Amber Riley (from Glee) is my Homegirl!

For those of you who aren’t watching the new show, Glee, pick up your remote this Wednesday and give it a go. I’ve absolutely fallen in love with this show, and I’m not exactly sure why. It’s a little corny, a little stereotypical teenage drama, but there’s something so glorious about it that I can’t get over: the characters.

Though in many ways the characters fall into the same old categories of high school drama, there are also things about them that I love to pieces. Amber Riley, who plays the diva-fabulous Mercedes is one of my favorite characters to date! I was watching the season premiere a few weeks ago, and the first thing I said to myself was, “wouldn’t it be great if they gave the big girl a love interest?” I’m used to seeing stupid TV where the big girls are always the best friend-like characters and are never viewed romantically. But, lo and behold, the very next episode Mercedes gets a love interest (although, ill-fated-ly, she falls for her gay best friend). To me, this was a refreshing change to see on TV: she was treated positively and encouraged that she could get a great guy. Not to mention the fact that she had a badass solo in the middle of the episode.**

So, Amber Riley, is not only an extremely talented singer, dancer and actress,  but she also totally deserves to be named my homegirl! I’ll be watching out for her in the future. She’s going to keep kicking ass for a long time, I know for sure.

**In this video, which talks about the character motivation behind the kickass solo mentioned above, Amber says that dancing is about being comfortable in your body, and that she must be a dancer after all. I just loved that.

Speaking Up

There’s a great post up over at Big Fat Deal answering a question by a newcomer to fat acceptance about when to speak up. She asks, because recently she lost about 20lbs, and is just now seeing friends who she hasn’t seen since she lost it.

Many people haven’t seen me at all this summer, and I am now dealing with lots of weight-less comments about how much weight I’ve lost, and how “good” and “healthy” I am. These comments now make me extremely uncomfortable. This happened the other day with a coworker, and I tried to diffuse the situation by saying that unfortunately I realized that for me, weight loss actually came with a lot of unhealthy behaviors (and muscle loss), and I don’t diet any more and try to practice health at every size instead. It resulted in colossal awkwardness and blank stares.

When I found FA it was after a similar experience. I’ve been pretty vocal about how I had lost about 40lbs while in Ecuador. Immediately after I returned, I found FA and had to deal with the compliments that resulted from losing weight, and trying to find a way to explain to my friends, and sometimes even strangers, my new feelings of self-acceptance.

Unfortunately, this is something that I still find difficult. Although I haven’t gotten weight loss compliments in a while, I still feel like it’s difficult to decide when to speak up. While at school most of my friends and even some people who I didn’t really know were well aware of my fat acceptance activism. Although I didn’t drill it in to the campus like I wanted, I was pretty vocal about being size- and body-accepting. Most of my friends read this blog, and a lot of the campus saw my fat documentary and/or heard me read from my poetry collection. It’s something that I had to be vocal about at that time in my life.

Now, as I continue on to new places with new people, I find it a bit harder. When I started working at the internship I’ve worked at this summer, I wasn’t sure who to tell and what to tell them. I was nervous, sometimes embarrassed, to explain where I was coming from. It was pretty easy, eventually, for me to spread word that I am a size acceptance activist because we’re working on a show about women’s health. When I expressed an interest in interviewing Kate Harding, I had to also explain my fat activism.

So somehow, without really meaning to, I’ve informed almost everyone in my life thus far that I am a fat acceptance activist. And maybe that’s the key: I identify myself as an activist. For me, being a member of this community means I speak out about it. Now, that’s not the same for everyone, but I think that’s why it’s seemingly easy for me, and I’ve figured out, in some wonky way, how to answer those complimenters.

I say, “Thanks.” because I know they mean well. And then, next time I see them I tell them about my blog, or my video work, or my poetry collection, or when they ask about me I tell them who I am. If they’re a friend, I wait until the appropriate time to explain fat acceptance to them. But part of my whole existence in this community is to spread the word. So that’s what I do.

Anyway, I encourage you to read the post and comments at BFD. People have some great suggestions. This is just my meditation on it.

Laughter Yoga

Today, as one of the segments I’m producing for my internship, I went to a Laughter Yoga class. That’s right Laughter Yoga. This delightful practice consists of breathing exercises and self-induced laughter, both of which aid in the release of stress. It is entirely based upon the idea that your body cannot tel the difference between real and fake laughter (and often, neither can you). I spent a hilarious hour with a bunch of strangers, and I laughed almost nonstop. It’s an incredible experience.

Laughter Yoga was developed in 1995 by Dr. Madan Kataria of India when, according to one of the instructors I interviewed, Dr. Kataria, after doing research on the benefits of laughter, went to the park and asked over 100 people to join him in laughter. He ended up with a group of five. They told jokes and made each other laugh for the first few weeks, but quickly ran out of jokes. In the end, after more research, Dr. Kataria realized that your body reaps the same benefits from fake laughter as it does from real laughter and therefore, they didn’t need a reason to laugh! Thus, laughter yoga was born, incorporating fake laughter (which turns into real laughter) with breathing exercises. Today there are thousands of Laughter Clubs, including the Laguna Laughter Club, which meets every day on Laguna Beach, 365 days a year, rain or shine, holiday or no.

But really, it’s an amazing thing to do. The women I spoke to said that after practicing for so long, they find themselves laughing at things that used to annoy them or make them angry. They find themselves using humor to keep them from getting down, even when they’re alone. And not only does Laughter Yoga make you feel emotionally happier, but it also has numerous health benefits, including:

• Blood & all major organs are fully oxygenated leaving us bursting with energy
• Blood pressure drops, circulation improves and pulse rate drops
• Depression is lifted, even chronic depression is often cured
• High endorphin levels put us in a great mood and reduce any aches & pains
• Immune, digestive & sexual systems that are switched off by stress are switched on
• Self confidence is boosted, communication skills and creativity are boosted
• Our lymphatic system is massaged and our immune systems boosted
• Stress levels reduce by 75% or more and we become more stress resistant

Add in the fact that, in terms of cardio stimulation, 10 minutes of hearty laughter are the equivalent of 30 minutes on a rowing machine, and I’m sold.

But beyond everything else, it’s an amazing opportunity to be carefree and happy, like you were when you were a child. The average child laughs up to 300 times per day. The average adult, 15-20 times. In the process of growing up, we lost a lot of the joy in our lives. I sincerely hope that I can work to change that in my own life. And laughter yoga is certainly one way to do it. It makes me sure that we can find joy even through our own personal gloom. Or, well, maybe that’s just the laughter talking…