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January 10, 2003/Shevat 7 5763, Vol. 55, No. 20
For a new you, find the balance
VICKI CABOT
Contributing Editor
'Tis the season to do or die - diet, that is.
It's as predictable as the inexorable tick of the clock edging toward midnight on New Year's Eve, as predictable as the ball dropping in Times Square on precisely the hour.
When the revelry subsides, after we've kissed our loved ones and called our kids, we look in the mirror. And don't like what we see.
Too fat, too lumpy, too bumpy, too wide. Too much thigh, too much tush, too little chest, too little bone. You name it, we see it. And for her - and more often than not it's a her - it's real.
Too real.
No matter that her grandmother was buxom, her mother pleasantly plump, her sisters well-endowed. No matter that she grew up in a house where the mantra was eat, eat, and a clean plate and a full fridge were signs of prosperity. No matter that there were children starving in other countries. It's the mirror that's the message.
And so, the inevitable slew of New Year's resolutions. Swear it off and sweat it off. Skip the sugar and carbs, load up on veggies and tofu. No more Krispy Kremes and Snickers. No more missed runs and lapsed workouts. No more excuses and apologies. Stretch it, flex it, pump it. Lose it.
Sixty one percent of adult Americans and 10-15 percent of our children are overweight and run a greater risk of serious health problems. So resolve to eat right and exercise, right?
Yes - and no. The flip side is that as the country gets fatter, our role models get thinner. And thinner. Flip through any fashion magazine, turn on the TV, go to the movies.
The media is the message, and the message is "less is more" - and more and more unattainable.
No wonder that the Body and Soul National Institute reports that as girls get older they grow increasingly dissatisfied with their appearance. No wonder that the Center for Disease Control reports that 3 percent of young women have eating disorders.
Sharona Silverman of the Shalom Center of Temple Chai, which sponsors an ongoing series for girls and women to create a healthy sense of self, laments that we are bombarded with mixed messages from parents, peers and the media. It's not easy to sort them out, says Silverman, herself the mother of two. "We have to teach our daughters to make healthy choices," she says. The center program provides guidelines for eating well and cultivating a positive self-image.
So how to look good and feel good and teach our daughters as well as ourselves?
Perhaps take a page out of the Rambam's "Mishneh Torah." The wisdom of the 12th-century philosopher and rabbinic scholar is as relevant today as it was hundreds of years ago. Human beings must avoid extremes, he taught, and pursue a shvil hazahav, a "golden mean," in all their actions.
So indulge in moderation, exercise in moderation, temper your expectations and aspire to achieve balance in your life. That will surely tip the scales in your favor.
Contact the writer at vicki_cabot@jewishaz.com.
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