The Anorexic Night Jogger.
May 8, 2008 by tiffabee
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So one day a friend of mine and I were driving home, when out of no where I saw this figure that appeared to be a ghost. I yelled to my friend, “What is that!”
She replied with, “Oh, you’ve never seen her? She’s the anorexic woman who jogs.”
“The what???!! You’ve seen her before?” I said.
“Oh yea, she jogs in the morning and at night”
At this point I was utterly confused. Why was this woman jogging in the first place? She was probably around 5′6 and about 80-90lbs (I don’t use the word anorexic lightly). And why was she jogging in the dead of night in the middle of the road?! I so badly wanted to rescue her and give her a ride home. If you find yourself exercising day and night it’s time to question what your real motives are. I’m down for health and good lifestyle habits, but I don’t think this woman is doing it for either of these reasons. At least she should get out of the road, it’s a death wish to run into oncoming traffic when you weigh the amount of a small child.
Anorexic Night Jogger if you are out there, I live down the block from you and you are welcome to come over and eat a…well you are just welcome to come over and eat!
Poor thing. Someone needs to jog up behind her and plug a feeding tube into her.
But seriously…someone really should do something for the woman - maybe try to join her on her run and get to know her, then one day offer the number of a treatment centre that could help.
Well, maybe she’s jogging to keep her weight down, Maybe she does it at weird times b/c she doesn’t wanna do it in front of other ppl, or feel like she’s being put on display.
Maybe she got down to a weight she is somewhat comfortable with and doesn’t wanna bloat back up again. Then again 90 pounds is much, then again AGAIN maybe it just seems like 90 pounds if the person looking at her is 200+ pounds. I used to be that way…
Wish someone would have told ME to put sooo many cheeseburgers down when I was a teen. Instead of waiting til I’m 30 and married with 2 kids to finally get down to an acceptable weight..what a waste!!!
“..Well, maybe she’s jogging to keep her weight down,…” umm…that would explain the use of the word ‘anorexic’ in the blog’s post title. !!
?? @ milfilicious
Acceptable weight? Acceptable to who? Your husband and kids? Society at large?
Your reply to the post is just too flippin’ weird.
I don’t get what you’re trying to convey here.
I agree with the 1st hope, get to know the lady find out whats going on. I know this site is about challenging thin, but lets have some compassion here…although the post is funny, if she read it she’d probably be mortified, “what is that, ” is pretty harsh for a human being jogging at night.
Just to clarify, I actually didn’t know what was in the road when I asked, at the time I didn’t even think it was a woman who was jogging. Remember it was dark, and I had never seen this woman before…or rather anything like that.
Drink a Slimfast
So one day a friend of mine and I were driving home, when out of no where I saw this figure that appeared to be a giant marshmallow. I yelled to my friend, “What is that!”
She replied with, “Oh, you’ve never seen her? She’s the obese woman that continuously eats.”
“The what???!! You’ve seen her before?” I said.
“Oh yea, she pigs ou in the morning and at night”
At this point I was utterly confused. Why was this woman pigging out in the first place? She was probably around 5′6 and about 280-320lbs (I don’t use the word obese lightly). And why was she pigging out in the dead of night in the middle of Hometown Buffet! I so badly wanted to rescue her and give her a ride home. If you find yourself pigging out day and night it’s time to question what your real motives are. I’m down for health and good lifestyle habits, but I don’t think this woman is doing it for either of these reasons. At least she should get out of Hometown Buffet, it’s a death wish to eat there when you weigh the amount of a large elephant.
Obese Night Eater if you are out there, I live down the block from you and you are welcome to come over and drink a…well you are just welcome to come over and diet!
Ladies, I applaud your writing skills and articles. I think you are doing a great job in making people aware of the dangers pop culture and the media have on the mind and body. Just a little thought for you: If I started a website called: “DRINK A SLIMFAST” and I posted what I/You wrote above…what kind of reaction would I get?
Anorexia and obesity are both physical aliments. Both are equally devastating to men and women across the world. But why is it that if I made a website like “Drink a Slimfast”, I would get such a backlash? Maybe you should be careful/aware of what you say and how you talk about sick anorexia people just like how you say the mass media should stop talking about bigger or plus size people?
