When plus-size celebrities lose a significant amount of weight the entertainment media, and public, are quick to comment.
This was put into the spotlight when Grammy award-winning singer Adele posted a photo on social media thanking fans for the birthday wishes and hoping they’re safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the days that followed, Adele’s significant weight loss was trending as many fans focused on her slimmed-down frame.
Media outlets and fans alike praised this as her biggest accomplishment, and some even speculated it was due to cosmetic surgeries. Many made a point to mention this was Adele “getting healthy," despite having no idea what a healthy weight for her might be.
Over and over again I saw people pointing to this feat as the best thing Adele has accomplished, and I got mad.
Adele has won 15 Grammys, holds the number-one spot on the Greatest of all Time Billboard 200 Album list for 21, she’s a mother, and I’m sure she’s done a ton of other amazing things during her time on earth.
So why was all of that being pushed aside to have her weight loss being named the best thing she has done?
Don’t get me wrong, losing weight is an incredible feat and more power to anyone who’s taken the time to do it. But, it is not the be-all and end-all of accomplishments in someone’s life.
I was also extremely angry that people felt a right to comment on what size Adele is. Why is it any of our business if she drops a few pounds or gains some?
I realize I’m going to have a lot of people thinking ‘well, she’s a celebrity. She signed up to be scrutinized.’ But, this happens to everybody.
I’ve been plus-sized essentially my whole life and that’s okay. I don’t base my self worth on what size of clothing I wear, but a lot of other people do. I’m immediately deemed as less than someone who's smaller than me just because I’m not "skinny," and I think that says a lot more about them than it does about me.
It took me a very long time to love my body. It's reactions like this that made me resent it in the first place. I spent years working on my insecurities, and simply liking who I see in the mirror. A lot of people don’t do this, and it leads to damaging actions such as eating disorders and over exercising to be "beautiful."
Losing a ton of weight doesn’t change who I am, and it certainly doesn’t change who Adele is and her long list of accomplishments.
