June 16, 2010

the female body-type transition

this is something i ponder about a lot. i'm not completely sure why, i think it just baffles my mind. girls are so insecure about themselves nowaday that it's almost hard not to think about. we're surrounded by 'cookie cutter' celebrities no matter where we go. but then i think... famous women, or rather the mass opinion of 'perfect' women in the past was the exact opposite of now. (a lot of people don't understand what i am talking about when explaining this... so just bare with me, i'll have some photos for examples.) all of the scarlets, pin-ups, and popular girls from let's say the 1940s-early 60's had this unbelievable hour-glass figure. slim waste, big hips, smaller breasts, huge bottom, thunder thighs, and skinny arms. even though marilyn monroe was a size twelve she was still healthy and thin... but thick and muscular. her thickness was not fat. the body types i have realized now are either very skinny flat boards (almost resembling a younger boy), or unhealthy looking thick... like mine currently, but if i was built the same way as the women back then i would not have a problem with my size. however, it's like our bone/body structure just changed. could it have been all the valium and cigarettes women started consuming? what changed? do you have any theories? a popular meal those days was a malt, coca cola, and a burger... and i miss my burgers.





















































i'll conclude this post with this statement,
LOVE YOURSELF. everyone has their own definitions of beauty or 'perfection.' i would trade my looks for talent or giving unconditional love any day. "to love oneself is the beginning of a life-long romance” - oscar wilde

15 comments:

  1. The roll of a woman has changed since the 1940's and the 1960's. Lives are moving faster than what they once did. War was also going on during the era and during that time the women had to take on many of the rolls men usually did. Our foods have changed too because of the increase in demand farmers have figured out how to enhance our milk and vegetables and meats. Things that we don't need keep us in our seats (computers, tv, phones, etc...) When was the last time you saw some kids playing a non organized baseball game.... We live in a different time and as things progress so will our tastes in men and woman... that popular meal that you talk of was not an everyday treat though... you didnt have a 12 pack of coke with a gallon of ice cream and burger in your fridge like we can and do now.... that was for a special occasion...now everyday is a special occasion idk i could go on

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  2. that is a great explanation jmjjnco. thanks so much for sharing. it's all so true!

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  3. the other thing that has changed dramatically is SUGAR! back in the 40s-60s they used mostly granulated sugar and now it's all high fructose corn syrup. trans fats i've also heard are like a molecule away from plastic and if it's under 1 gram, food producers don't have to list it on the nutritional value chart!

    now-a-days food is all about more and faster which actually makes it a lot less healthy, even the good stuff!

    a good book to check out about many of these issues regarding our food, cosmetics, health, etc. is Ellen Sandbeck's Green Barbarians. soooo many good things to know, and she's a local gal too!

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  4. i just might have to! i've been meaning to build up a book collection, thanks. :)

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  5. I think that you are underestimating how much your viewing of the media (as a measure of what is normal or average) affects your perception of reality. The types of bodies you see or are celebrated is all that has changed. The culture has merely lost it's aesthetic appreciation of the female body, and focuses only on one body type: thin with medium to small breasts and slight butt (i.e. a juvinile). It can become so distorted that fake breasts receive more praise than the real ones. As if that exhibits what an ideal breast looks like, not one with weight or fat.

    Women haven't changed, our representations have.

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  6. the examples posted are only celebrities because that is what most people follow/can relate to. that is what's 'in.' my mind is not clouded by that. i can walk the streets and say i wouldn't find one figure like the one's i enjoy, or miss. i personally believe we've just lost our hips. that's just my opinion, and mainly what this post was about... our hips! but yes, our views have changed, and times have changed... the media is in a way brainwashing girls at early ages. they are simply following. there are even support sites for anorexia and bulimia. when i heard about those i did my research and cried at what i saw, feeling bad for the girls who have such intense problems. after that i did a project on self image issues. trust me, i do not think that what we see in the media should be perceived as normal. but i now see it wherever i go. i just believe that everyone should love themselves unconditionally, inside and out. and if it takes a tit job for them to do so, so be it.

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  7. i take the classic look

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  8. She was a size 12 back then, the sizes have changed quite drastically over the years.

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  9. Beauty is what is difficult - back in the days of old (several hundred years ago), the difficulty was gaining weight as food was difficult to come by.

    Food is easily purchased and consumed now - women who are in yoga classes or other various other cardio programs are the most beautiful because most women/men have let themselves go - the more difficult the process the more attractive humanity sees the result.

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  10. last anonymous, very true.

    my ex teaches multiple yoga classes, we were just talking about the 'yoga booty.' mmm! ;)

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  11. All I can say is that the way woman's bodies were back in the day are WAY better then woman's bodies today

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  12. Im sorry but they seem to decrease in natural attributes and curves..

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  13. What's really interesting is that scientifically, decreased body fat, across the board actually increases the health levels of a human. The caloric intake a person takes in the longer that person will actually live - all to a point, negating those which display anorexic attributes. So some may say that women "back in the day" were more attractive because they were more curvy - the reality is that they also died a lot sooner and lost their beauty much faster. Humans that eat a reduced caloric diet and exercise often are the healthiest and most lively emotionally. There is also something incredibly endearing with people that spend a lot of time shaping their bodies. It takes a great deal of determination and self control, two qualities that show real strength - and beauty.

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  14. i completely agree with you. i am going to miss my beer gut. but getting on the routine to work out and stay healthy overall is something i've just got to do. a lot of girls my age start losing themselves. i cannot be one of them. ambition and dedication baby!

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