At times, we all seek words of inspiration to push forward—whether it’s during a workout, navigating the final semester of school, or simply maintaining our sanity in the chaos of daily life.
However, there are instances when the words spoken may lack motivation or kindness.
Recently, an Australian woman was taken aback and offended by a gym’s attempt at motivation.
Reported by the Courier Mail, a sign outside Kawana Anytime Fitness on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, carried the message, “Are you fat and ugly? Just be ugly.”
The gym justifies its intent, stating that the essence of the sign aims to motivate individuals to shed excess weight, thereby alleviating one concern in their lives—a motivational approach that clearly missed the mark.
Debbie Peut, who came across the sign, found it difficult to believe the words she was reading.
“I am horrified beyond explanation,” Ms. Peut explained to the Courier Mail.
“How sad that the word fat continues to be used as an insult and a way to define people. Why is humiliating people funny? I can tell you that as a person who is not thin or classically beautiful that this gym is the last place I would set foot in, if in fact, I chose to go to a gym to exercise,” she said.
Ms. Peut added, “I wonder do they know that people can be ‘healthy and fit’ at any weight?”
She says that eating disorders are affecting people of all ages, shapes, and sizes – and stigmatizing people for being overweight in such a way only hurts people, rather than help them.
When it comes to motivations to hit the gym, there’s no lack of it, and sometimes it comes from very unexpected places.
Niamah Haddow, from Abergavenny, Wales, went on a trip to Florida in order to celebrate her 21st birthday. However, when she became embroiled in a battle with the seatbelt, her weight issues came home with her after she had to sit in one of the larger plane seats.
Niamah says that this was her motivation – along with her mother’s concern – that helped her kick start her determined journey to transform her size and wellbeing.
“I was in a lot of denial due to my weight. My feet were swollen, I was paranoid and my relationship with my partner struggled so much because I was so paranoid about how I looked. When I came back from holiday my mum was visiting from Australia. She hadn’t seen me in over a year and when she saw me she was scared for my health. At the end of August 2015 I started my journey,” she said.
She managed to drop an astonishing 125 pounds – all through a strict and well-planned routine of running 3 miles a day and dieting.
