To think ‘big body positivity’ is a thing of the past now?

[Cheeseandpicklecob]

I’ll start off by saying I’m a big girl - currently in a calorie deficit.

I have noticed a trend, particularly since weight loss jabs became a ‘thing’ that not as many people are on about big being beautiful and body positivity anymore.

Lots of current and previously big people, such as myself, are now desperate to lose weight with the jab or on a calorie deficit journey (or both).

I just guess I find it interesting, now that it’s a real possibility for the obese and overweight community, the ‘body positivity at any size’ is heading out of the window.

I have not noticed that trend amongst the body positive people I know or follow.

I think there was an article about this in one of the papers over the weekend; maybe The Times? Also the view that the heroin chic look of the 1990s was gradually starting to come back into fashion.

Yes, most of the "body positive" influencers that I used to see on Instagram are half the size they be used to be. Seems they weren't "fattily every after" after all!

I have definitely noticed a pendulum swing towards skinny being the desirable body type and the aim seems to be to do whatever you can to achieve that skinny body type.

It seems to go in cycles though, so no doubt there will be some push back against it at some point.

The thing is that most people I meet irl seem to have fairly sensible views on weight loss ATM. I hope that doesn't change to how it was in the 90s with all the slimming clubs etc.

I hadn’t given it much thought until reading your post OP but you’re right, you used to see a lot more body positivity stuff in the media 5-10 yrs ago than you do now. It’s like it’s slowly and quietly disappearing

I think so yes. I think a lot of the body positivity used to come from obese ladies that were unable to lose weight, now with injections it’s becoming easier and more accessible and achievable for them, with the weight loss they have probably found they actually feel better, have less aches and pains, better health and health outcomes so the “positive” aspect seems to disappear. It’s also hard to be a hypocrite I guess?

It wouldn’t surprise me. To be brutally honest, I don’t think people were ever authentically big body positive. I think it was/is a defence mechanism to mean they don’t need to accept reality and make changes. The denial that it’s unhealthy to be overweight was/is utterly ludicrous.

Now there’s an easy way to lose weight, they’re all over it.

Im not blaming them by the way, its hard to stay a healthy weight in todays world, im just being truthful that I think the body positivity movement was never a real concept, it was just a cover up.

Yanbu, it's finished 😞

I haven’t seen any swing towards “skinny” ideals. I think there’s a big move towards wanting to be healthy. Being within ideal BMI ranges.

Being healthy without excess weight should always be the goal (I’ve watched diabetes ruin lives in my family)

Weight loss injections have been revolutionary in making losing weight easier and achievable, people are seeing real life remarkable results and realising how happy and confident slimming makes you feel.

I truly believe the ‘body positivity movement’ was often stealthily championed by the food industry and big pharma who stood to financially benefit from obesity, it also played into the mass psyche of the # Netflix & chill-shapewear-influencer Gen Z lifestyle phenomenon, making overweight people (girls mainly) feel seen meant they were more inclined to buy makeup and clothes just as much as their skinnier counterparts.

I read about this in the i newspaper over the weekend.

A lot of these body positivity people are suddenly spending a lot of time filming themselves at the gym presumably to avoid suspicion of using weight loss jabs when they start dropping weight. It’s all a bit sad really.
I use weight loss jabs. I’m a lot more positive about my body and feel more comfortable. Luckily I’ve never pretended to like being overweight. It must be tough for them if they’ve built a brand/ following on it.

Yes, you share the views of most people I know irl. Being healthy without excess weight should be the goal as should not developing diabetes if you can help it obviously. That's a sensible and normal opinion to have.

But online people can go very extreme in either direction and skinny is trending if you have a quick Google. You don't have to believe me though

What do you google to find current weight trends? Why are you googling about weight?

Do grown women usually care? I’m nearly 40 and couldn’t care less what social media pumps out.

Im the size I am. If im not happy with it, I try to amend it. That’s a far as it goes for me. I’m too busy working, running a household, caring for kids and parents to be googling what people think about weight in 2025.

I’ve noticed “snag” brand are all for promoting obese women

Try "is being very slim trending 2025"? Editing to add that I didn't need to Google as I noticed the trend and also saw various articles and videos mentioning it. You didn't believe that it was a trend so I suggested Google to you (not to me - I don't need to Google it)

Do grown women care? Yes, a lot of them do!

I agree with you though. I think people place a lot of value on weight and that's where both extremes come from. You get people online calling celebrities fat when they gain weight even thought they're still well within the healthy bmi range and also people who are very, very overweight being told that's fine and that intentional weight loss is evil etc.

If everyone could calm down about weight and treat it like any other health marker, it would be a lot less stressful.

