Monday, October 12, 2009

"Fat Phobia"

Reading the article about fat phobia really opened my eyes. I never really had a problem being over weight. It seemed that the people that they interviewed had a horrible time during middle school and high school with Physical Education. I believe that there can be ways to fix the problems they had. One woman talked about how they used to weigh each other in class. I never went through a PE class where they did that, but one way to solve that problem is to eliminate the scale. There is no reason to weigh people in front of each other. It does not prove anything!

Another point that a lady brought up is the activities they used to do. For example, dodge ball and baseball. I believe that Physical Education should be more of an individual work ethic plan. People get hurt by being picked last or getting hit first in a game. If they focus on individuals own needs as in running, jump roping, push ups, and sit-ups (conditioning) then there should not be much making fun of. There should also not be a set number for anyone to pass anything. You see how much they can do in the beginning, and then try to improve from the beginning until the end. Essentially, people would be getting a workout like they would be getting with a trainer at a gym. Just work on improving.

Sam Rips
KIN338I
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2 comments:

Kerrie Kauer said...

The Majority of girls go through weight problems at a young age and it is really sad to see how society affects us in that way. I myself struggled through weight problems and saw many girls go through such troubles at the beginning of middle school. I remember it came to the point that athletes began working out for physical appearance rather than gaining muscle and strength for the sport.

I believe that it is a good idea to get girls involved in individual or contact sport because it helps them gain self- confidence which helps them over come that phobia. Contact sports or activities help girls not only be physically active but help them meet other girls who do not stress out so much about their weight. When playing for the Water Polo team, most of the girls were fit and muscular which made me feel ok to just focus my body in improving for that sport and leaving all my thoughts about the “ideal body” behind.

Barbara D.
kin 338I.
S.3018

October 13, 2009 at 3:14 AM
Kerrie Kauer said...

It was very interesting to read that there is a such term as "fat phobia". I have always associated not wanting to gain weight as some form of a disorder, not a phobia. I do understand that there are eating disorders associated with not wanting to gain weight, or to maintain a certain weight, however, these practices as we all may know pay a heavy price. High school students who are under or over weight may be victims of this "fat phobia". In the article, the woman describe how a 300lb high school football player was ridiculed for his size. To my disbelief, I thought being big was the norm for playing football.

I never had an real issue with my weight or size. If anything I wanted to gain weight so i would be physically stronger than my opponent. In Phyiscal Eduaction, the emphasis should focus more on conditioning, form, and techinque. Not the phyical attributes or abilities of ones character. When I heard other students testimonies how their coaches would weigh them publicly, I could only imagine the torture some faced. Phyical Education should stress there is nothing wrong with being a certain size that makes you comfortable. They should strongly encurage students to maintain a healthy diet, and there is a such thing as a fat healthy person.

B.Rainer
KIN 338ISEC1

October 13, 2009 at 1:13 PM

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