I first read this book when I was working at Disneyland in 2007-2008. I was getting pretty chunky, which was unbearable coming from my thin and fit teen years, and I had absolutely NO IDEA how to get my weight, my mood, my mindset or my health under control.
While browsing through a giant bookstore in Anaheim on one of my days off, I saw this (at the time) new release title: Skinny Bitch. It struck my fancy, so I bought it. I settled in at a tiny table at the in-house coffee shop (with a giant sugary muffin and a giant chocolately frozen mocha drink) and proceeded to read through it for a few hours.
I was insanely disappointed to read that it was basically a missive for veganism, disguised as a book on how to get skinny. I finished the read, but basically rejected every single word, further depressed and convinced that my case was hopeless. The only line that really stuck out to me, and actually hurt my feelings, was that “maybe diet soda is why your ass is covered in cellulite”. What the actually fuck, lady. You ARE a bitch.
Anyway, fast forward to 2020. I eventually did become a “skinny bitch” when I met my husband in 2008/2009 and he introduced me to the South Beach Diet. With his support and participation, we spent a year eating whole foods and cutting out sugar and white breads, and I dropped down to my teen weight of 124 pounds and I looked and felt great.
Then I started having kids and ballooned up to 200 pounds my first pregnancy. I hit 210 my second and third pregnancies. Between each kid I developed a binge eating and binge drinking habit, didn’t fully lose the weight between kids (though I dipped down to 140ish at one point), and I started overeating every single meal, etc. etc. etc… and now I’m heavier than I’ve ever been (while not pregnant). With the Covid bullshit I hit 201 pounds, at which point I embarked on this weight loss journey and blogging on May 15, 2020.
I was 178 pounds when I first read Skinny Bitch in 2008 (the heaviest I had EVER been in my life)… and I am 179.4 pounds right now, re-reading Skinny Bitch in 2020, and I’m well into my weight loss journey. Kind of depressing, but also, a kind of fascinating journey. I’m (kind of) exactly where I was right before meeting my husband.. I’m right where I started the first time I EVER decided I needed to do SOMETHING about my weight.
I rejected Skinny Bitch the first read. I was shocked to discover I agree with a large portion this time around.
I’m not a vegan, but now I understand how meat and milk needs to play a minimal role in my life. I don’t drink soda anymore. I rarely drink milk or eat cheese, using substitutes at home and opting out when I can while dining out. I avoid GMOs like the plague (because they are) and buy organic whenever it is an option. I realize that veggies are life. I wish I had UNDERSTOOD these things the first time I read this book. It’s crazy to read this book again with open eyes and ponder on the vague shadowy fog I was in the first time around… and even during my pregnancies, after I’d lost the weight and should have known better.
Basically, my first time losing weight I did it following a good whole foods based approach, without fully UNDERSTANDING how it worked. I just ate this and that because the book said so. I avoided this and that because the book said so. So when I lost the weight, I was “done” and started to slip back into old destructive behaviors and habits. Being pregnant and hormonal, I didn’t even TRY to diet, I just began to live like I did before I dieted and overate the “off limits” foods – not really knowing or caring why they were off limits. Small wonder the weight all came back.. and then some!
So here I am, giving this book a re-read. I still think the author is a bit of a bitch.. her snark isn’t as cute as she thinks it is… but I get her approach, kind of. Most importantly, I understand a lot more than I did the first time around. If anything, it was a worthy read to see how far I’ve come in my understanding of what my body needs, how it operates and what my lifestyle should look like – diet or no diet.
Here is more information on Skinny Bitch from Amazon.com:
“Not your typical boring diet book, this is a tart-tongued, no-holds-barred wakeup call to all women who want to be thin. With such blunt advice as, “Soda is liquid Satan” and “You are a total moron if you think the Atkins Diet will make you thin,” it’s a rallying cry for all savvy women to start eating healthy and looking radiant. Unlike standard diet books, it actually makes the reader laugh out loud with its truthful, smart-mouthed revelations. Behind all the attitude, however, there’s solid guidance. Skinny Bitchespouses a healthful lifestyle that promotes whole grains, fruits, and vegetables, and encourages women to get excited about feeling “clean and pure and energized.”
CURRENT STATS
Start Weight (May 15, 2020): 201 pounds
Current Weight (July 27, 2020): 179.4
Total Pounds Lost (Since May 15, 2020): 21.6
Pounds Left to Lose to Reach Goal Weight of 130 pounds: 49.4
OVERVIEW
MONTH ONE: 12.8 pounds lost
MONTH TWO: 4.4 pounds lost
MONTH THREE (still in progress): 4.4 pounds lost
