Body image is something I've thought and written quite a bit about. It's a major component of my thesis, as well as being linked strongly to my feminist streak. It's clear that different cultures and times have had their own definitions of what constitutes 'pleasantly plump' and what constitutes "morbid obesity" to use one of the current clinical terms.
That's it, I'm not a goth, I'm morbidly obese. [sigh]
I'm willing to go by Body Mass Index, after taking a look at a number of types of measurement. The Normal BMI for an adult between 19 and 70 years of age is 18.5 to 24.9 (according to the Partnership for Healthy Weight Management).
My BMI is 55.7 - and a BMI of more than 40 is one of the criteria for baryatric surgery.
Calculate your own BMI using the Partnership for Healthy Weightloss calculator I used to obtain the figure above. (Scroll down to the bottom of the page.)
What next?