What is Curvespo and Fitspo?

In a previous blog I introduced to my readers a concept called "Thinspo."  It is combination of "thin" and "inspiration."  Tumblr does not condone Thinspo pages, but allow their users the right to self expression.

Thinspo is to serve as inspiration for women to be thin.  Healthy?  Maybe not necessarily.  As long as you're skinny, that is the main goal.  Eating less and exercising more is the mantra, which if you ask most trainers, the more you workout the more you need to consume healthy calories.  

Another type of inspiration is called "Fitspo."  In its truest form Fitspo sounds awesome.  They are images of women in great shape encouraging the reader and creator of the tumblr to be fit and beautiful.

I have concerns with Fitspro, however.  I mean, even communism looks good on paper, right?  If you compare Thinspo and Fitspo blogs/tumblrs you will notice that the images will sometimes cross over.  For those women who struggle with or are recovering from an eating disorder, I'm not sure that Fitspo images are having the affect that one would hope.  Remember the exercise more and eat less?  So this is the exercise more and the skinny pictures are the eat less part of that equation.  Unfortunately photos do not include a personal trainer ensuring that the viewer is eating the proper amount of calories to remain healthy.

The third and final inspiration is "Curvespo."

Curvespo inspires women to embrace their curves.  Most of the pages I viewed showed healthy, curvy women.  Although there is the alternative which showcases extremely obese women who are aiming to weigh over 500lbs.  I would call that more of a fetish lifestyle, and not the purpose of Curvespo.

Those opposing Curvespo would say that it encourages women to be overweight and unhealthy.  And I certainly did see those images.  Just as Fitspo, there's a dark side to everything that is meant to be good.

What I personally don't like about any of the three categories is that you will always have a person who cannot be what the pictures inspire.  Women who are naturally thin may never look like the Curvespo photos encourage.  Whatever the case may be, these photos of inspiration all have one thing in common: perfection.  They are images of other people that create an ideal.

Now I don't know if that's necessarily true that only 2% of women consider themselves beautiful, but I think it's probably a pretty accurate guess at any rate.  We cannot learn to love ourselves until we stop comparing ourselves to other people.  If you are glued to images of other women, you will never look like that...because you are not her.

It's good to appreciate beauty in others and give compliments.  Please do!  Give compliments freely!  But while you're at it, why don't you give a little compliment to yourself in the mirror.  That girl might like being called beautiful just the way she is too.