Weighing in on Oprah: 4 Oklahoma women size up scrutiny on added pounds
"How did I let this happen again?”
This quote from Oprah Winfrey is splashed across the January issue of O, The Oprah Magazine over photos of Oprah at her current weight and in 2005 at a more svelte weight.
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FAILURE FEELINGS?
Should Oprah be embarrassed about her weight gain?
"Yes, she should be embarrassed. She is looked up to by millions of people, especially women. With all her money and access to healthy food and exercise equipment, she should be setting an example.” — Jane Maytubby "When I look at people like Oprah who can afford to have dietitians, personal trainers, state-of-the-art excercise equipment and all food prepared by their own personal chefs, it makes me wonder how and why they fall back into their old eating habits. What about the ordinary women such as myself? What are we to do or who can we turn to?” — Glenda Mumford "I can really sympathize with Oprah. I lost weight in 2006 and went from 167 to 140, and now I’m right back up there. It is really hard to diet every day. Sometimes you just want to enjoy your friends and family and eat what they eat. I’m right with her with a plan to start over with Weight Watchers.” — Teresa Asbury "Oprah looks gorgeous regardless of the 40 pounds. We need to stop focusing on the scales for our worth. Women are so capable and resilient. How about letting the companies (know) who use ads that show anorexic young 18-year-olds wearing little panties and bras that we are boycotting their products? Real women do not look like that.” — Joann Yeager
How has your weight affected your life?
→Jane Maytubby: I’m proud of the way I look. I’m 63 and having a blast keeping my weight down. I don’t feel I would be as happy (if I were still overweight). I was at the point where I was just so heavy, I wouldn’t go shopping. I was in sweats all the time. I have just enjoyed looking so much better. I know how it is to fight weight. In March 2005, I weighed 180 pounds and couldn’t fit into size 14. We had just returned from nine weeks in Florida, where I ate to excess. On Palm Sunday, I made up my mind I was going to lose some weight. My original goal was 30 pounds, which came off within a few months. I changed my lifestyle completely. No fancy diets, just exercise and portion control. One-and-a-half years later, I had lost 62 pounds and was wearing size 4. As of now, I continue to maintain my weight within 2 to 3 pounds. I am having a blast buying "new” clothes at thrift and consignment stores. People who haven’t seen me in a while are amazed at the change. My daughter says I look 10 years younger. →Teresa Asbury: I’ve gained and lost and gained and lost. Unfortunately, I think our whole society is built around eating and entertainment. It makes it very difficult. Five years ago, I had cancer and gained a lot of weight. I went to Weight Watchers and took off 35 pounds and kept it off for six months and put almost all of it back on over the last two years. Some people can really get into it and be very committed to certain things. I can be more committed to work and to other people than I can be to myself. My driver’s license still says 130. It’s said 130 for 30 years. I keep hoping. →Glenda Mumford: My weight has gotten totally out of control. I have a desire to lose weight. ... I have no motivation. I don’t like the terms "plus-sized” or "queen-sized.” I think there are some ladies, Oprah included, that are gorgeous being heavy. Me, myself, I don’t feel that way. I generally think that a larger woman has a prettier face because it’s fuller. I’m a larger lady, and I don’t have health issues yet, but if I stay this way, I could get them. I just turned 51. I want to be 51, fine and fabulous, not 51, fine and fat. I had to get a new driver’s license recently. The lady says, "You need to read this paper. You need to check that everything is the same.” I am 51, and I hadn’t changed my weight on my driver’s license since high school. So, I scratched off 140 and put 160. That was a lie, and I felt good about it. →Joann Yeager: I try not to focus on the weight issue as much. I just want people to be healthy. For our grandbabies, we have an obligation. But I don’t worry too much about my image. I don’t care what someone thinks about me. When my husband died several years ago, I did some Internet singles dating, and for the gentlemen that said they were seeking "petite” or "small” or "slim” or "athletic,” I totally passed them by. That may have been nice for them, and they may have appreciated that, but they missed out on a lady who has a wide variety of talents and interests and does have quite a nice bosom because I weigh more. I think if I lost weight at this age, I would probably look like a wrinkled little prune. I want to influence my granddaughters. I don’t want them to have eating disorders.
