Fat, Thin, and In Between

As a general population, Chinese are very thin. Even the ones who are "fat" would still be normal and healthy if compared to most Americans and Westerners. Though they use a lot of oil when they cook the Chinese don't eat a lot of junk food or fast food. For desert they usually have fruit. They walk a lot more than Americans do. Americans walk from their house to their car (which is next to the house) then drive to the grocery store, or work, or school, or where ever. If the Chinese don't walk they usually take the bus, which requires more energy than driving because first you have to walk to the bus stop then you usually have to stand on the bus while holding on for dear life.
My female students like to comment on my weight. One particularly struck me when she said, "You know, if I look at your face I think you are thin. But you aren't." I have also been told many times, "I think maybe in America you are thin, but in China you are just regular." I am 5'7" and when I arrived in China I weighed just under 135, but I lost almost ten pounds since then. Still, the Chinese tell me I am not thin. I have tried to explain to them that if I weighed less I wouldn't look healthy any more. Simply put, I, and most western women, are built differently - with hips and breasts. No matter how much weight I loose, my hips will never become as narrow as theirs. Some of the Chinese look like stick people. They were appalled when I told them about ghetto booties and how some people find it attractive. Generally speaking, I manage to retain a positive body image, but in China I find it becoming and more and more difficult and more and more frustrating to be told I am not thin. Last time a girl said that to me I replied that I didn't really care what she or anyone else thought because I am healthy and happy with the way I look. It is a constant struggle and is something I have not really dealt with before.
Coming back to America it seems like the entire population has gained at least 50 pounds and grown a few inches. It used to be that I felt thin in America because comparatively I am, but being back this time I don't feel that way. Thin is relative and my relativity scale has changed. Because we are surrounded by it in America we don't notice how everyone is overweight. Our culture and eating habits encourage this. It would take a radical change in American lifestyle to reverse the trend. I am not saying Americans should be stick people like the Chinese, but if we could adopt some of the healthier aspects of their life I think the population would be much better off.