# Ug. Maybe Media DOES want women to be too skinny.
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [May 2, 2007, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492 "2007-05-02T17:19:05Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 6
### Author:  [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/101 "2007-05-03T18:57:09Z")
She did look a little poured into her dress [when she sang happy Brithday for JFK](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_4QeDS212c) but there is no way I would call her fat.
Here is a picture from the [rear](http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/3a/Happybirthdaymonroe.jpg/150px-Happybirthdaymonroe.jpg&imgrefurl=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Birthday,_Mr._President&h=224&w=150&sz=19&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=ROs5bSbYDztXZM:&tbnh=108&tbnw=72&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmarilyn%2Bmonroe%2B%252Bbirthday%26ndsp%3D18%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DN).
I’d hit that. 😃
---
### Author:  [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/102 "2007-05-03T19:11:41Z")
Marilyn Monroe was 5’2" and 117 pounds, which by today’s standards _would_ be considered overweight, certainly in La-La Land.
For an average frame, a woman is supposed to weigh 100 pounds for five feet and then five pounds for every inch above five feet. I read this somewhere, so it must be true.
For my money, though, [MM](http://www.korschmin.com/albums/halsman/Marilyn_Monroe.sized.jpg) is _still_ the greatest Hollywood sex symbol of all time. No competition.
---
### Author:  [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/103 "2007-05-03T19:11:50Z")
[QUOTE=tremorviolet]
I think the whole debate over legs touching is bizarre. It depends so much more on your body type than anything else (although I’m not debating that enough weight will make any thighs touch).
[/QUOTE]
Ditto. I’m not exactly enormous and my thighs have always touched. Even when I was under 100 lbs (I’m 5’8") my thighs touched. I think it depends on how your pelvic girdle is arranged.
---
### Author:  [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/104 "2007-05-03T19:28:20Z")
Statements regarding witholding lunches from people like MM for a month or working out and not eating lunch are incredibly troubling to me. Am I the only one who thinks those types of statements are scary??? You can have a salad with red wine vinegar or cut the mayo out of your tuna-there are a zillion ways to cut calories rather than talking about snatching the food out from under someone’s nose for a month like they’re a naughty dog (incredibly freaking arrogant statement to make regarding another human being). For the love of gods, the frogs are some of the daintiest people on the face of the earth and they still eat and spend all their time talking about it too.
I am working on losing weight right now-I have about 11 pounds left to go and my La-La land based used-to-play-football-for-a-famous-socal-team multiple certifications $700-per-month trainer would kick my ass if I talked about not eating. You have to feed Seymour the right stuff, yes, reduce calories but cutting out entire meals is counterproductive. Eat a cup of gazpacho.
---
### Author:  [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/105 "2007-05-03T19:29:27Z")
[QUOTE=anu-la1979]
Statements regarding witholding lunches from people like MM for a month or working out and not eating lunch are incredibly troubling to me. Am I the only one who thinks those types of statements are scary???
[/QUOTE]
Nope.
---
### Author:  [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/106 "2007-05-03T19:45:33Z")
Coincidentally enough, here are scans from the esteemed medical journal, US magazine, concerning the ever growing gap between celebrities thighs.
[page 1](http://img140.imagevenue.com/view.php?image=77725_goalpost1_122_425lo.jpg), [page 2](http://img146.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=77726_goalpost2_122_1108lo.jpg) (scans courtesy of Livejournal community Oh No They Didn’t)
From the article:
Dr. Fred Pescatore, author of The Hamptoms Diet says that a 1/2" gap is ideal but “you can have your thighs touch and be healthy.”
Yeah, yeah, the science is sketchy but having your thighs touch also doesn’t indicate morbid obesity.
---
### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/107 "2007-05-03T20:10:54Z")
[QUOTE=anu-la1979]
Statements regarding witholding lunches from people like MM for a month or working out and not eating lunch are incredibly troubling to me. Am I the only one who thinks those types of statements are scary??? You can have a salad with red wine vinegar or cut the mayo out of your tuna-there are a zillion ways to cut calories rather than talking about snatching the food out from under someone’s nose for a month like they’re a naughty dog (incredibly freaking arrogant statement to make regarding another human being). For the love of gods, the frogs are some of the daintiest people on the face of the earth and they still eat and spend all their time talking about it too.
I am working on losing weight right now-I have about 11 pounds left to go and my La-La land based used-to-play-football-for-a-famous-socal-team multiple certifications $700-per-month trainer would kick my ass if I talked about not eating. You have to feed Seymour the right stuff, yes, reduce calories but cutting out entire meals is counterproductive. Eat a cup of gazpacho.
[/QUOTE]
I don’t know why you would see that as troubling. I see nothing wrong with wanting to be happy with one’s body. I don’t see anyone going to drastic measures here. People diet when they need to. They work out when they need to if they want to maintain a certain look. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with anyone.
---
### Author:  [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/108 "2007-05-03T20:20:25Z")
I don’t mean to judge anyone else’s body. I’m fat but I would never pull the “eat a sandwich” with someone thinner than average. I don’t even care if the feeling of your own thighs touching make you run to the gym and cut way back on food. _Just don’t tell me that **my** thighs touching means I have to do the same._
And I don’t see anyone doing that here. Any transference I make onto my own situation is my own doing.
