Anorexia

I don't look at someone who is skinny and judge them for being skinny. I am familiar enough with anorexia, seeing as it affected/affects my little sister and a few of my close girl friends, to know the other signs that show its present and not simply a body type. And it cannot be ignored. 

Each person who struggles with this illness has made a choice in the past and fought to create the habit of depriving the body of the nutrients it needs to be alive and active. They are surely struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts, for slowly but surely they are killing themselves. They feel completely guilty if they eat something, for it shows a lack of willpower and a plea for life. 

THIS DISEASE DESERVES NO SYMPATHY. Do not attack a person who is ill with it. But the disease must be attacked, for it is taking away the possibility of that person truly living their dreams. They do not have the energy, the stamina, the clarity of thought to move forward towards their life goals. They could be someone, they could be themselves, but they have given themselves to the demons of anorexia and this will determine their future. My sister had to sleep away half her day in order to have enough energy to do her chores on the farm and hang out with her friends. Sometimes she had enough energy to ride horses, after she had snuck in the house and raided the ice cream. She has so many gifts, and during her most intense time of illness she could produce only a quarter of those things, and that only because her willpower failed her in moments. One of my dearest friends was anorexic for 7 years when I met her. In our movement classes in college she would turn gray and nearly pass out. She had to sit out for 90% of our practices and 25% of our classes. Our teacher knew she was ill and gave her ultimatums. Because of these ultimatums and the respect my friend had for our teacher, whom she knew had her best interests in mind, she was halfway to recovery a year later and completely weaned off all of her antidepressants. 

My little sister is now almost fully recovered herself, due to this same amazing teacher, and I think, I say humbly, also myself because of our own bond and connection. I do not sympathize with her excuses or take no for an answer when I ask her to join me for a healthy meal. This feeds the illness. 

Again, I emphasize that it is not that a skinny body is in any way ugly that one should "criticize" anorexia. It is all the power that it is weilding over the individual that must be fought courageously. We can do this, together. 

I love you all, fat, thin, muscular, in between. And you all deserve life. 

Agricultural Change & Awareness: from a fit perspective

The world, one could say, is a little bit of a mess right now. There's a lot going on and much of it is not very pretty. In the world of agriculture, this hasn't been pretty for awhile, but with more and more people becoming interested in where their food comes from and what nutrient value it has, there is potential for positive change. In Essex, New York, on the shores of Lake Champlain, one organic farm has grown it's family to over 200 members who are part of a CSA (community supported agriculture) model, and because of its popularity (helped by the farmer Kristin Kimball's book, The Dirty Life) more small organic farms have sprung up all over that area of northeastern New York, operated by young people, some of whom used to have occupations as lawyers or travel writers. 

Suddenly food is important again. And it is. The fitness world knows it. We derive our cognitive and physical capacities from health, which is supported by enough nourishment and enough sleep. Therefore movements like this one in New York are important to all of us. If food wasn't so mass produced, perhaps it would hold more nutrient value and we could take fewer vitamins and supplements, for the plants and the animal products that we ate potentially would hold more of them for us. 

Each of us can look in our own backyard. Perhaps there's a small farm, or a garden space, that we can take hold of or be a part of. It actually can save on the cost of groceries, which stops many people from being able to buy organic or biodynamic foods. And these steps could make one part of our crazy world picture today, a little less crazy. Community and food and fitness-they fit together.