Just a cheeseburger for your thoughts…..
I have. on halloween.
* ; )
It’s confusing with the 2 hopes, huh…you can call me 505 or H5 or something if you want to.
i totally know the anorexic night jogger type. they’re the people you see at the gym no matter what time of day you go and they’re running on the treadmill for 2 hrs straight and then switching the stair climber when their done. it makes u wonder what exactly their running from (bc lets be honest- if life was good i definitely wouldnt be spending all my time at the gym).
theres plenty of reasons anorexic night joggers could have to run her fat- or lack thereof- and her life away… but maybe she just doesnt know how to make a good cheeseburger! help her out neighbor
I don’t understand people who run at night, fat or thin. It’s just dangerous.
And milfilicious, I find your user name sad and hope that you don’t pass that message on to your children. Not to mention, I had a mother who was briefly considered a “MILF” when I was a teenager and let me tell ya, it sucked. It was humiliating and not something I was proud of.
No teenage girl wants to hear her crush say, “wow, you’re mom is HOT. I’d do her.”
If you’re neighborhood is that bad that you can’t jog at night then don’t. For the most part I would venture to say that it isn’t that bad yet…
abductions happen in all sorts of neighborhoods, not just the ‘bad parts’ of town. Just to clarify.
O noodles, you silly woman…“But why is it that if I made a website like “Drink a Slimfast”, I would get such a backlash?…”
FYI there *are* websites, like, DRINK A SLIMFAST, like, omg a zillion of them. Ever hear of a little thing called thinspiration?
Sure, now there are a growing number of image-positive sites that include a variety of content NOT aimed at getting women to reduce themselves, diet, restrict, work out MORE, eat LESS, and basically to live in anguish over…what…? The shape and proportion of our flesh?
I’ll say if you don’t like the idea of eating cheeseburgers, why visit a site called “EAT A CHEESEBURGER”? If you feel that fat, obese, or “overweight” individuals are a blight on the planet, you’ll most likely be outnumbered at such a forum.
And if you are an individual, noodle, who currenty suffers from anorexia nervosa, you may be open to the idea that your illness is perhaps distorting your perception of the OP. And people who are BIG, larger-than-acceptably-average, fat, or even just have a non-conforming shape, have had to hear cr@p from OTHER people who don’t think that’s okay all. the. time.
Scrawny? Feeling self-conscious? try to relax and sweet jeesus eat a cheeseburger.
you mean to tell me that u couldn’t tell at 5′6 that she was a human being? that’s an exaggeration. Although I think Noodles method of getting the point across is a little pompous, I agree with the overall point. Anorexia, just like severe obesity is a disease and you have to be careful with how you word things. A girl who skips meals or eats coffee and salad etc., thats not that extreme–the “Eat a cheeseburger” applies, especially since we know its a hyperbole–which i get the feeling noodles may be missing. “Drink some slimfast” is fine to me…just might catch flack because we have people who think a size ten is obese and although some ppl overexaggerate how skinny ppl can be, anorexia is confused with a “slim” or “thin” person too oftern. So, I would say just take Noodles comment with a grain of salt and be careful how u depict people who have a mental disease.
i meant anorexia “isn’t” confused with slim or thin ppl too often
hope 505-
please do not past judgement on people you do not know. my comment was an objective response to tiffabee’s post. I compliment them in the beginning and just go on to pose a legitimite question about one of the contradictions we have in our society. Obese and plus size/ big are TWO completely different things.
If your brain can not handle a debate and would rather call me anorexic, silly woman, scrwany, and self conscious…not my problem.
Maybe you were made fun of for your weight and how you looked your whole life. Instead of maybe looking at how to get healthier (not skinner) you decide to become defensive and dive into self denial? You then blame society for making you this way and how people feel about you. Next you become malice and so bitter that you attack people that are not like you. And finally you come onto forums like this and attack people by calling them scrawny, anorexic, self conscious, nervous, etc. hmmmmmmmm…. you are truly changing the face of how people look at each other and really influencing people in a beneficial way. You have transformed into what you hate and complain about everyday. Except, you can’t see it and will not admit it.
