Assalamu `alaykum,

So everytime I’m in the check-out line at Albertsons, I see magazine after magazine about celebrities and their lives. Sometimes the headlines refer to so-and-so doing drugs or another person who just got divorced, but recently there’s been a trend of weight loss stories. It seems like all of these celebrities feel the need to get to the point where they’re so thin that their bones start sticking out. I’m all for being a healthy human being, I mean we’re supposed to take care of our bodies, right? But I feel like as these celebrity weight loss stories gain more and more coverage, our standards of what an “okay weight” is continue to become more and more strict.

Transformation after transformation is engrained into our head, so much that we believe that Hollywood is reality. No doubt these people are real and are living in this world, but they’re also getting paid for being in the spotlight and for what their bodies look like. Show business isn’t exactly an area you head into if you’re preaching about everyone’s inner beauty. It’s a part of their actual job to have a certain body, good skin, etc. However, just because the media is beginning to focus on the external so much does not mean we should follow suit.

Like I said, it’s totally fine to want to be healthy and to want to be fit. However, like everything, there is a limit. You don’t want to get to the point where you’re so thin that it becomes unhealthy for you. Just because the average size in Hollywood is a zero does not mean that it isn’t okay for you to be more than that. Unfortunately, I really feel that that’s one of the major problems for women today. They feel this immense pressure to look like those women portrayed on T.V. (the models, etc), but why? Who said that that is the way women should look? Why do we think we are judged from the outside-in versus the inside-out?

Our purpose in this life is not to look beautiful or to be the thinnest human beings ever. And I speak for myself first before anyone else because I know that I’ve definitely felt that pressure before. I’ve definitely stressed out about the size of my thighs or what size jeans I wear. I understand that unfortunately it is a part of living in this world that people tend to judge you often just by your appearance. However, we should all remember that no one can truly judge us except Allah (swt). And by whose Mercy are we in this dunya? Who are we working to please here? The answer should be Allah (swt) and nothing else.

Again, I’m not saying that being fit is a bad thing. It’s a wonderful thing, and we should all try to stay in shape. My qualm is with the fact that so often these changes we want to make about ourselves are not for the sake of Allah (swt). Many people want to get in shape just because they want to impress so-and-so significant other or because they’re afraid of what people say behind their backs. If you’re doing it just for the sake of impressing someone, chances are you won’t really be making a lifestyle change as opposed to a quick drastic change to try and get fit in time for him. But also, backbiting is not permitted in Islam, and if you don’t like the way someone looks, then keep it to yourself. Don’t think that you’re superior to someone just because he is not by societal standards nowadays the most beautiful person. Only Allah (swt) knows where our true beauty lies.

Another thing that I just want to mention is that, if you’re doing it for the right reasons, getting into shape becomes so much easier. If you’re doing it to show your thankfulness and appreciation for the blessed body that Allah (swt) has given to you, your methods to become fit can become a form of `ibadah. Imagine that! Even when you’re working out or being active or eating healthier, you can be worshipping Allah (swt) and gaining a reward for that. I don’t know about you, but I think that’s pretty tight. Getting in shape AND getting reward from Allah (swt) is some way nice multitasking. Of course, your intention has to be pure, though.

Basically, because I know I got lost in my rambling, this society has implanted in our brains that in order to fit in, we need to be these skinny creatures that are wasting away. For some reason, it’s becoming a trend, and people judge you solely based on your weight. However, first of all, they have no right to judge you because that right is only Allah’s. Also, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being different, with not conforming to that image. There are no specified guidelines for what is beautiful and what is not because someone’s outer beauty may have no match against your inner beauty. Have confidence in yourself, and be thankful for what you have! Stop dwelling on your flaws all the time and becoming sad about that, embrace and thank God for the thousands of privileges you do have. Your weight is something that can be changed at any time with some effort, and if you’re doing it to show appreciation for the body that Allah (swt) gave you, not only will it be easier to get back in shape, but it will bring you a reward. And come on, who has the audacity to turn down a reward from Allah (swt)?!

Wasalammmm