======= ======= ====== ====== ====== ===== ==== ====== ====== ===== ==== ======= ======= ====== ====== ====== ===== ==== ====== ====== ===== ====
The other night, I was having dinner with a friend I hadn’t seen in a while, when the conversation turned, as it always seems to lately, to my weight loss. After covering the usual topics – how I did it, my workout routines, the longing for bread that I don’t seem to be able to shake – my friend mentioned something about how, when all was said and done, I will have the ultimate “revenge body.” This got me thinking a little bit about the phrase… and how much I hate it.
Like most expressions in the modern day vernacular, there is no precise origin of the term “revenge body.” Because it seems that most abhorrent things lately seem to start with a member of the KarJenners, I’m just going to go ahead and blame Khloé (even though she’s my favorite):
What exactly does “revenge body” mean, anyway? Looking at various internet definitions, it seems that the folks at Urban Dictionary have come the closest to an accurate meaning of the term:
Revenge Body
Meaning: When you break up with someone, usually a cheating piece of shit who really wasn’t worth your time and you work your ass off to look the best you can just to piss him/her off and make them regret their poor choices.
Example: Can’t wait until he sees this revenge body, he’s going to regret fucking that hoe and losing me.
Anger at an ex, coupled with desire to make him/her regret dumping you, sure as hell seem like good motivation to work out and adopt a healthy lifestyle, right? Sure…except that it makes getting in shape less about you and more about them. That’s pretty much the opposite of a healthy mentality, right?
Now, listen. I’m not perfect. There is definitely a part of me that’s been motivated to lose weight by other people, whether it’s a guy from junior year, who didn’t think I was good enough for him because of my weight, or the girl in my sorority, who looked down on me because I was heavier than a typical sorority girl. And while I know that both of those people are assholes of the highest form, there will always be some small part of me that is getting up at 5:30 a.m. to go to the gym because of them. It’s inevitable that our experiences, and in particular, our negative ones and the people associated with them, will somewhat spur a decision to get in shape.
But, in my case, the point is that it’s a small part of me. Let’s call it an 80/20 split. The majority of my motivation is intrinsic – the desire to look and feel better for myself, not for anyone else. At the end of the day, I (mostly) know my getting in shape will only be successful if it’s (mostly) about me, not them.
So I don’t know how you guys feel about it, but I think we need to trash the term “revenge body.” Discussing Khloé’s show back when it premiered, Anna Kaiser, a celebrity trainer who has worked with Karlie Kloss, Shakira and Kelly Ripa, told The Hollywood Reporter this:
I think it’s a terribly negative way to look at your body and I don’t think it’s proper motivation to get in shape. I want the workout to be a positive experience, not a vulnerable situation tied to someone who has wronged you. The idea of revenge itself is not healthy. Feeling comfortable to move on and be a stronger person is much healthier than an idea like that.
Amen, Anna. Amen. But it’s still okay if I post my skinny pics to Instagram and hope that the asshole from junior year will see them, right?
Starting weight to Lose: 30 pounds
Week 1 Results: – 1.1 pounds
Week 2 Results: – 2.1 pounds
Week 3 Results: +0.4 pounds
Week 4 Results: – 0.2 pounds
Week 5 Results: – 0.2 pounds
Week 6 Results: – 0.1 pounds
Week 7 Results: -0.9 pounds
Week 8 Results: 0.0 pounds
Week 9 Results: -0.5 pounds
Week 10 Results: -0.6 pounds
Week 11 Results: 0.0 pounds
Week 12 Results: -0.2 pounds
Remaining weight to lose: 24.5 pounds
If you want to follow along with me, friend me on MyFitnessPal or FitBit! .
Also, I’ll be chatting weekly about my progress with JR Hickey on our podcast, “Don’t Take It From Us.” New eps will be released every Wednesday, so check it out on Soundcloud below or Subscribe on iTunes!
Respond
Jenna Crowley
Jenna used to be known as 2NOTBrokeGirls, but then one of the girls actually went broke, so she's struck out on her own. Jenna spends her free time saving the world, one sorority girl at a time (usually while wearing yoga pants), questioning why she decided to get a doctorate, documenting her love of all things cheese related, and hosting the new PGP podcast Don't Take It From Us. You can ask her anything you want about football, using your boobs to get what you want, and pizza at @JennaLCrowley on Twitter or via email at JennaLCrowley@gmail.com.