How bout you put down your defensive attitude and think about it. I am not here to battle or cause controversy. I come here because I like this blog and the writers are my friend. I am not here to be “outnumbered”, I am not on the other team.
FYI…i had a cheeseburger on Tuesday. ISLANDS…sunset burger with fries. A diet coke though…is that ok with you?
okay NOODLES…I didn’t “call you” anorexic, rather, I opened the discussion to the fact that you might be.
I might be.
Any one of us.
It’s distorted thinking. Can you stop typing long enough to see that point? *haha!*
You seem to be the defensive one, responding to the OP with a word-for-word skinny/fat substitution to get your opinion over.
You want to be heard. I hear you. And no, you don’t need my permission to enjoy a cheeseburger, but if it helps you feel better, YES it is ok with me. I don’t give a flip what you eat or don’t eat! *hahaha!*
Additionally, I’ll take this moment to relate how much I like the title of the blog “Eat a Cheeseburger”. I don’t feel that it’s a jab at underweight people. I think it’s a cue to stop taking yourself so seriously.
Y’know.
Get over yourself. Eat a Cheeseburger.
“Drink a Slimfast” doesn’t have the same ring. Plus: it mentions a brand name whereas EAC does not endorse any particular brand of cheeseburger. Better.
* : )
Although I agree with Noodles’ point, I can also agree that it was a little too much to get it across, taking that much time to re-write the post to support your point is pretty defensive. I’d rather just say it in a short sentence. I understand you want to “make people think” but you have to be careful in how you do that. I don’t know how you can claim you didn’t come here to cause controversy, but post what you post the way you did. What gives you the authority to do that, if you are a friend to the owner’s of the blog then that’s a pretty messed up way to offer constructive criticism. But not here to argue just want you to think about that. Like I said I agree with the core of what u were trying to convey.
thinkaboutit
this topic and website is something that is to be debated. the authors are not proving math theroies here. The posts are very opinionated and beg to be discussed. I just want to speak my mind respectfully just like the authors speak theirs. If you think I am trying to be controversial, I am apologize for the misunderstanding. I will however, not apologize for my opinion and the way I convey it. I doubt the authors would take any offense. Look at the way they write and the forum in which they talk about. Not exactly uptight and sensitive people we are talking about here.
I reposted what I did (which actually was quick…little copy and paste edit job) to make a point. I just couldn’t see how I would be able to make that point with one sentence.
hope505 - i like the title “cheeseburger” too. i agree that it is very clever and witty. “drink a slimfast” was just a play off of their title. a foil to their protagonist if you may. nothing serious but just a quip. “drink a slimfast” would be a lame title.
“you guys should be careful not to defame the thin the way you claim the media and our culture defame the “fat” ” would’ve worked.
And like I said I agree with you and I don’t think you should apologize, you’re right this is about opinions. I just think, although clever, the way you did it was a little messed up, especially if you really are a friend of theirs. Ask them if they were offended–one doesn’t have to be labeled as “sensitive” because they are offended. I’ve learned that as the aggressor I lose the ability to call someone sensitive because of something I said if I know what I said was in total opposition to them, whether it was masked in humor or wit or just bluntly stated. I understand you did it to prove a point but a simple, “what if I said (insert a quote from the blog)” would have accomplished it. You had no preface, no declaration of your intentions or anything before you . Sure it was witty, sure it was even a little funny and most of all it was true. But it was arrogant. Prior until today, have you posted here before? Are you apart of the usuals? Then, friend or no friend, you can easily be misunderstood. Not that you have to be an usual to make your opinion known. So don’t apologize; you’re clever, you’re compassionate and objective (at least in reference to the blog post) but you also have to accept responsibilty. You can’t mock someone then say “Oh i love your blog…” elaborate on it, say something like I don’t mean to offend…” Ask yourself how that would sound if you did exactly what you did vocally. Not saying, “what if i said…” but straight up just restating what someone said with a contrarian word or two inserted where it applies. No matter your intention, “to make a point” it is still rude. It’s like giving a homeless person money but first telling them to get a job.
