Publication design by alina.nicholas01

PUBLICATION DESIGN

Alina Nicholas / VISC 202

PROCESS BOOK

INTRODUCTORY NOTES

9/9/20 One space between sentences

Quotation marks

MAC IS NOT A TYPEWRITER NOTES - use only one space after periods, colons, exclamation points, question marks, quotation marks - any punctuation that separates two sentences - typewriter : all characters are mono spaced, take up the same amount of space, which means you have to type two spaces after periods to separate one sentence from the next - mac : characters are proportional - use real quotation marks, not the grotesque generic marks, the curved ones - mac : option [ , and option shift [

9/17/20

NOTES

How to combine fonts video - make sure the font size have something in common Like an engineer video - serif : something you’d see in book, things sticking out - Sans serif : something on screen - slab serif : thick thingies sticking out - script : letters connected, handwriting - hierarchy : order of type - fonts with similar x heights blend well - structure sizing around golden ratio (1.618) ﬁbbanochi number (ex: 12 pt x 1.618) Ten rules to rule type

Apostrophies

Dashes

- use real apostrophes, not foot marks - curved not straight - option shift ] - for possessives : turn phrase around , apostrophe will be placed after whatever word you end up with - for contractions ; apostrophe replaces missing letter - for omission of letters ; like rock n’ roll - never use two hyphens instead of a dash - use hyphens, en dashes, and em dashes appropriately - can be used to break up words at the end of a line - typewriter ; double hyphen - mac ; en and em dash - en dash : its the width of a capital N, used between words indication a duration, option hyphen - em dash : twice as long as en, size of capital M, used like colon or parenthesis, indicated abrupt change in thought, option shift hyphen

Kerning

Basics of typography video part 1 - display type - hierarchy : order of importance - kerning : adjusting space between characters, make it more pleasing to eye - leading : tight leading is overlapping type, good is further apart Contrast video - size weight value color - control eye and deﬁne hierarchy movement and meaning Character styles - select, paragraph style, create paragraph style, - character style attributes : character styles don’t include all formatting attributes of selected text, like paragraph styles do - character style : collection of character forming attributes that can be applies to text in a single step - paragraph style : includes both character and paragraph formatting attributes and can be applies to a paragraph or range or paragraphs - named grid : format can be applies to frame grid Basics of typography part 2 - tracking : similar to kerning, tracking deals with space between groups of letters, can change density of block of text - widows & orphans : widows are at bottom, orphans are at top of paragraph - serif fonts : thingies on end - sans serif : screen stuﬀ

Windows and orphans

- never leave widows and orphans bereft on the page - orphan : ends at top of next page, alone

- avoid more than 2 hyphenation in a row Hyphenation and line breaks - avoid too many in any paragraph - never hyphenate a heading

Leading or linespace

Justiﬁed text Serif and sans serif

Combing typefaces

Fibbanoci sequence - ex: raspberry seeds, bark on tree - Leonardo Pisano - set of numbers that starts with a one or zero followed by a one and proceeds based on the rule that each number is equal to the sum of the preceding two numbers

- standard unit of measurement is 20 percent of the point size - lacking descenders, lines with no visual interruption in them can create space that looks larger than necessary - in a paragraph, you can add a few points in a box called, after - justify text only if the line is long enough to prevent awkward and inconsistent word spacing - don’t want rivers in the paragraph - turn it upside down and squint at it - serif is more readable and best for text, brackets - sans serif more legible and good for headings and signage, no brackets - sans serif in text : use shorter line length, no more than 7/8 words on a line, avoid bold italic all that - never combine more than two typefaces on the same page - never combine two serif fonts, and never combine two San serif fonts on same page

I N T RO D U C T O RY N OT E S

ARTICLE BASICS

LOSING IT IN THE ANTI DIETING AGE The agonies of being overweight â&#x20AC;&#x201D; or running a diet company â&#x20AC;&#x201D; in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size. The article starts off with weight watchers wanting a more holistic approach to eating. The company used famous people like Oprah Winfrey to help gain traction with their new brand, and their memberships went up due to these type of advertisements. They talked about the 1963 original weight watchers and advertisements that taught it was only good to be thin. It showed old posters of old advertisements that promoted the idea of dieting in an unhealthy way and how they used to sell these memberships. It went over a few studies of dieting long term effects on the body and the rise of the attention to this movement. Overall it sheds light on the toxicity of dieting and society beauty standards today and it was interesting to see how society teamed together for things that are fundamentally uncomfortable.

