Me, today on TODAY - Secret Dieting
Good morning from sunny NYC!
I'm writing to you with a full face of makeup and a sassy little hunter green top from Forever 21 - just finished the Today Show segment with fellow iVillage contributor Madelyn Fernstrom. Ann Curry interviewed us and I think the segment went really well!
Alas, no Matt Lauer but I DID get my makeup done right next to Christopher Knight, of Brady Bunch/My Fair Brady fame (depending on your age/maturity level.) Ricky Gervais (The Office) was in the waiting room with me; Martha Stewart whizzed by; I overheard Kathie Lee Gifford ask someone their opinion on her earrings; and Al Roker was extremely-but-pleasantly loud and jolly, yelling "Hup! Hup! Hup!" over and over again at the top of his voice as he walked through the halls and out onto the plaza. The. Man. Is. Always. On.
The topic of today's Today, BTW, was "Secret Dieting" and they even used a few quotes from Weighting Game readers on-screen!
I liked Marilyn's point about "food frenemies" - As she writes on her blog, "When you announce that you're trying to lose weight, your friends automatically feel they should be doing the same, even though this may not true at all, and they feel guilty about it. Often, this is translated into diet sabotage for you and an effort to try to get you to eat more!" Comments that often spew forth from a Food Frenemy's mouth:
C'mon, you've been working so hard on your diet, you should reward yourself right now!
Oh, you don't need to lose any weight; you're perfect the way you are. Don't go on a diet!
A salad isn't enough for you. Get something else, too.
I've said it before in one of my favorite blog postings and I'll say it again: People need to keep their mouths closed. Zip it. Zip. Zippy Longstocking. When a problem comes along you must zip it.
Be sure to check out this iVillage slideshow, Undercover Dieting: Women Discuss Their Secret Diets, as many of you (hey, tokaiangel. gemfit, renae, avi, sagan, valerie, dana, jen, rachel!) will see your quotes highlighted!
x,
Leslie
Comments
unrelated, and probably uncalled for, but I think someone needs to start a boycott or petition or something to get "mall stores" like forever 21 to sell *at least* size XL. stores like that only go S, M, L, and I'm seeing more and more, XS.
I'm so sick of seeing an adorable top in a store window, only to find that this store doesn't sell to "my kind."
Oh my! It's 9:03 right now! I'm going to go turn on my TV so I can see you!
heatherbomb - I totally support you in that. The fact is, my top is a LARGE and I have a small chest/upper frame. The stuff is cut for little boys.
Good job. Saw the segment.
"Mom, Dad, I broke the vase!"
Mom's favorite vase. She always says don't play ball in the house.
Pork chops and apple sauce! :)
Oooooh! You did great! I love that you brought up the competition aspect. It always feels like it is the underlying issue and yet no one ever just comes out and says it. Kudos! Also - I covet your posture.
As for Forever 21, I just spent an embarrassing amount of money there today and I know feel much better about it seeing how cute you look in that top! And heatherbomb is right on about their weensy sizing. Women's sizes = bane of my existence.
Leslie, you rocked! I love this segment. I deal with this all the time. In a family of meat-eaters, the vegetarians meal is always put on center stage. Sometimes peer pressure makes it tough to be healthy. I agree with you: Zip it!!
Thank you so much for sneaking in the "There's room for everything in a healthy diet."
I almost cheered.
Great job!!!!!
You were fantastic this morning as always, Leslie!! Way to go!
Renae
interesting point heatherbomb, I am going to go one further though, have any of you been in A&F or hollister lately? I wear a size 0 or 1 in most stores (good genes, don't hate me) with a modest B cup chest and those clothes do not even fit me!!! Honestly who are they marketing these low cut shirts to when a average chest completely pops out of them! Apparently you have to have no boobies to be in style these days.
www.modbehav.com
sad (I MISSED IT)
glad (you posted it)
waiting (till Toddler asleep)
Miz.
You rocked it girl! :) Great interview! I'm bumped my quote made it up on the slide-show too, very cool.
Thanks for posting this because I missed it today. This is such a fascinating issue. Competition is really sad when it's about food consumption. Zip it. Zip it good! But ... the other side of this is the person who is doing harmful things to him/herself with food. I am not sure what to do in that case, and I guess it's a completely different issue, but I just wanted to add that caveat to the ZIP IT mentality.
Heather
How awesome! Congrats and I must say you looked fab! Hey, I know that celebrity! That's that real smart lady that Starbuck's stole the oatmeal idea from...lol
Amazing work! I am in awe of your composure on a TV set - you make it look so easy! Thanks for posting.
I agree with Heather, I think there came a point in my life when it was a GOOD thing that people stopped zipping it and started to speak out.
But these days I'm better and I do wonder the real reasons I get criticised for making healthier choices. It feels like it's no longer about me, it's about the person who is passing judgement and how they feel about themselves.
TA x
I totally agree, people should just learn to go with the flow and not comment on other people's eating (unless there's some obvious health risk).
My mother is coming at it from the other side, in that she makes condescending comments about what people are eating sometimes, because she's on a low-fat, healthy healthy diet.
Me? I eat healthy, but that's just my choice. If others want to too, that's their choice. Hear hear for the Zip It movement!
Love it! I wish people were more accommodating and understanding of my food choices. Sighs.
you didnt see matt because he was at my house. sorry.
yeah my favorite is "your skinny, why do you eat so healthy?"
Thats usually when i clench my fist to keep from slapping someone.
Kelly Turner
www.groundedfitness.com
I'm not able to watch the segment because I'm "working," but I'm sure it was fabulous!
For some reason, though, the Secret/Undercover Dieting reminded me of this...
Smallest salad wins in friendly food battle
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23888944/
Awesome job, Leslie! The competitive aspect is so so so true. I am an elite runner and every time I eat a cupcake or candy at work, it's like a circus sideshow. The (incorrect) assumption is that I don't eat because I so lean so everyone cheers when I eat something "bad" according to their food world. I am so tired of women judging and assuming things - it all stems from their own insecurities.
Rennur, I had a similar experience. I'm not in training, but I am an aerobics instructor. I normally eat very healthily at work, but one day someone brought munchkins, and I'm not shy about eating sweets every now and then. And one of my coworkers was absolutely, completely shocked that I would eat a donut. Please.
Awesome! You're a celebrity! And you look amazing - love the top. :-) Will have to watch this at home where I actually have VOLUME!
Great interview!
I love the way you both sounded so sensible and reasonable--I think you probably reached a lot of clueless women who didn't even realize how they were sabotaging their friends, but you guys did it in a very non-threatening way. Great job!
Congratulations on your Today appearance. You look great in the video.
The frenemies thing is so true. My friends have a tendancy to want to make any changes I make with me, beginning this massive downward spiral everytime.
I had a similar experience. I'm not in training, but I am an aerobics instructor. I normally eat very healthily at work, but one day someone brought munchkins.
