How perfect is the 'perfect size 10'?
The average woman in the UK is a size 14, yet that same UK woman aspires to be a size 8. Funnily enough the male contingent of our population don't place such expectations on us. In fact, recent research carried out by Professor Rob Brooks at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia indicates that men prefer us to have a few size 14 curves. Instead of pursuing an ambition of becoming a tiny size 6 or 8, maybe we should consider ourselves Gok Won type protegés-women who need to be comfortable in their own skin and that includes any bumps in the wrong places.
Next time you are lunching with the ladies or browsing in the shops, take a sneaky look at the shapes of the women around you. Without doubt some of these women will be wearing a size 14. A few of them will look amazing and quite trim while others will have a larger waist measurement and appear overweight. It is impossible and wrong to advertise the ‘perfect size’ figure. Really a perfect size is exactly what you want it to be-it is the size you feel and look your healthiest at. It is the size where extremes of dieting are forbidden; you are eating healthily and exercising without overdoing it.
Of course many of us would like to trim down to a svelte size 10-but if you have to starve yourselves to achieve this elusive size, maybe it isn't right for you. The family and friends that love you so much when you are happy and enjoying life as a size 14 may have a different impression of you, when you are constantly struggling to maintain a skinny frame that doesn't come naturally.
We are all individuals and wouldn’t it be a boring world if everyone looked the exact same - our shapes should reflect our individuality. Rather than struggling to achieve a standardised size - set as the ideal by glossy magazines and skinny celebrities, surely we should stop worrying about our dress size and begin focusing more on the health implications of our body measurements. You could be a slim size 12, but have a body fat level that is greater than your size 14 friend, who do you think is healthier? Dress size does not necessarily equate to health!
Being a skinny size 6 doesn’t mean you are exempt from developing dietary related problems such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Don’t confuse slim with being healthy, don’t confuse size 6 with being beautiful and don’t confuse a size 16 with heart disease and health problems. A balanced and low fat diet will help you to maintain a healthy body, as well as your natural size.
A healthy body is all about moderation and comes hand in hand with a healthy attitude.
So whether you are a size 8 or a size 14 always remember that beauty is only skin deep but our true worth is what lies beneath.