(Photo by Liora K Photography)
What is Smashing the Scale about?
Well, Smashing the Scale isn't necessarily about destroying metal, although any girl (and guy!) at this incredible shoot would tell you that is incredibly liberating. Instead it's about making a conscious decision to detach your worth from that number on your scale. Smashing the Scale isn't about being unhealthy. It's about deciding what your definition of beauty is and knowing that it is enough. Smashing the Scale isn't about exclusion either; you may not understand the concept or be interested. And that's totally okay. Leave us to our crowbars and keep on trucking. We'll always be rooting for you. Smashing the Scale isn't about anger, but instead the joy of calling society on the carpet and telling it how it is. And Smashing the Scale isn't about being perfect at loving yourself, but rather about making a personal commitment to starting your self love journey. Smashing the Scale is much bigger than it sounds, it's the most empowering thing you can do. Try doing it for you.
(Photo by Lisa Foote)
This entire week will be dedicated to sharing our stories about why we've decided to Smash the Scale this year. Why we've decided to separate our value as a human from the number on a scale. Why we've decided to define our OWN beauty and not buy into what others tell us we should be.
(Tabitha by Dominic Arizona)
Tabitha:
It all starts when I'm 5 and my mom asks me if I really need a second helping of food. Of course I need a second helping. I'm hungry, or at least I thought so at the time. My sister who was 2 years older than me was both shorter, thinner, and had a smaller frame than I did. So my mom, dad and my grandma thought that I was fat. Looking back on childhood photo album pictures I was not fat. I was a tall child that had a big butt. My sisters and I looked very different so I can see that next to them I was bigger but I wasn't fat. For a time I was mad at my parents and grandma for putting this hurtful thought into my head, for making me believe that I was less because I was more than average, than my sisters. But I recently realized that they too had been brain washed. Most likely by their parents and the same societal mentality that I fight today. The magazines, movies, models, celebrities, all assuring me at every glance at every turn that something is horribly wrong with me because I don't look just like them.
It's been an incredible journey to learn to love myself and to love my body, and it is a journey each and every day. Taking African dance helped me to connect to my body in a way that I never had before. I could explore what movement meant and felt like to me and not through a TV show of a "perfect" dancer. I also around the same time chose to do a nude photo shoot. Not for anyone else but just for me. I can honestly say that taking off my clothes in front of a camera was one of the scariest things I've ever done in my life! It was also one of the most powerful and exhilarating things I've ever done as well. Over a year and a half ago I started to meet women that would openly talk about this illusion of a "perfect" body and that were everyday demonstrating that they could and did love themselves as they are and what's even more amazing is everyone else too. It's terrible to hate yourself. But in a way I think it's even worse to hate each other for being or not being this false illusion that "the world" demands of us. If we love ourselves as we are, then we can love our brothers and sister just as they are too. That my friends is a powerful thing. I'm Smashing the Scale this year for love. To break the illusion and free us to love ourselves and each other just as the exquisite wonderful amazing people that we truly are.
(Katy by Danni Valdez)
Katy:
Growing up, I was always skinny; tall and skinny, just like my dad. We had one scale in the house and it was old; we would joke that it was at least 10 lbs off (heavy or light would just depend on your mood). As i got older, I got taller and stayed the same weight. I kept getting taller ( as in 6 ft and more taller) and my stagnant weight kept me feeling small and petite next to my friends who I saw as such. At the late blooming age of 21, I (FINALLY) filled out and got boobs and a butt. With them though, came a number on the scale that I wasn't used to. I loved my new "womanliness" but hated the higher number that kept getting higher and higher. I'm Smashing the Scale this year because as much as I believe a number doesn't define me, I'm still a prisoner to my brain telling me "that's a big number". I need to learn to listen to my body and what it needs, and I certainly don't need a scale to tell me if i'm healthy and happy.
(Leia by Lisa Foote)
Leia:
Flashback to my youth, I had always been skinny.
Effortlessly. My mother ALWAYS struggled with her weight. She would yo-yo as I
ate whatever I wanted. My Mom said she was the same way until she got older.
BOOM 30 hits! EERRRRRRRRRRTTTT! My metabolism slows way down. Then, I decided
to have two children in 3 years. My body definitely changed. I gained a lot of
weight. Many reasons contributed to this. As my weight went up, myself worth
plummeted. I began to care less and less what I looked like leaving the house.
I stopped wearing makeup. I started calling myself a sea cow floating off in
life. I no longer wanted to have sex with my husband, not only because I was
tired, but because I felt so unattractive. I felt like a worthless lazy piece
of human garbage. What a bunch of bologna. I don’t mean to toot my own horn,
but I work myself silly trying to be a good mother.
I teach Sunday School at my church. I orchestrate family
gatherings that take time off my lifespan. I volunteer enough to irritate my husband
because he never gets any time to himself or with me. Right now I am in a
constant battle with my body AND my mind. Unfortunately I let society influence
me in how I view my worth. I have recently lost about 20lbs with lots of
running and a reduced calorie intake. It has been hard, but rewarding. I feel
great, men seem to take longer looks at me, I care what I look like, and the
sea cow is no longer in my vocabulary. So, why smash a scale? Because I don’t
want to associate my worth with my weight. It is malarkey! Malarkey I tell ya!
Why do I let my physical appearance dominate my self esteem so much? How do I
change the way I have thought for years and years? That fat people are lazy and
just have exercise. That only skinny people are attractive. Again, malarkey.
I know this is a bunch of poo poo and I am working on
changing it. Jes sure is on to something. I support her movement in any way I
can. So, when she says we get to beat on something that has given me so much
grief, I JUMP TO ACTION. I laid waste to scales with my bowling ball “Johnny”.
It sure felt good. One thing I screamed as I wailed on one particular scale was
“What the f%ck!?” SLAM. “I worked so hard!” WHACK. “I GAINED a pound!” SMASH. I
swore in my flashback to so many times I had worked out only to gain weight. I
was sore the next day. Not only my arms from the destruction I inflicted, but
from the permagrin I had during the whole time. Jes’s conference is something I
am so excited to attend. I hope it helps me open my eyes and re-write my way of
thinking about weight. I like to think that I am a work in progress. Jes is
paving the way to a better me. An added bonus, I met and made friends with some
very strong women. Strength that dominates their minds and bodies. As I looked
around I felt so honored to be associated with such a variety of ladies who all
had different talents and qualities. This is why I’m Smashing the Scale this
year. Holy smokes! I think I am a feminist.
-------------------
We want you to join in!
There are multiple ways to do so:
There are multiple ways to do so:
1.) Blog about it, and share your link on The Body Love Conference Facebook. I will also share on The Militant Baker's Facebook and keep an updated roster at the end of this post
2.) Share your story on The Body Love Conference Facebook or in the comments here on this blog. Post it on our wall or post below! We want to read and share both on The Body Love Conference FB and The Militant Baker's. We want you to have a platform in which to announce your mission.
3.) Create your own image with our simple PNG overlay. Instructions on how to do so here. Post it to our wall so we can share this as well!
4.) Tweet and tag @BodyLoveConf. Hashtag the shit outta your posts with #SmashTheScale. Instagram us here.
This is a resolution revolution and we want you to be part of it.
(Photo by Lisa Foote)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We can't thank our incredible photographers enough: Liora K, Dominic Arizona, Danni Valdez, and Lisa Foote.
You can also purchase a 2014 Smash the Scale calendar here!
You can also purchase a 2014 Smash the Scale calendar here!
No comments