EARLIER THIS WEEK, YOUTUBE SUGGESTED THIS JILLIAN MICHALES VIDEO TO ME. SO I WATCHED IT.

ACCORDING TO JILLIAN MICHALES, NO, YOU CANNOT BE OVERWEIGHT AND HEALTHY.

WELL, TODAY, I RAN 8 MILES MAINTAINING AN AVERAGE PACE OF 8 MINUTES 31 SECONDS. (NOT THAT PACE IS AN INDICATION OF HEALTH BUT YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES IT’S NICE TO THROW A NICE MIDDLE FINGER AT ALL THE PACE SHAMERS AND KEYBOARD WARRIORS WHO INSIST THAT IF YOU LOSE WEIGHT YOU’LL RUN FASTER. SIT DOWN. SHUT UP.)

According to the scale this morning after my run, I am 180.4 pounds.

Which, according to any BMI chart (which have been debunked as bullshit and a TERRIBLE indicator of health yet most doctors and health professionals still refer to it. WHY? Let’s come up with something better, shall we?) I am overweight.

I have a resting heart rate of 37.

I run 5 days a week.

I spin 1-2 days a week.

I strength train 2 days a week.

I eat really, really well.

I do all of this not because I want to lose weight, but because I like how I feel when I eat well, get enough sleep, and when I’m active regularly.

I like how running makes me feel. I do some of my best brainstorming, problem-solving, and creative thinking when I’m running or walking. I work for myself and I live in New York City. I spend a lot of my time really overwhelmed and stressed about making ends meet and running is one of the ways I blow off steam. Running makes me feel confident. And I LOVE the friendships and community that running and the Badass Lady Gang have given me.

I like feeling strong.

I am strong. I am healthy. And I am happy.

The problem isn’t, “Can you be healthy and overweight”. The problem is that the chart you’re trying to measure people’s health by was never correct, to begin with. The system is broken and I’m really, really tired of watching people be shamed for their weight.

Health is not a look. It’s a lifestyle.

I’m tired of this charade. It’s infuriating that we are still allowing health professionals to shame people for their weight. I’m tired of athletic companies not showing athletes of all sizes. Your worth is not tied to your waist size. Your weight is just a number.

The sooner we can all start to understand that the poison punch we’re all being served is making us sick, the sooner we will see real change.

HEALTH IS NOT A LOOK. ITS A LIFESTYLE.

SAY IT AGAIN. AND AGAIN. AND AGAIN.

STOP FOLLOWING PEOPLE WHO ARE SERVING POISON PUNCH.

It’s time we see real change. It’s time we stop living in fear of what the number on the scale says.

Throw your scale away. Move and get active because of how it makes you feel. Strong. Confident. Joyful. Creative. Driven. Proud. Exhausted. Accomplished. Eat well because you deserve it. Because when you fuel your body well, you perform and feel well.

I know it’s a privilege to eat well. Do what you can.

But fuck BMI. Fuck “overweight”. And fuck anyone who tries to serve you poison punch.