"Yes, she should be embarrassed. She is looked up to by millions of people, especially women. With all her money and access to healthy food and exercise equipment, she should be setting an example.” — Jane Maytubby "When I look at people like Oprah who can afford to have dietitians, personal trainers, state-of-the-art excercise equipment and all food prepared by their own personal chefs, it makes me wonder how and why they fall back into their old eating habits. What about the ordinary women such as myself? What are we to do or who can we turn to?” — Glenda Mumford "I can really sympathize with Oprah. I lost weight in 2006 and went from 167 to 140, and now I’m right back up there. It is really hard to diet every day. Sometimes you just want to enjoy your friends and family and eat what they eat. I’m right with her with a plan to start over with Weight Watchers.” — Teresa Asbury "Oprah looks gorgeous regardless of the 40 pounds. We need to stop focusing on the scales for our worth. Women are so capable and resilient. How about letting the companies (know) who use ads that show anorexic young 18-year-olds wearing little panties and bras that we are boycotting their products? Real women do not look like that.” — Joann Yeager
→Jane Maytubby: I’m proud of the way I look. I’m 63 and having a blast keeping my weight down. I don’t feel I would be as happy (if I were still overweight). I was at the point where I was just so heavy, I wouldn’t go shopping. I was in sweats all the time. I have just enjoyed looking so much better. I know how it is to fight weight. In March 2005, I weighed 180 pounds and couldn’t fit into size 14. We had just returned from nine weeks in Florida, where I ate to excess. On Palm Sunday, I made up my mind I was going to lose some weight. My original goal was 30 pounds, which came off within a few months. I changed my lifestyle completely. No fancy diets, just exercise and portion control. One-and-a-half years later, I had lost 62 pounds and was wearing size 4. As of now, I continue to maintain my weight within 2 to 3 pounds. I am having a blast buying "new” clothes at thrift and consignment stores. People who haven’t seen me in a while are amazed at the change. My daughter says I look 10 years younger. →Teresa Asbury: I’ve gained and lost and gained and lost. Unfortunately, I think our whole society is built around eating and entertainment. It makes it very difficult. Five years ago, I had cancer and gained a lot of weight. I went to Weight Watchers and took off 35 pounds and kept it off for six months and put almost all of it back on over the last two years. Some people can really get into it and be very committed to certain things. I can be more committed to work and to other people than I can be to myself. My driver’s license still says 130. It’s said 130 for 30 years. I keep hoping. →Glenda Mumford: My weight has gotten totally out of control. I have a desire to lose weight. ... I have no motivation. I don’t like the terms "plus-sized” or "queen-sized.” I think there are some ladies, Oprah included, that are gorgeous being heavy. Me, myself, I don’t feel that way. I generally think that a larger woman has a prettier face because it’s fuller. I’m a larger lady, and I don’t have health issues yet, but if I stay this way, I could get them. I just turned 51. I want to be 51, fine and fabulous, not 51, fine and fat. I had to get a new driver’s license recently. The lady says, "You need to read this paper. You need to check that everything is the same.” I am 51, and I hadn’t changed my weight on my driver’s license since high school. So, I scratched off 140 and put 160. That was a lie, and I felt good about it. →Joann Yeager: I try not to focus on the weight issue as much. I just want people to be healthy. For our grandbabies, we have an obligation. But I don’t worry too much about my image. I don’t care what someone thinks about me. When my husband died several years ago, I did some Internet singles dating, and for the gentlemen that said they were seeking "petite” or "small” or "slim” or "athletic,” I totally passed them by. That may have been nice for them, and they may have appreciated that, but they missed out on a lady who has a wide variety of talents and interests and does have quite a nice bosom because I weigh more. I think if I lost weight at this age, I would probably look like a wrinkled little prune. I want to influence my granddaughters. I don’t want them to have eating disorders.
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