@JennaLCrowley
@donttakeitfromus
I don’t understand the concept of the revenge body. How is it supposed to make your ex boyfriend or ex girlfriend jealous. Congrats, you found the motivation to get in shape after a breakup. But that said ex left you when you were out of shape, so they weren’t missing anything at the time. Work out and get in shape first and foremost for you, because it’s healthy, builds self-confidence, and helps relieve stress. To a lesser extent you should want to stay in shape to look good for the person you’re already in a relationship with and supposed to love. Putting the effort in then shows you actually care. Doing it to somehow get back at someone is simply ridiculous. If that’s the case you didn’t really want him or her during the relationship.
Getting back at someone is inherently petty. So of course it’s ridiculous. That’s kind of the point
My point was that I don’t really see how getting in shape post break up really gets back at the person. If I was in that situation it would just reaffirm my decision to break up with them because they had no intention of putting the work in when they were with me.
3 greatest motivators in life are love, fear and hate. Use them wisely.
Also greed. Sweet, sweet greed.
This was a good article. In your results it says you’ve lost 5.5 lbs in 3 months though.. maybe you don’t need to lose as much weight as you think you do? I mean you’re clearly working your ass off but it makes me think their are other forces at play here, maybe medical advice should be sought to help further improve your results. Good luck
I was actually thinking about that this morning; I see my round of doctors in a few weeks (primary, nutritionist, etc) and I’m going to ask what’s up! Thanks for caring 🙂
I mean we obviously don’t know your height, weight, or BMI so I don’t wanna blow smoke up your ass either, but dropping 5 pounds should take a week tops if you are working out and eating like you say you are. Try drinking more water to curb hunger?
5 pounds in a week is a bit aggressive. Ive always heard that half a pound to two pounds a week is healthy progress for weight loss, and any more is pushing it or just water weight. After all, you have to cut out/burn 3500 calories to lose a single pound.
She’s also working out very regularly and she mentioned in other articles that strength training is part of her routine, so there’s a good chance that muscle growth is adding to her total weight.
This is why I like the phrase I’ve heard ‘workout for the mirror, not the scale’
This is why I think people should focus less on the number weight and more on how they look/feel once they are in a healthy weight range. Muscle weighs more than fat so after a while, you’re going to plateau in weight loss number wise.
I generally only eat between 1200-1500 calories a day, drink two quarts of water, do cardio every day, and lift three times a week, so this stall is really quite curious. Hopefully the professionals will have answers!
I have plenty of friends and family who lost weight and can vouch that there is definitely a plateau once you hit a certain point. It’s really frustrating, but if you keep pushing through it you’ll see results again!
I’ve found with people that the best indicator of weight loss is actually body fat %. That records the progress of shedding you do want (body fat) while gaining muscle doesn’t affect the number at all. For reference, abs in females requires about 16-19% body fat.
What kind of cardio? switching to high incline / interval training on a treadmill melted that last 10 lbs off fast after being stuck at a certain number for a year. And once you get used to it, it’s an easy way to rebound from cheat days, and sweat out booze. It was a total game changer
I’ve heard taking psyllium between meals staves off hunger and makes it easier to restrict calories.
And again, weighted carries change the training game. I’m a fan of tnation.com for ideas on training/diet
Taking Psilocybin also helps I here
This is my first comment on this series. Just wanted to say I find these very inspirational in my own weight loss journey and I hope you continue with your success
Thank you so much!!!!
“I hate you so much I’m going to get revenge by letting you control my life”
I don’t work out for revenge after a breakup or whatever.
I work out so people who aren’t dating me will sleep with me. Way better motivation.
Congratulations on the weight loss, that’s definitely a big deal.
The revenge body seems like the ultimate paradox though.. most likely someone wouldn’t have made that lifestyle change if there wasn’t a bad break up or whatever incident that initially caused drama.
Agreed. And maybe once that person starts to workout and take care of themselves they’ll end up liking it because of how they feel upon getting healthier. So the motivation goes from straight revenge to enjoying the benefits of exercise. But still getting satisfaction from knowing you look better to the guy/gal who wronged you. Like that nice 80/20 split Jenna was talked about.
“Kids, at age 12, I weighed 319 pounds. I had bad skin, low self-esteem, and no self-respect.
Now, I eat success for breakfast, with skim milk.”
You’re on to something now, and I anticipate your weight loss will accelerate. Congrats on the sex, it’s coming.
New to commenting here and figured this was my place to shine with tips for you guys.
Tip #1: Unless a specific goal for increasing cardio is sought after, always try to train weights first. Your muscles run almost exclusively on carbs (glucose), and will thus feel more sluggish whereas if cardio is done afterwards, your body just shifts to its next useable energy source (fat) easily!
Stellar post, working out, as with anything else in life really, should come from a source of internal motivation. In other words, external motivation is for the Duda’s of the world.