Beauty Mark-Film

For my second blog I chose to talk about the movie we saw in class, Beauty Mark. This film particularly resonated with me because I have struggled with a distorted body image for most of my life. This film in particular speaks to those who feel as though they don't conform to abnormal, unrealistic images/societal standards. In this film, Diane Israel, a former runner and triathlete talks about her own story. What I found interesting right off the bat is that she acknowledges a lot of issues, fears, and insecurities she never fully addressed prior to the making of this film. I think she had an incredible amount of strength and was very brave to talk about some of the things she did. When I played sports growing up I had a very distorted image of myself. I would workout twice daily on top of 3 or 4 hour athletic practices. I got positive reinforcement in the form of compliments from my peers which only fueled the process. What I was doing only hurt me though. I lost a lot of muscle through dieting and overexercising and dropped a lot of weight in a short period of time. After a few years of doing this to myself I found that I was always tired and that my athletic performance was suffering because I wasn't fueling my body properly. It was during these few years that I experienced 3 or 4 serious injuries. I was already calcium deficient due to the fact that I was lactose intolerant and after a doctor's visit, in which I was told my bones were very weak and starting to deteriorate, I realized I needed to make a change. Like Diane, a lot of my issues surrounded a dysfunctional family and competition between my brother and I for attention, so i can definitely relate. I always thought that if I was thin that everything would be okay and that I would be happy, but it was so much more deeply rooted that that. What I came to realize, and what this film reinforces is the idea that you have to feel good about yourself inside and out to be happy, so while I still exercise on a regular basis and enjoy being involved in recreational activities I strive to live my life at a less frantic pace just as Diane Israel does.

Kelly Peters
Tu-Th 2-3:15
KIN 338I