The Oscars are this weekend.
They have a funny way of revealing what our culture is paying attention to.
đ˝ The Main Course â Bodies: Trending (Again)
I love movies. And, I'll admit it, I love the ridiculous pomp of the Oscars.
Itâs all delightfully over-the-top and Iâm here for it.
Somewhere in the swirl of it all thereâs almost always a moment when my brain notices something else happening alongside the gowns and spectacle.
It's not really about the Oscars.
Itâs about what our culture does every so often:
it resets the standard for womenâs bodies...again.
That part isnât new. If you zoom out over decades, the âidealâ female body shape has shifted many times.
What feels different right now is how quickly this shift has happened. Almost overnight.
Not that long ago the broader conversation still had some room in it for strength, curves, and athleticism. For bodies to take up space in many different ways.
Then suddenly a much narrower visual standard started showing up again across the internet, in celebrity culture, in our daily lives.
Years ago, when this same aesthetic dominated, I knew exactly what my brain would do.
Compare.
Self-criticize.
Turn up that internal voice suggesting maybe it's time to start a diet again.
My reaction now is different. The first thought isnât envy or admiration.
Itâs concern.
Because Iâve watched what happens when a very narrow body ideal starts circulating widely again.
I see it in my work, my clients.
I see it in the way women start talking to themselves again. And to each other.
The pressure around food.
Around bodies.
Around the idea that maybe itâs time to âtighten things up.â
Seeing the shift happen so quickly reminded me how easily we return to old body ideals.
Human bodies arenât supposed to have "trend" cycles.
But they do.
And moments like the Oscars make that pattern hard to miss.
We're not just celebrating films.
We're noticing bodies.
The ripple effect doesnât stay in Hollywood. It reaches the rest of us too.
Even when we know betterâeven when weâve done years of work around food, bodies, and self-trustâthose signals still land in our nervous system.
Sometimes as comparison. Sometimes as pressure.
Or maybe just as the exasperating recognition of the return of a body standard many of us hoped we were all done with.
If you watch the Oscars this weekend, you might notice how clearly that standard is back in the spotlight.
đž Sweet Moment(s):
If the Academy ever introduces an Oscar for Best Supporting Role in a Humanâs Life, Benny and Ramona are shoo-ins. đ
Until next time - more dogs, less dogma. Always.
Carol
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