How Amy Schumer Is Helping Me Learn To Love My Size
Here's how Amy Schumer and others helped one of our editors embrace her size.
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In this photo, here is what you probably notice about me: I am happy. I am on vacation. And—if you are crazy about The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants like I am—I am in front of Lena Kaligaris’ grandparents house in Santorini.
Here is what you probably won’t notice about me: I am a size 12 and therefore, plus-size.
I am a little late to the game, but last night I saw a clip from Inside Amy Schumer that’s been circulating, titled Size 12. This came a few hours after I had been shopping at American Eagle for some new underwear and found myself having to grab a size XL; just two days after I went shopping at Ann Taylor LOFT and bought, among other things, a pair of shorts in size 12.
My best friend and I have known each other for over 10 years and have grown together—literally and figuratively—and somehow always manage to wear the same size clothing, year after year. This has been amazing for two reasons: 1. I can borrow-steal her clothes, and 2. As the number on my tags has gone up, I have always had someone who understood.
My body is oddly proportioned—I wear a size small in shirts and a size 12 in bottoms. As I am turning 30 this year, I am finally able to accept and embrace it. A year ago, that wasn’t the case.
My friend and I talk about it all the time: “We are a size small in shirts, but because of our pants size, are considered plus-size.” It’s definitely time for those labels to go.
Thanks to people like Amy Schumer (and her clip above), model Ashley Graham and the progress that Women’s Running is championing by featuring normal bodies on our covers, I’ve realized that the number truly doesn’t matter. What matters is that I am healthy. I make sure of that by eating well, working out with a trainer and surrounding myself with people who help inspire me daily (shoutout to Team WR).
“…what I learned is people really don’t like being categorized by ‘plus-size.’ We don’t need these labels. We don’t need them. It should just say what size you are, right?”
YES, Amy Schumer. Yes, it should.
Read More:
How I Learned To Love My Scale
Why Any Body Can Be A Runner’s Body