Strongarmed

It's always struck me as a bit sexist when I hear a woman complain about another woman's arms.

"Ew!  Her arms are so gross!  Look at the muscles!  Ewwww!"


Okay, I'll concede that female bodybuilders look a bit weird.  So do male bodybuilders.  I can't say, "female bodybuilders don't look like women" because male bodybuilders don't look especially male either.  They look like caricatures of human beings.  Or aliens.  Or something.  Maybe it's the tanning.  And the shininess.  And the veins.




Anyway, I'm not talking about bodybuilders.  I'm talking about women who obviously work out and have a little bulge in their bicep.  Not even a big bulge.  Just a little roundness.  I keep hearing about how gross it is, and every time a woman with defined arms appears on TV or in a magazine, I hear other women say how disgusting those arms are.

Then I would go to work at a clothing store and hear women complain endlessly about the flab under their arms.  (Yes, cap sleeves are evil.  I agree.  I hate them and they make me look weirdly out of proportion.  EITHER BE A SLEEVE OR DON'T!  Don't pretend to be a sleeve but then require that I go get my blazers dry cleaned every time I wear them.  That's just mean.)

So you can't be a woman with defined, toned arms.

And you can't be a woman with underarm flab.  Which most women have from the time they're like, I dunno, 14.

Can't be toned ... can't be flabby ...

So which is it?

If you're thin you need to eat a sandwich, if you're fat you need to stop eating sandwiches, and if you're "average" we'll just call you a fatty for good measure.  In fact, if you're 115 pounds and have any visible fat on your body, we'll call you fat.  But god forbid you eat.  Or not eat.  Or work out.

Holy shit, it's midnight and my brain is going to explode if I think about this any longer.