Did You Diet?

Rihanna can’t stop talking about her recent “mysterious” weight loss. First she told Ryan Seacrest she was baffled by her newly-slim figure. Now, she’s told Us Weekly that she’s “not happy” with her size 0 frame, and that she “went way too far.” Which some people may see as body-positive–she misses her curves! She wants her old butt back! But it’s not. It is, in fact, the opposite of that. It’s time for Ri-Ri to off the “mystery weight loss” train and set a more positive example–or seek help.

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I love Rihanna. I think she is beautiful at any size. I love how bold she is on Twitter and that she doesn’t take crap. I love her daring outfits and her powerful voice. I love that she doesn’t back down from critics. But I don’t love that she’s participating in this rubbish about “accidental” weight loss, and missing her curves. She has the power to do something about it, to be a positive role model, if she so chooses. She may not want to. That’s fine. She doesn’t have to apologize to anyone about her weight. She doesn’t have to say anything about it if she doesn’t want to–but she keeps doing it. She can’t stop explaining it away. And that’s where it gets problematic.

Because here’s the thing about “mystery” weight loss: it’s crap. Barring a parasite or serious disease (which, if that’s what she’s struggling with, I’m sure her fans would like to know and would be supportive), suddenly dropping 30 pounds is not really a thing–especially not for celebs who can afford to see the best doctors and get it straightened out. And yet, much like Models Eating Syndrome, it persists in a faux body-positivity that is super-harmful to women.

Mystery weight loss is what happens when starlets and pop singers who very clearly are trying to lose weight (due to an eating disorder, or pressure from the industry, the media, their own expectations for themselves, or, in Rihanna’s case, their parents) want to be as slender as their business expects them to be, but also want continue to seem “normal” and body-positive. Instead of admitting that we live in a culture that demands thinness, they play it off as some act of God, as a fluke. They love their curves! They miss their old weight! They can’t believe how unhappy being skinny makes them! It was an accident! Stars: they’re just like us! They accidentally go from a size 6 to a size 0 without any work at all!

Except they don’t–and neither do real women. This kind of attitude essentially tells women that there are two kinds of people: those who magically shed weight when they are busy, and those who don’t. Which pretty much negates the efforts of all the women who are putting in the work–trying to get healthy, trying to hit the gym a few times a week, trying to eat better–and not losing weight. It’s discouraging, it’s unrealistic, and it’s unhelpful.

I understand that she has a hectic schedule, and that it’s hard to get enough healthy calories if, say, you’re dancing for hours a day. But if Rihanna–or any other celebrity–really wanted to adopt a healthy diet and work toward achieving a happy, healthy weight, she could hire someone to travel with her and ensure that she ate right and slept enough. But instead, she is presenting her weight loss as an accident, and sending the wrong message to women.

And if she’s taken the “mystery weight loss” route because she’s really being plagued by an eating disorder or other kind of mental duress, then I sincerely hope she sets an example for women who are similarly struggling, and seeks help. From blisstree.

Tags: Celebrity Diets, Celebrity Weight Loss, Did You Diet, didyoudiet, Diets, Rihanna, weight loss

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 14th, 2012 at 11:06 am and is filed under Did You Diet?. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.