A RT I C L E B A S I C S - s u m m a r y

A RT I C L E B A S I C S - i m a g e s

A RT I C L E B A S I C S - v e c to r s

KEY WORDS

POTENTIAL TITLES

Decline Behavior modification Wellness Diet Losing Loss Fat Healthy Goal oriented Enlightenment Thin Skinny Destructive Fat power AcceptanceL azy Disease Love and care

Skinny is healthy Skinny is happy Thin is happy Eat clean Strong and fit Long term efficiency Goal oriented Enlightenment Health and wellness Get fit Bikini body Tough love Beauty is pain Body acceptance

A RT I C L E B A S I C S - key w o r d s & p o te n t i a l t i t l e s

A RT I C L E B A S I C S - p r e l i m i n a r y s k e tc h e s 1

A RT I C L E B A S I C S - p r e l i m i n a r y s k e tc h e s 2

OPENING SPREADS R1

ANTI DIETING AGE Ta f f y B ro d e s s e r -A k n e r

The agonies of being overweight, o r r u n n i n g a d i e t c o m p a ny, i n a c u l t u r e t h a t l i ke s t o p re t e n d i t o n l y c a r e s a b o u t h e a l t h , n o t s i ze .

I T

E I T D I

A GE

OPENING SPREADS R2

THE NEW YORK TIMES

August 2, 2017

DIETING

anti

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

Photo by Todd McLellan

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of being overweight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

age

LO E.

B y Ta ff y B ro d e s s e r- A k n e r P h o t o b y To d d M c Le l l a n

TOUGH

LOSING IT IN THE ANTI DIETING AGE

T H E N E W YO R K T I M E S

The agonies of being overweight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

August 2, 2017

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner Photo by Todd McLellan

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of being overweight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

DIETING AGE

THE NEW YORK TIMES 2

FINAL OPENING SPREAD

August 2, 2017

anti

DIETING age

By Taï¬&#x20AC;y Brodesser-Akner Photo by Todd McLellan

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of being overweight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

FINAL OPENING SPREAD

font specs

TESTS & STUDIES

interstate, regular

interstate, regular 72pt

interstate, bold italic 20pt

interstate, extra light 12pt

interstate, regular 18pt

Photo By Todd McLellan

ANTI DIETING AGE THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

Interstate, regular 11pt

Interstate, extra light

interstate, regular 8pt 24

Losing it in the Anti Dieting Age, New York Times Magazine

honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. They wanted to be not quite so fat. Not that there was anything wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely. The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and

weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones. These questions began to filter into the mainstream. Women’s magazines started shifting the verbal displays on their covers, from the aggressive hard-body stance of old to one with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what size it can be: Get fit! Be your healthiest! GET STRONG! replaced diet language like Get lean! Control your eating! Lose 10 pounds this month! In late 2015, Women’s Health, a holdout, announced in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’ The word ‘‘wellness’’ came to prominence. People were now fasting and eating clean and cleansing and making lifestyle changes, which, by all available evidence, is exactly like dieting.

