By Martin Martinez

Today, more than ever we are plagued with distorted images of how we should look and what we expect others to be. I am sure that you have heard this quote ” beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. But whose eyes are we really looking through? ours or society’s? and are we really the beholder? All of us are influenced in one way or another by society or our culture, no one lives in or under a shell. I will say in all assuredness, that adolescents, teens and those in their early to mid-twenties are truly overweight and unhealthy. How do I know this? well according to kids health.org their studies indicate:

”The percentage of overweight children in the United States is growing at an alarming rate, with 1 out of 3 kids now considered overweight or obese”.”Many kids are spending less time exercising and more time in front of the TV, computer, or video-game console. And today’s busy families have fewer free moments to prepare nutritious, home-cooked meals. From fast food to electronics, quick and easy is the reality for many people in the new millennium”.

Body image is not just appearance,” said Karen Ritter, a licensed clinical social worker with 18 years’ experience. “Your body image has to do with your health, your various talents, how able you are to be in tune with sensations in your body.”Many of us grow up in families watching people be critical of their bodies, Ritter said. But everyone’s body has strengths and weaknesses, and bodies are tied to a person’s genetics.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta conducted a survey that found more than a third of girls considered themselves overweight, compared with fewer than 15 percent of the boys.

I can personally say that I am one of these people whose image is distorted or maybe not. I am an I.F.B.B Pro bodybuilder I have been working out since I was 13 years old and I have almost always been in shape. I had muscles at the age of 9 before working out. I was a bad kid and I fought alot in school. At the age of 12 I was suspended in the winter and came back in the spring and as I was walking to junior high school, it was as if I was a man who was incarcerated for a span of 15 years and heard the sound of an above ground train and shuddered. I realized that I had anger that needed to be directed in a positive way, so I started working out with weights. In 3 months my body radically changed, and in six months what a difference ( I was also going through puberty) it made. I continued to work out and at 18 years of age I won a bodybuilding show and I hadn’t worked out in months. I started working out again and I started winning almost every NPC show I entered. I eventually won the 1997 NPC Nationals lightweight class and turned pro.

I look at people who are not in shape as, people who are not in shape, as undisciplined uncaring individuals who have a slight contempt for themselves, because they are given one body and have decided to neglect it. Being sedentary is usually accompanied by bad eating habits.If I see a man with a large muscular upper body withy small legs, I see him as being incomplete. If I see someone who has a belly this is a sign of self neglect. When I see kids who are overweight, the parents are usually the same way, if not worse. I am biased because I favor woman as mates, who exercise regularly, eat well and have small waists (of course the personality is considered also). I don’t judge men the same way because there is no potential at all for partnership. Friendship is a whole other animal, I am not biased in this aspect.

Society has gotten larger, bigger, more obese since my childhood. Teenage girls and young female adults walk around with their belly shirts, truly living up to the shirts name, proudly parading the overflow and excess of their spilled over abdomen and also teenage and young adult males with bulging mid sections parallel to a women in her second tri-mester. It is truly an eyesore.The slim ones are no different in reference to bad health. they smoke and drink and eat fried foods, it is no wonder that not only the obese ones are acquiring diabetes, but also the “skinny” ones as well. I was in a cab and the driver was a slim fellow and he told me how he just found out that he had diabetes, and I mentioned to him the foods that contributed it (e.g. white rice,white potatoes, white bread, etc…).

”White Americans have the worst body image distortion and Black Americans have the best body image” says Karen Ritter a licensed clinical social worker with 18 years of experience.Just because White americans have ”the worst body image” that does not mean that they are less healthier than African americans who have” the best body image” In fact the opposite is true. Take a look at these facts according to BlackHealthCare.com

Blackhealthcare.com is a culturally oriented and ethnically focused comprehensive internet-based health and medical information provider dedicated to addressing the special health problems of African-Americans. The state of health for African-Americans is especially precarious. Chronic disease has an excessive impact on minority populations.

Consider these facts:

The prevalence of diabetes among African Americans is about 70% higher than among white Americans.
Infant mortality rates are twice as high for African Americans as for white Americans.The 5-year survival rate for cancer among African Americans diagnosed for 1986-1992 was about 44%, compared with 59% for white Americans.

There is also the question of, is being overweight or under weight healthy? and what is the right weight? or is there no such thing as healthy weight? Should we go by the inches of the waist, legs, neck, chest and arms? According to kids health.org (below) conclude that the best way to assess a healthy person and the correct weight is by using the Body Mass Index.

Is Your Child Overweight?

Body mass index (BMI) uses height and weight measurements to estimate how much body fat a person has. To calculate BMI, divide weight in kg by height in meters squared; for pounds and inches, divide weight by height squared and multiply the result by the conversion factor 703.
An easier way to measure BMI is to use a BMI calculator. Once you know your child’s BMI, it can be plotted on a standard BMI chart.

Kids fall into one of four categories:

1) underweight: BMI below the 5th percentile
20 normal weight: BMI at the 5th and less than the 85th percentile
3) overweight: BMI at the 85th and below 95th percentiles
4)obese: BMI at or above 95th percentile

BMI is not a perfect measure of body fat and can be misleading in some situations. For example, a muscular person may have a high BMI without being overweight (because extra muscle adds to a body weight — but not fatness). In addition, BMI may be difficult to interpret during puberty when kids are experiencing periods of rapid growth. It’s important to remember that BMI is usually a good indicator — but is not a direct measurement — of body fat.

Martin Martinez is the  new health contributor to HHR blog. He is a  popular New York City  fitness trainer and the owner and founder of  Brolick Fitness.