A customer stands on the other side of the counter at my work, eyeing the menu. “The food here is so caloric,” she complains, and then looks at me. “You don’t eat here, do you? It certainly doesn’t look like it.” My face turned red.
I’m not quite used to how others see me. Since June 2018, I’ve lost almost 50 pounds. When I made the choice to change my body physically, everyone around me told me that I would be happier: Skinny meant pretty, and pretty meant happy and satisfied. After looking through dozens of before-and-after changes on Instagram and other social media, I was more eager to make myself smaller, to better fit into the world. But none of that happened. I didn’t feel more whole, or more peaceful. More than anything, I felt lied to.
Human health is unbelievably complex, and there’s so much more to our well-being than caloric balance. For several months, I often felt very tired and got angry easily, convinced that my body was a machine and I had to hard-wire it to look as physically perfect as possible. But at the end of the day, I realized that saying no to my body’s natural desire only left me feeling upset.
Our world is filled with losing weight. Nearly every time I listen to the radio, I hear some ads criticizing empty promises of giving you a better body, achieved only by this gym membership/ this prepackaged Keto shake/ this waist trainer. These all live by the same message: That food is dangerous, and the less we eat, the better off we are. In extreme cases, this message can lead to eating disorders, which will affect over 30 million people in their lifetimes, according to the Body Image Therapy Center.
These ideas could not be further from the truth. We eat food for a reason: It gives us energy, it keeps our body functioning, and it makes us human. I urge everybody to adopt a diet based on sustainability (可持续发展), to eat for energy, based on what makes us happy. We all deserve healthy relationships with food and mindful eating is the best place to start.
30. How did the author feel when hearing the customer’s words?
A.Quite proud. |
B.A bit angry. |
C.Rather guilty. |
D.A little embarrassed. |
31. Why did the author desire more strongly to lose weight later?
A.She was laughed at by others. |
B.She got encouragement from her family. |
C.She was attracted by pictures on the Internet. |
D.She got tired easily when being overweight. |
32. What did the author think of her weight loss experience?
A.It made her disbelieve others. |
B.It did harm to her well-being. |
C.It helped lift her confidence a bit. |
D.It taught her about determination. |
33. What is the problem with the ads mentioned according to the author?
A.They are far from creative. |
B.They hurt human’s relationships with food. |
C.They cause many people to do too much exercise. |
D.They mislead some youths into having wrong ideas of beauty. |