brown, light

Brown, bold 72pt

brown, bold italic 20pt

brown, light 12pt

brown, regular 18pt

Photo By Todd McLellan

ANTI DIETING AGE THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

brown, bold 11pt

brown, regular

brown, light 8pt 24

Losing it in the Anti Dieting Age, New York Times Magazine

fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to ure out what was oin on an how to it before theFebruary board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so the coul be t he wante to eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it cept that man o them i he wanted to be thinner. There was nothing wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely. The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about ietin s lon -term efficac n ei ht Watchers’ own research, the average weight

loss in an beha ior-mo i cation pro ram is about a percent re uction o bo wei ht a ter si months with a return o a thir o the wei ht lost at two ears here were stu ies that appeare to in icate that the c cle o wei ht loss an wei ht ain coul cause lon -term ama e to the metabolism hose stu ies le to more stu ies which su este that once our bo reaches a certain wei ht it is nearl impossible to e ist at a much lower wei ht or an e ten e perio o time en more stu ies be an to uestion whether or not it s so ba to be at in the rst place one notabl su este that atter people li e lon er than thin ones hese uestions be an to lter into the mainstream omen s ma a ines starte shi tin the erbal ispla s on their co ers rom the a ressi e har -bo stance o ol to one with entler lan ua e ac nowle in that perhaps a women s ma a ine oesn t now or sure what si e our bo shoul be or what si e it can be et t e our healthiest replace iet lan ua e li e et lean ontrol our eatin ose poun s this month n late omen s ealth a hol out announce in its own pa es that it was oin awa with the co er phrases rop two si es an bi ini bo he wor wellness came to prominence eople were now astin an eatin clean an cleansin an ma in li est le chan es which is e actl li e ietin

brown, light

Brown, bold 72pt

brown, bold 20pt

brown, bold 12pt

brown, light italic 18pt

Photo By Todd McLellan

ANTI DIETING AGE THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

brown, light italic 11pt

brown, regular

brown, light 8pt 24

Losing it in the Anti Dieting Age, New York Times Magazine

the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to ure out what was oin on an how to it be ore the ebruar boar meetin Benovitz got to work. She traveled the countr inter iewin members ormer members an people the thou ht shoul be members about their attitu es towar dieting. She heard that they no longer wante to tal about ietin an wei ht loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so the coul be t he wante to eat clean so the coul be stron ou ha been watchin closel ou coul see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium all bo ies shoul be accepte and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss was a pursuit that ha somehow landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it cept that man o them i he wanted to be thinner. There was nothing wron with bein at he ust wante to call dieting something else entirely. he chan e ha been spurre not ust b ietin ati ue but also b real uestions about ietin s lon -term efficac n ei ht Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in an beha ior-mo i cation pro ram is

about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the rst place one notabl su este that fatter people lived longer than thin ones. hese uestions be an to lter into the mainstream. Women’s magazines started shifting the verbal displays on their covers, from the aggressive hard-body stance of old to one with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what si e it can be et t e our healthiest replace iet lan ua e li e et lean ontrol our eatin ose poun s this month n late omen s ealth a hol out announce in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’ The word ‘‘wellness’’ came to prominence. People were now fasting and eating clean and cleansing and making lifestyle changes, which, is exactly like dieting.

brown, light

Brown, bold italic/ backslanted 72pt

brown, light 20pt

brown, bold 12pt

brown, bold italic 18pt

Photo By Todd McLellan

ANTI DIETING AGE THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

brown, bold 11pt

brown, regular

James Chambers was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a stock ticker — it was a rs nday o e year e day e a de de a s s e re no o n o s ay a or one ore day At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member-recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than twothirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss. Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet

brown, light 8pt 24

Losing it in the Anti Dieting Age, New York Times Magazine

baskerville, regular

baskerville, bold 72pt

basic sans, light 20pt

basic sans, light 12pt

basic sans, regular 18pt

Photo By Todd McLellan

ANTI DIETING AGE THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

baskerville, bold 11pt

basic sans, regular

baskerville, regular 8pt 24

Losing it in the Anti Dieting Age, New York Times Magazine

Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. There was nothing wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely. The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies,