Fat positivity (different to body positivity) is a way of making peace with the difficulty of losing weight and the seeming inevitability of remaining obese once you've become so. It's better to accept your obesity and live with it than to hate yourself for it, goes the thinking. However now that being obese is not inevitable and recovery is not only possible but easy, the requirement to be positive about being obese is no longer urgent. Of course lots of fat positivity creators are going to lose weight now and remove themselves from that space. The movement will adapt by necessity. That's not a bad thing - much of fat positivity rhetoric is really toxic.

I think though, that featuring obese models isn't necessarily promoting a body positive agenda. Obese women still need to wear clothes. There are a lot of obese women in this country and all western countries. Are they meant to just not shop for new clothes ever? Snag make tights don't they? It is hardly haute couture! So I think it's quite helpful that they show models of varying sizes.

I think it's good that it's over, or at least coming to an end.
I hated all that body positivity about being obese.
It's so, so unhealthy to be obese.
I don't care what it looks like to be heavily overweight.
But I care that body positivity for being overweight and obese was saying to people "It's ok to increase your risk of diabetes, CVD, stroke, cancer. And to increase your symptoms of asthma, COPD, arthritis which are all made worse by being heavily overweight. It's all good. It's positive. Let's celebrate keeping our bodies in a permanent state of unhealthiness".
We are not designed to be overweight.
It should never have been celebrated and pushed as body positivity.
I found the whole thing surreal and bizarre.

I've been overweight most of my adult life, and diabetes bit me on the backside aged 40. Since diagnosis, I've lost 5 stone through a complete diet overhaul (can't eat carbs at all) and am still fucking diabetic, which sucks, but being overweight is nothing positive. I was miserable, tired, I could never buy clothes that I actually liked - and if the body "positivity" movement fucks off, it's not a bad thing in my opinion. I do find the whole weight loss jab thing equally unappealing however - I'm buggered if I'd inject myself with them and I'm a diabetic ie the people they're aimed at.

Came here to say the exact same thing.
Beauty standards do seem to be a bit of a pendulum swing.

I remember when the Kate Moss-esque “heroin chic” look was the desirable look, and that dragged on for the best part of a decade. One of my prevailing memories from that time is when Jessica Simpson played Daisy Duke in the Dukes of Hazzard remake. She openly said she made herself ill by losing a lot of weight in a short amount of time for that role. Then she had a baby, and her body did all the normal things a body does when it’s growing a person, and her first public performance after giving birth she looked incredible. There’s a picture of her wearing high-waisted jeans, a lack tank top and a leopard print belt and I think she looks amazing. She was carrying more weight than when she was in Dukes of Hazzard, but she looked healthy, with a bum I’d kill for…….but the press in the mid-2000’s absolutely DRAGGED her 🫠 Saying how disgustingly fat she was etc.
But then less than 10 years later? The curvy, Kim Kardashian body-type then became the look everyone was striving for!
Now it seems to be happening again - curves are out and heroin-chic is back in?!!!

I’ve not got the wherewithal to do the mental gymnastics to figure it out anymore 🤷🏻‍♀️🫠
For many years, I was very underweight and unwell as a result. I am now in the healthy weight range for my height, I buy clothes that flatter my body type and that’s good enough for me.

Curves aren't out and heroin chic is not back. Healthy, strong, 'slim thick', actually curvy is still the beauty standard. Nobody is aspiring to be skinny as the beauty standard. Actually with WLI being so prevalent there is far more talk of muscle, protein and health around bodies than there has been for a while. In the 90s nobody was considering strength and health, it was all about looking skinny. We are never going to go back there, we know too much!

Nope. I see people.now trying to be healthy and are aiming to love themselves regardless of what weight they are. Everyone at any size is deserving of love, respect and kindness. Not to mention nice clothes and nice things for themselves. I see much more body positive advertising. Ads such as venus, dove, adidas are focusing on how people can feel good at any size. It doesn't mean being overweight is the best thing for you and doing nothing about being overweight, it's about realising your worth regardless of your weight.

I reckon skinny is coming back in.

The biggest flex is being toned/fit and slim mind.

I have a couple of very large friends who were on the positivity bandwagon. It certainly helped them feel better about themselves but one did quietly admit that she wanted to lose weight but felt she'd be dropped by her friends if seen to be trying.

Large people certainly shouldn't beat themselves up, but pretending it's an alternative lifestyle choice is crazy imo.

Anyway yes they have said its fading fast and many of the influences they followed have lost loads of weight. They are both considering WLI.

I do think people have a warped idea of what a normal body weight is now though. There are many posts on here about 'skinny' women in ads who look perfectly healthy.