04/08/2012 My Beautiful Cushy Tushy (The New York Times)

News Text

When my younger daughter was about four years old, she stood in our kitchen, pulled up her shirt and popped her tummy straight out. It was impressive, that round little belly. I smiled, and she grinned back. "That's as cute as I can make it," she said proudly. That child of mine is now seven, the same age Dara-Lynn Weiss's daughter was when her mother placed her on that now-infamous diet. I can't imagine doing that to either of my girls. But then, I consider the fact that I do it to myself. I wish I could stick out my own belly and proclaim it "cute." I'm at a healthy weight, but age and motherhood have both made their marks on my physical self, and predictably enough, everything's softer than it used to be. I have heard myself sigh as I hike my jeans up over my flaccid abdomen. I have caught a glimpse of my upper arms in a storefront window and pulled on a cardigan. But I'm doing my best to stop, because I know perfectly well that if I want my daughters to have a positive view of their young, taut, powerful bodies, I have to readjust my perspective on my aging, slack, powerful body, too. Read the full article here.

By The New York Times, 04/08/2012