which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones. These questions began to filter into the mainstream. Women’s magazines started shifting the verbal displays on their covers, from the aggressive hard-body stance of old to one with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what size it can be: Get fit! Be your healthiest! GET STRONG! replaced diet language like Get lean! Control your eating! Lose 10 pounds this month! In late 2015, Women’s Health, a holdout, announced in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’ The word ‘‘wellness’’ came to prominence. People were now fasting and eating clean and cleansing and making lifestyle changes, which, is exactly like dieting. Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company. In fact, Lean Cuisine went so far in their pivot that in 2016 they introduced a Google Chrome extension that would filter mentions of the word ‘‘diet’’ and ‘‘dieting’’; it apparently did this to show that just because it was called Lean Cuisine, that didn’t mean it was a diet company. You can’t be held responsible for what your parents named you!

baskerville, regular

baskerville, bold 72pt

acumin pro, regular 20pt

acumin pro, bold 12pt

baskerville, bold 18pt

Photo By Todd McLellan

ANTI DIETING AGE THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

By Taffy Brodesser-Akner

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

acumin pro, bold 11pt

baskerville, regular

baskerville, regular 8pt 24

Losing it in the Anti Dieting Age, New York Times Magazine

wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. There was nothing wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely. The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those

studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones. These questions began to filter into the mainstream. Women’s magazines started shifting the verbal displays on their covers, from the aggressive hard-body stance of old to one with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what size it can be: Get fit! Be your healthiest! GET STRONG! replaced diet language like Get lean! Control your eating! Lose 10 pounds this month! In late 2015, Women’s Health, a holdout, announced in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’ The word ‘‘wellness’’ came to prominence. People were now fasting and eating clean and cleansing and making lifestyle changes, which, is exactly like dieting. Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company. In fact, Lean Cuisine went so far in their pivot that in 2016 they introduced a Google Chrome extension that would filter mentions of the word ‘‘diet’’ and ‘‘dieting’’; it apparently did this to show that just because it was called Lean Cuisine, that didn’t mean it was a diet company. You can’t be held responsible for what your parents named you!

paragraph breaks

TESTS & STUDIES

James Chambers was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015,

like a stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than twothirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss.

Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and

global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting.

Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members,

former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change

had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. There was nothing wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely.

paragraph break 1 : first few words bold & 11 pt, no indent

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James Chambers was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a

Watchers was at a loss.

paragraph break 3 : first few words bold, no indent, light text, leading 12, tracking 20

stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than twothirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight

Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

paragraph break 4 : 14 pt leading, enter

JAMES CHAMBERS was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015,

James Chambers was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a

like a stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide

stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that

that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was

this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was

Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on

the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment

had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member

recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help

reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and

the people never showed up. More than two thirds of Americans were what

the people never showed up. More than twothirds of Americans were what

public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest

and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight

Watchers was at a loss.

CHAMBERS CALLED Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president

Chamber called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global

and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst

head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that

Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her.

anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting

In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about

business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of

the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and

the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew

Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight

that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had

Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With

recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’

the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty.

an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told

Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and

Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it

how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting.

before theFebruary board meeting.

BENOVITZ GOT TO WORK. She traveled the country, interviewing

Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former

members, former members and people they thought should be members about

members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes

their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk

toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’

about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they

and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’

could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

paragraph break 5 : 14 pt leading, bold italic 9 pt first few words, no indent

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was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss. Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before the February board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about

Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before the February board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

paragraph break 7 : 14 pt leading, extended

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James Chambers was watching membership sign-ups on

Jan. 4, 2015, like a stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than twothirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss.

Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice

president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting.

Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing

members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

paragraph break 9 : 14 pt leading, enter, double indent

James Chambers was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than twothirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss. Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before the February board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. There was nothing wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely.

paragraph break 10: 12 pt leading, first few words bold, alternating opacity 72%

toolkits

TESTS & STUDIES

THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

ANTI DIETING AGE

JAMES CHAMBERS was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than two thirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss.

