never feels cold…. LOL
How can someone allow themselves to get this big? this is very unhealthy!
Being yourself and happy in your own skin, fine. Bit this girl has a very unhealthy body. I hope she realises this. Loved her in the movie though. .
It’s great that she doesn’t feel pressured to be SKINNY- but she looks to be obese, maybe even at the level of morbidly obese. Her cholesterol may be fine (a lot of that is hereditary, anyhow) but being overweight is DIRECTLY related to a long list of other things: Type II diabetes, joint pain, polycystic ovarian syndrome, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure…and the list goes on. I’m not saying she needs to weigh 120 lbs, but she’s definitely at risk.
She was absolutely amazing in precious and I think that she does relate to her character in how she gained weight( background/parents) And im not sure but I feel like she’s at a point where it’s not about weight for her anymore. Maybe she gave up and just dealt with her issues and sees the person she is on the inside and if she’s happy with herself why bring her down… I would even say that I’m jealous that she is able to get over the vanity and bullshit and just live her life.
I can appreciate that she is emotionally balanced and is facing critics head on with an optimistic approach. However, just like we question the size of models and their impact on young girls as role models, I also question Gabourney’s impact as a role model. There has to be a middle ground for young girls to follow and this is not it. Its like the media has one extreme or the other. Gabourney’s size is not healthy. Its not about what looks good and what fits, but her health is compromised by her weight. I dont agree this is a good role model for women.
I have no problem with people being ‘fat’ as long as they like it and she clearly doesn’t, it took mo’nique to make her feel good about being overweight when she used to be crushed by criticism but she doesn’t realise that there’s a big difference between her & mo’nique, and mo’nique already has a career she has one movie. I mean it’s great if your happy with it but when it takes people to comfort you cause you didn’t feel good about yourself that’s just lying to yourself. If your not happy with what you are do something about it at least for your own health this is not a haircut or a clothing style, she’s playing with her life.
Her ankles somehow look not as big as the rest of her which shows she could get thin healthily
After reading this thread, I’m taking away that generally we believe that thin = healthy and fat = unhealthy. This is not necessarily true (several comments have mentioned this).
I used to work with a gal of whom I was envious at first – she had a figure that was to-die-for, and had a very pretty face as well. Once I got to know her better, it became obvious that she ate almost nothing to maintain that weight. She had a low pulse and problems with passing out unexpectedly. I believe there might have been some type of eating disorder going on, but you wouldn’t know it to look at her – good complexion, shiny hair, etc. Being thin could mean that you exercise and eat healthy foods. Or it could mean that you are blessed with a really good metabolism and can eat any crap you want and not gain weight. By the same token, a person can be overweight, even if they are exercising and eating right. (My boss is a perfect example – she’s been overweight since childhood, but eats well and exercises daily.)
The point I’m making, I suppose, is that, ultimately, each person needs to make a decision about what his or her “healthy” weight is, based on personal health and personal body image, rather than letting Hollywood, or magazines, or parents, or (insert external influence here) push them in one direction or another.