Your venue overwrites your point–meaning you should’ve chosen a
different way to get your point across. Im not offended by the comment, but I’m annoyed that you don’t see how you did it was a little offensive. I still think the writers should listen to the meat of it and ignore the fat (the way you did it). Sorry if you’re offended just airing my opinion. How did the writers feel about it? Good question
thinkaboutit
your quote is well stated and encompasses the feeling of my post. You are right. I wrote the post to be witty, funny, and make a point through mockery. I did not want to simply make one statement and have it be my mantra.
Are the authors offended? I would like to know myself and hopefully they will answer.
To answer the question of whether my post is offensive or not? I guess that is dependent on each individual reader. I cannot react or predict how people react to what I write. I can only hold accountable my intention. My intentions were not to be offensive in my mockery. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt someone’s feeling. So, I can only be responsible for my intention and not other people’s reaction. I know it may sound ambiguous and unfair, but that is how I feel.
I will say that I will be more aware of how my writing style may seem pompous or arrogant. THis is a touchy subject and I can see how I can be easily misunderstood.
guess we will have to agree about somethings and just agree to disagree about others.
such is life….
Well at least u seem to be willing to admit a few things. I’ll say this and u might want to think about it. If i could exonerate myself from how I might have “unintentionally” hurt someone’s feeling merely by saying, “i didn’t mean to” I would. It’s like saying something funny but rude to someone and then when they get hurt saying, “Oh i was just kidding” we can’t always play the “my conscious is clear” card, just becuz ur conscious is clear doesn’t mean what you did was wrong or at least hurt someone. I never mean to bump into people at work, but I’ll say Im sorry or excuse me when I do…but let’s agree to disagree. I will say appreciate and possibly admire your willingness to at least be more aware of how your writing style may seem pompous or arrogant…
cheers
It’s amazing, how quickly this became a drawn-out argument.
I’m new to this blog and this is the second post I’m reading (first was about Thinology.) Great blog title, by the way.
This entry title also struck me, because there was a woman in my hometown for several years that we would see jogging; and there was no doubt that she was anorexic, and in pretty bad trouble. Had I first seen her at night in the brief glare of headlights, I might not have known at first what I was seeing at first either. Since I first saw it in the very early morning, it was still quite a shock, but at least I knew right away what I was seeing. And yes, if you were out at the right times at night, you’d see her too. The sight was always jarring; I’m sorry, but it was. When someone literally, not figuratively, looks like the photos of people rescued from concentration camps, with the extreme bone protrusion not just at the collarbone, but the elbows, knees, wrists (because there’s no flesh between wrist and elbow, etc.) the hollowed out face with the giant, gaunt eyes, the lips peeled back from the teeth, the balding - yes, it’s jarring to see someone that far gone and still actively killing themselves. We saw her frequently until we moved - I honestly didn’t know what I could possibly do. You can’t just go up to someone and say “What can I do for you?” They get angry. I hope she’s all right, of course.
“Anorexia and obesity are both physical aliments.”
No they’re not. Anorexia is a mental ailment manifested in physical behaviors that generally results in physical ailments. Fat isn’t an ailment at all.
Now I’m off to read the follow-up to this entry.
Annie, you beat me to the punch! But, I’ll say what I was going to say anyway:
“Anorexia and obesity are both physical aliments.”
Wrong, wrong, wrong. Anorexia is a mental disorder that destroys the body. It has the highest death rate of any mental illness. Only 40% of people who have suffered from anorexia will ever recover. The mortality rate for anorexia victims is ten times higher than the death rate for ALL females 15-24 years old. Many victims end up committing suicide.
The last time I checked, nobody dropped dead from obesity at age 15. Heck, people with extra fat on ‘em actually live longer. There are numerous studies out that show “obese” people may suffer health problems from the negative perception others have of ‘em. The BOOGA BOOGA against the “obese” is leading girls down the part to anorexia, which will lead to MORE deaths than OMG OBESITY CRISIS!
“Obesity” is a medical term that has no significance on individuals. A thin person who sits around and doesn’t exercise has absolutely no advantage over the “obese” individual who exercises and eats in moderation.