CHAMBERS CALLED Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. hambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before theFebruary board meeting.

BENOVITZ GOT TO WORK. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

“All bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it.”

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

“All bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it.”

THE AGONIES OF BEING OVERWEIGHT

ANTI DIETING AGE

“all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it.”

anti age

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

T H E AG O N I E S O F B E I N G OV E RW E I G H T

DIETING James Chambers was watching membership sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than twothirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss. Chamber called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.” Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before the February board meeting. Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’

justification

TESTS & STUDIES

James Chambers was watching membership signups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a stock ticker — it was that first Sunday of the year, the day we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was Weight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat watching, waiting for the line on the graph to begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew consumer sentiment had been changing — the company was in its fourth year of member-recruitment decline. But they also had a new marketing campaign to help reverse the generally dismal trend. But the weekend came and went, and the people never showed up. More than two-thirds of Americans were what public-health officials called overweight or obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the people? Weight Watchers was at a loss. Chambers called Deb Benovitz, the company’s senior vice president and global head of consumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ she remembers him telling her. In the dieting business, January will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year. ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.’’ Chambers and Benovitz knew that people had developed a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had recently tried the new marketing campaign, called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part,’’ an attempt at radical honesty. No one wanted radical honesty. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to figure out what was going on and how to fix it before the February board meeting.

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Alina Nicholas / VISC 202

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Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. They wanted to be not quite so fat. Not that there was anything wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely. A study out of Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association in March, monitored attitudes toward losing weight over three periods between 1988 and 2014. In the first period, 1988-94, 56 percent of fat adults reported that they tried to lose weight. In the last period, 2009-14, only 49 percent said so. The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones.

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thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. They wanted to be not quite so fat. Not that there was anything wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely. A study out of Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association in March, monitored attitudes toward losing weight over three periods between 1988 and 2014. In the first period, 1988-94, 56 percent of fat adults reported that they tried to lose weight. In the last period, 2009-14, only 49 percent said so. The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones. These questions began to filter into the mainstream. Women’s magazines started shifting the verbal displays on their covers, from the aggressive hard-body stance of old to one with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what size it can be: Get fit! Be your healthiest! GET STRONG! replaced diet language like Get lean! Control your eating! Lose 10 pounds this month! In late 2015, Women’s Health, a holdout, announced in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’

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they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. They wanted to be not quite so fat. Not that there was anything wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely. A study out of Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association in March, monitored attitudes toward losing weight over three periods between 1988 and 2014. In the first period, 1988-94, 56 percent of fat adults reported that they tried to lose weight. In the last period, 2009-14, only 49 percent said so. The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones. These questions began to filter into the mainstream. Women’s magazines started shifting the verbal displays on their covers, from the aggressive hard-body stance of old to one with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what size it can be: Get fit! Be your healthiest! GET STRONG! replaced diet language like Get lean! Control your eating! Lose 10 pounds this month! In late 2015, Women’s Health, a holdout, announced in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’

FULL SPREAD R3

August 2, 2017

anti

DIETING age

By Taffy Brodesser Akner Photo by Todd McLellen

16 THE NEW YORK TIMES

August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of b eing over weight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

anti

DIETING

“In the dieting business, Januar y will tell you ever y thing you need to know about the rest of the year.”

THE NEW YORK TIMES

T H E AG O N I E S O F B E I N G OV E RW E I G H T

age

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

August 2, 2017

“ALL BODIES SHOULD BE ACCEPTED, AND ANY INCLINATION TO CHANGE A BODY WAS PROOF OF A L ACK OF ACCEPTANCE”

A study out of Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association in March, monitored attitudes toward losing weight over three periods between 1988 and 2014. In the first period, 1988-94, 56 percent of fat adults reported that they tried to lose weight. In the last period, 2009-14, only 49 percent said so.