---
### Author:  [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/109 "2007-05-03T20:20:36Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun]
I don’t know why you would see that as troubling. I see nothing wrong with wanting to be happy with one’s body. I don’t see anyone going to drastic measures here. People diet when they need to. They work out when they need to if they want to maintain a certain look. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with anyone.
[/QUOTE]
There’s nothing wrong with with wanting to be healthy & attractive.
There IS something wrong with talking about “withholding lunch” from somebody else because you see them as “chubby”.
---
### Author:  [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/110 "2007-05-03T20:20:57Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun]
I don’t know why you would see that as troubling. I see nothing wrong with wanting to be happy with one’s body. I don’t see anyone going to drastic measures here. People diet when they need to. They work out when they need to if they want to maintain a certain look. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with anyone.
[/QUOTE]
Suggesting that you would withhold lunch from Marilyn for a month was a tad over the top.
---
### Author:  [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/111 "2007-05-03T20:21:23Z")
Yes, I realise that. This morning I ran for 50 minutes. I had a salad with grilled chicken breast for lunch. Egg whites with a teaspoon of salsa fresca for brekkers. I’ve taken in about 500 calories max today and will end up with a sensible dinner. I never top 1200 per day so you needn’t give me the presumptuous “there ain’t nuttin’ wrong with bein’ healthy” attitude given that I probably work out more than your average american in one week than most do in a month. I’ve got a slow metabolism, I have to work harder, I don’t whine about it.
Also note that I agreed with you that she looked a little bloaty in those photographs compared to how she usually did. Her over-the-top beauty allows her to pull it off but maybe she could have taken a walk and shaved off a few calories for a while-if she wanted to.
Advocating cutting out an entire meal you need to intake to keep your metabolism up is ridiculous and looked down upon by anyone who knows anything about nutrition, execise and medicine. Especially for someone at the size MM was in that picture. And talking about taking away someone _else’s_ meals for an entire bloody month is obnoxious and presumptuous. If you want to lose weight, cut out the Campbells you were talking about in the soup thread (chock full of preservativse) and eat a salad with no dressing. That’s a diet (albeit a non-tasty one given how many other options there are). Stating “I’m not going to eat at all for lunch” falls into one of two categories-theatrics or symptoms of deeper issues. Saying you’d take away someone else’s lunch for a month is catty (but hey, this is the pit). Even **Indygrrl** , who somewhat agreed with you, has a healthier attitude towards it and every post I’ve ever read from her stresses merely controlling for crap and working out properly. Your posts in this thread merely make me realise WHY we’re so fat in the first place. If you starve your body entirely of calories you’re going to binge at the next meal. Unless of course, you have the discipline of an anorexic.
---
### Author:  [@lowbrass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lowbrass)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/112 "2007-05-03T20:22:08Z")
[QUOTE=tremorviolet]
Coincidentally enough, here are scans from the esteemed medical journal, US magazine, concerning the ever growing gap between celebrities thighs.
[page 1](http://img140.imagevenue.com/view.php?image=77725_goalpost1_122_425lo.jpg), [page 2](http://img146.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=77726_goalpost2_122_1108lo.jpg) (scans courtesy of Livejournal community Oh No They Didn’t)
From the article:
Dr. Fred Pescatore, author of The Hamptoms Diet says that a 1/2" gap is ideal but “you can have your thighs touch and be healthy.”
Yeah, yeah, the science is sketchy but having your thighs touch also doesn’t indicate morbid obesity.
[/QUOTE]
I, for one, enjoy touching women’s thighs.
---
### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/113 "2007-05-03T20:42:17Z")
[QUOTE=alice\_in\_wonderland]
Suggesting that you would withhold lunch from Marilyn for a month was a tad over the top.
[/QUOTE]
Sarcasm, dahling…sarcasm. I wouldn’t withhold food from anyone.
---
### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/114 "2007-05-03T20:44:23Z")
[QUOTE=anu-la1979]
Yes, I realise that. This morning I ran for 50 minutes. I had a salad with grilled chicken breast for lunch. Egg whites with a teaspoon of salsa fresca for brekkers. I’ve taken in about 500 calories max today and will end up with a sensible dinner. I never top 1200 per day so you needn’t give me the presumptuous “there ain’t nuttin’ wrong with bein’ healthy” attitude given that I probably work out more than your average american in one week than most do in a month. I’ve got a slow metabolism, I have to work harder, I don’t whine about it.
Also note that I agreed with you that she looked a little bloaty in those photographs compared to how she usually did. Her over-the-top beauty allows her to pull it off but maybe she could have taken a walk and shaved off a few calories for a while-if she wanted to.
