This is an amazeballs read, you guys!!
Al Roker lost about 160 pounds almost 10 years ago, but he still struggles every day with what he used to be, and how those around him used to react. Specifically, there were issues stemming from being in a mixed-weight relationship with his wife, who was in way better shape than he was.
As it turns out, a recent Wall Street Journal study found that couples that are at extremely different weights, deal with a lot of additional conflict. A poll even says that about 55 percent of readers say that weight difference has caused problems in their relationships.
Al Roker knows all about this.
Here are his very candid, stunning thoughts on the situation (in full):
I think if people are honest about it, weight plays a big part of anybody’s relationship. Yes, what’s on the inside counts, there’s no question about that, but we’re a visual society; we are attracted to attractive people. It’s one thing if you’re both overweight, but when we’re talking about couples who are mixed-weight (I love the term mixed-weight couples; I’ve heard mixed-race couples, but mixed-weight?!), it plays a big deal, especially if one person is active and healthy and the other person is a bit of a couch potato.
I wrote about it in my book, Never Goin’ Back. My wife is a size 4; she runs, she works out and it became a problem in our marriage. On a Saturday she├óΓé¼Γäód get up, get dressed to run and I├óΓé¼Γäód be sitting on the couch or making breakfast for the kids and was quite happy about our choices. She, on the other hand, was not. Unless you communicate that, it├óΓé¼Γäós going be a problem.
She was upset about it, she was frustrated, she was angry. She thought, “Why don’t you care enough about yourself and why don’t you care about me and our relationship enough to change?” And I said, “Look, it’s not about you. It’s about me.” For the overweight person, the person who’s struggling, there are obviously issues that we’re dealing with. It’s not like we’re being fat to spite the person who’s in good shape. That’s what the person who isn’t struggling needs to realize.
It’s a vicious cycle because now you feel judged and you’re upset, and if that’s the case, what do you do? You eat. And then your spouse is upset. Or you even lie about your food — you’re closet eating.
Here├óΓé¼Γäós the thing I say to the person in the couple who├óΓé¼Γäós not struggling with their weight: Shut up. We know we├óΓé¼Γäóre fat. We know we need to lose weight. Your nagging us and pleading with us doesn├óΓé¼Γäót help. In fact, in ways it makes it worse. We├óΓé¼Γäóre not going to change until something clicks within us. Until we say, “I├óΓé¼Γäóm tired of living like this; I want a different life for myself and for my family.” It├óΓé¼Γäós not that we don├óΓé¼Γäót love you; it├óΓé¼Γäós not that we don├óΓé¼Γäót care. It├óΓé¼Γäós just that right now, we├óΓé¼Γäóre not prepared to deal with it for whatever reason, whether it├óΓé¼Γäós emotionally or physically.
Once it clicked for me, my wife and I were able to run together, do activities together. In fact, it did cause one problem. My wife’s been a runner for 30 years, and I started running two years ago, and within a year I ran the New York City Marathon. It kind of ticked her off a little bit; she said, “Wait a minute, I’m the runner in the family!” But that’s a good problem to have.
When you’re ready, do it. Until you’re ready, just try to keep it under control. The problem with people who are suffering, struggling with their weight is that you make a mistake, you go off your plan, and it’s either all or nothing. I just think you can’t look at this as dieting; it’s a lifestyle. You have to change your life.
If your loved one is actually mad at you, and mean about it, we guess it’s okay to tell them to shut up — but we also know that they’re just trying to help. Maybe a “stop it” would be a little more like it.
Either way, Al’s right — it’s all about changing your life, and for the better. No amount of arguing is going to make you do it unless it’s a choice that flips inside of you. It’s all up to you, not the conflict between you and your spouse, or with anyone else for that matter.
It’s you. It’s your lifestyle.
Take it back.
[Image via WENN.]
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