jedusor: (neuron art)
jedusor ([personal profile] jedusor) wrote2012-10-01 10:10 am
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An e-mail I just sent my weight training teacher

First of all, I want to say that I've been enjoying your weight training course immensely. Your teaching style meshes well with my learning style, and I've started actively looking forward to classes, which is saying a lot for an 8am start time. The issue I want to address here isn't actually a big deal for me personally; I just want to speak up on behalf of people with less comfortable body images than mine (which I think is most people) who might be negatively affected by a conversation like the one we had today.

I don't normally spend much time tooting the health-at-every-size horn, because I understand that for most people, health gain is correlated with at least some weight loss. And I have no objections to full-class discussions of how weight training affects body weight, because it's relevant information and because I know that a lot of people do have weight-loss goals and are particularly interested in hearing that sort of thing. But when someone tells you in a one-on-one conversation that their goals are strictly strength-oriented and they're not there to lose weight, and you keep saying, "yeah, but the weight loss is a bonus!", that sends a message I don't think you're trying to send.

As I'm sure you're aware, being as physiologically focused as you are, different people have different healthy body weights. I spent a year commuting 18-30 miles a week on my bike, and I was much healthier and stronger, but my body didn't look any different. And I was fine with that; as I said, I have a good relationship with my body. I care about what it can do, not what it's shaped like. But most people my size aren't as comfortable in their skin as I am, and hearing reassurances that exercise will result in weight loss when it might not can be very discouraging for them, especially when our culture is so singlemindedly focused on weight over any other measure of health.

Like I said, I don't normally bother trying to talk to people about this stuff. But you're a teacher, and you have a lot of power when it comes to people's mindsets. So if you have another student who's trying to shed the pressure and focus on the pounds they can pick up instead of the pounds they've lost, I hope you'll keep this in mind.

Thanks for listening, and I'll see you Wednesday!

[identity profile] 42itous.livejournal.com 2012-10-01 05:25 pm (UTC)(link)
Well said, and well said.

[identity profile] mamagotcha.livejournal.com 2012-10-01 06:55 pm (UTC)(link)
*beams with pride*

[identity profile] mamagotcha.livejournal.com 2012-10-01 06:57 pm (UTC)(link)
May I share this please?

[identity profile] jedusor.livejournal.com 2012-10-01 07:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Sure. Anything public is fine to link. :)

[identity profile] hahathor.livejournal.com 2012-10-01 08:27 pm (UTC)(link)
You rock so damned hard!

(Anonymous) 2012-10-01 09:49 pm (UTC)(link)
You are SO awesome!

Serene on Dreamwidth, WINOLJ

[identity profile] canadianpuzzler.livejournal.com 2012-10-02 01:36 am (UTC)(link)
I would that everyone out there were so gracious.

[identity profile] metaphortunate.livejournal.com 2012-10-02 04:28 am (UTC)(link)
That is awesome! I hope they can take it onboard.

[identity profile] jedusor.livejournal.com 2012-10-02 05:18 am (UTC)(link)
He responded respectfully and apologetically. I don't think the concept of less fat not always being desirable quite permeated his bodybuilder worldview, but he seemed to get the part about different students having different priorities and the importance of his ability to recognize their goals and support them as an instructor, which is functionally what I wanted to accomplish. And he complimented the tone of the e-mail, which makes me feel good about my ability to employ tact when necessary. That's never been one of my strengths. :P

You remind me of the bearded Sikh gal...

[identity profile] lara7.livejournal.com 2012-10-02 08:45 am (UTC)(link)
...in that you could have been confrontational, but instead, you were awesome. Kudos.

I haven't had a scale now for 4 weeks but I can tell I'm toning up because of how my clothes fit. I have no idea what I weigh but I feel stronger (I hike a 40 degree driveway up and down every day and I can finally do it without getting winded) and ironically, I feel the best about my size 16 body as I ever did when I was smaller and still trying to lose weight.

8am class?! Man, you must REALLY want this. :-)

[identity profile] magickal-tara.livejournal.com 2012-10-03 03:50 am (UTC)(link)
I think it's awesome you took the time to do this. As someone with body issues, I know that even a careless comment can trigger problems. So thank you.