Advocating cutting out an entire meal you need to intake to keep your metabolism up is ridiculous and looked down upon by anyone who knows anything about nutrition, execise and medicine. Especially for someone at the size MM was in that picture. And talking about taking away someone _else’s_ meals for an entire bloody month is obnoxious and presumptuous. If you want to lose weight, cut out the Campbells you were talking about in the soup thread (chock full of preservativse) and eat a salad with no dressing. That’s a diet (albeit a non-tasty one given how many other options there are). Stating “I’m not going to eat at all for lunch” falls into one of two categories-theatrics or symptoms of deeper issues. Saying you’d take away someone else’s lunch for a month is catty (but hey, this is the pit). Even **Indygrrl** , who somewhat agreed with you, has a healthier attitude towards it and every post I’ve ever read from her stresses merely controlling for crap and working out properly. Your posts in this thread merely make me realise WHY we’re so fat in the first place. If you starve your body entirely of calories you’re going to binge at the next meal. Unless of course, you have the discipline of an anorexic.
[/QUOTE]
Oh, Jesus. I guess I better use the little smilies more often.
Actually the best way to lose weight is to eat 4-6 smaller meals.
---
### Author:  [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/115 "2007-05-03T20:45:32Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun]
Sarcasm, dahling…sarcasm. I wouldn’t withhold food from anyone.
[/QUOTE]
Yah, I figured that you were bing flip.
I admit that I was a little startled to find out that because my thighs touch it means I’m chubby; however, I’m not too worried about it - it goes with the junk in my trunk. 😃
---
### Author:  [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/116 "2007-05-03T20:45:36Z")
[QUOTE=anu-la1979]
Statements regarding witholding lunches from people like MM for a month or working out and not eating lunch are incredibly troubling to me. Am I the only one who thinks those types of statements are scary??? You can have a salad with red wine vinegar or cut the mayo out of your tuna-there are a zillion ways to cut calories rather than talking about snatching the food out from under someone’s nose for a month like they’re a naughty dog (incredibly freaking arrogant statement to make regarding another human being). For the love of gods, the frogs are some of the daintiest people on the face of the earth and they still eat and spend all their time talking about it too.
I am working on losing weight right now-I have about 11 pounds left to go and my La-La land based used-to-play-football-for-a-famous-socal-team multiple certifications $700-per-month trainer would kick my ass if I talked about not eating. You have to feed Seymour the right stuff, yes, reduce calories but cutting out entire meals is counterproductive. Eat a cup of gazpacho.
[/QUOTE]
Yeah, I find this thread so bizarre, unsettling, and sad, in so many ways, that I am not even comfortable participating.
---
### Author:  [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/117 "2007-05-03T20:53:20Z")
[QUOTE=alice\_in\_wonderland]
I admit that I was a little startled to find out that because my thighs touch it means I’m chubby…
[/QUOTE]
I was startled to see that because my thighs don’t touch (there’s actually 1/5" gap between them…I just checked) that I’m grossing people out.
---
### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/118 "2007-05-03T21:03:06Z")
[QUOTE=alice\_in\_wonderland]
Yah, I figured that you were bing flip.
I admit that I was a little startled to find out that because my thighs touch it means I’m chubby; however, I’m not too worried about it - it goes with the junk in my trunk. 😃
[/QUOTE]
Maybe I should change that to “If MY thighs touch, it means _I’m_ chubby.”
---
### Author:  [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/119 "2007-05-03T21:50:59Z")
[QUOTE=tremorviolet]
So please drop the “OMG, if my thighs ever touch I’ll just shoot myself, I think i’ll start purging right now I’m so grossed out by the idea” schtick. Thank god we’re not all identical Barbie clones.
[/QUOTE]
I hope that’s not directed at me because I said no such thing. The way that I’m built, if my thighs were to rub together like that I’d have to weigh 150 lbs. Obviously not everyone is built the same and no one said they should be. The only person’s weight that concerns me is my own, and like I said above, I don’t diet and I’m very happy with the way my body looks. I’m not one of those women who freaks out about every little pound. In fact, I’m always trying to get my mom and friends to stop picking at themselves about weight. I am a big advocate of exercise, but that doesn’t mean I’m neurotic about it.
---
### Author:  [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)
#### Post date: [May 3, 2007, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ug-maybe-media-does-want-women-to-be-too-skinny/402492/120 "2007-05-03T22:51:36Z")
[QUOTE=Indygrrl]
I hope that’s not directed at me because I said no such thing. The way that I’m built, if my thighs were to rub together like that I’d have to weigh 150 lbs. Obviously not everyone is built the same and no one said they should be. The only person’s weight that concerns me is my own, and like I said above, I don’t diet and I’m very happy with the way my body looks. I’m not one of those women who freaks out about every little pound. In fact, I’m always trying to get my mom and friends to stop picking at themselves about weight. I am a big advocate of exercise, but that doesn’t mean I’m neurotic about it.
[/QUOTE]
Yeah, that reply was probably a little bit too testy. The comments about MM being “fat” because her thighs touched just hit a nerve. I’ve always had thick, stocky legs (even when I was down to 110) and I’ve wasted so much of my life agonizing over my them. It seems like the media is always featuring girls with very slender gams and I always pathetically loathed my chunky legs. It wasn’t until I saw the character design for the lead [character](http://www.fantasykat.com/ch/1c/chel.html) in the animated movie “The Road to El Dorado” that I finally realized that fat little legs could actually be kinda cute.
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