Happy Monday mi gente! Long time no see! This week, I’ll be talking about something you may hate just as much as I do… I will be unraveling the controversial and problematic Body Mass Index (BMI). I will also be introducing a new concept: Banging My Image (BMI), which I brainstormed extensively with my creative amigo Javier Marin, aka Pamela. The Gordita’s Way movement is radicalized to make you question and rebel against this horrible thing we call DIET CULTURE IN AMERICA! Are you sick of the BMI shitting on regular ass folks like ourselves? If we do not look like some Instafit and swole ass model, then you are automatically categorized as the “other” and overweight. I’m here to tell you my friends, that the majority, yes NOT minority, have come to the same consensus. The BMI index is too narrow of a scale to use to adequately and accurately to interpret the health of a person. What about us big-boned girls who are just born this way?

My goal for this particular blog:

1. Put an end to body shaming once and for all!
2. Challenge you all to decolonize your minds! Be bold, be unapologetic, be you! Nobody can do it better than you can baby! That much I promise you!

Body Mass Index is a measure of body fat based on height and weight that applies to adult men and womyn; there is also a BMI for children. Now, I’m going to break down this bullshit concept to you in Feli language: BMI is NOT made for people of color (POC), Latinx folks, black people, etc. This shitty concept attempts to quantify the amount of tissue mass (muscle, fat and bone) in an individual and categorize them as underweight, normal weight, or obese based on that value. These are the lies that society has been feeding you mi gente! BMI was not made for you and it is NOT culturally competent. This is a health metric that emerged from decades of conducting research on mostly white people. The BMI is therefore made for white people. The BMI does not take into account genetics, culture, age, sex, gender identity, ethnicity, and muscle mass.

Can you believe that the tool we have been using that has measured body fat for over 100 years is flawed? Can you imagine that healthcare professionals such as doctors, nurses, physician assistants & other health personnel have the power and the final say in deciding whether a patient is underweight or overweight? I’m here to tell you that is ridiculous! It’s no secret why minorities hate the doctor! Hahaha. Recently, my fine ass work husband, Javier Arellano, calculated his BMI with a tool at a Health Fair. Mind you, this man has lost 20 LBS this year and looks phenomenal. This disrespectful measurement had the audacity to classify him as overweight! As for my little short self, I stand at 5’ 2” & weight anywhere between 160-165 pounds on a good day! According to the BMI, I’m obese! BMI is not friendly towards different body types, and let’s be real, how many of us are blessed to look like the plastic silicone asses we see on Instagram?