These questions began to filter into the mainstream. Women’s magazines started shifting the verbal displays on their covers, from the aggressive hard-body stance of old to one with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what size it can be: Get fit! Be your healthiest! GET STRONG! replaced diet language like Get lean! Control your eating! Lose 10 pounds this month! In late 2015, Women’s Health, a holdout, announced in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’ The word ‘‘wellness’’ came to prominence. People were now fasting and eating clean and cleansing and making lifestyle changes, which, by all available evidence, is exactly like dieting.

The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own

Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company.

August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was antifeminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. They wanted to be not quite so fat. Not that there was anything wrong with being fat! They just wanted to call dieting something else entirely.

research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones.

“He used all available mind-body research to tr y to figure out a way for members to appreciate benefits of the program besides weight loss.”

Weight Watchers’ chief science officer is Gary Foster, a psychologist — the first in that position, which previously had been held by dietitians. What he and his team realized from Benovitz’s research was that dieters wanted a holistic approach to eating, one that helped really change their bodies, yes, but in a way that was sustainable and positive. He got to work creating a new approach that would become known as Beyond the Scale: He used all available mind-body research to try to figure out a way for members to appreciate benefits of the program besides weight loss. This would help them stay on the program during setbacks and beyond their weight-loss period and allow the program to infiltrate their lives beyond mealtime and beyond plain old eating suggestions.

August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

August 2, 2017

anti

DIETING age

By Taffy Brodesser Akner Photo by Todd McLellen

16 THE NEW YORK TIMES

August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of b eing over weight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

DIETING

will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year.

age

THE NEW YORK TIMES

T H E AG O N I E S O F B E I N G OV E RW E I G H T

anti

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

“

In the dieting business, January

August 2, 2017

“

ALL BODIES SHOULD BE ACCEPTED, AND ANYINCLINATION TO CHANGE A BODY WAS PROOF OF A LACK OF ACCEPTANCE

The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own

Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company.

August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

“

HE USED ALL AVALIABLE MIND-BODY RESEARCH TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT A WAY FOR MEMBERS TO APPREICATE BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM BESIDES WEIGHT LOSS

In fact, Lean Cuisine went so far in their pivot that in 2016 they introduced a Google Chrome extension that would filter mentions of the word ‘‘diet’’ and ‘‘dieting’’; it apparently did this to show that just because it was called Lean Cuisine, that didn’t mean it was a diet company. You can’t be held responsible for what your parents named you! Weight Watchers saw all this happening and concluded that people didn’t have faith in diets. The company decided that what it offered was not a diet program but a lifestyle program. It was a behavior-modification program. (For the sake of expediency here, I will call its program a diet because it prescribes amounts of food.) When Deb Benovitz returned from her travels with news of dieting’s new language changes, the company realized that something had to change more than its marketing approach.

August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

anti

August 2, 2017

DIETING age

By Taffy Brodesser Akner Photo by Todd McLellen

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of b eing over weight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

16 THE NEW YORK TIMES

will tell you everything you need to know about the rest of the year.

age

THE NEW YORK TIMES

T H E AG O N I E S O F B E I N G OV E RW E I G H T

DIETING

August 2, 2017

anti

The toxicity of dieting and beauty standards in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

“

In the dieting business, January

THE NEW YORK TIMES

August 2, 2017

“

ALL BODIES SHOULD BE ACCEPTED, AND ANYINCLINATION TO CHANGE A BODY WAS PROOF OF A LACK OF ACCEPTANCE

The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own

Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company.

There were more books and more essays and more challenges to the status quo in the decades to come. In 2008, Linda Bacon, a researcher who holds graduate degrees in physiology, psychology and exercise science with a specialty in nutrition, wrote a seminal fat-acceptance book, ‘‘Health at Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight,’’ which used peer-reviewed research to bolster these ideas. She gave seminars to doctors on fat phobia and weight bias in an effort to help them understand how their views on obesity were hurting their patients and not allowing them to examine fatness neutrally. For example, there is evidence that stress and discrimination play a strong role in the insulin resistance and diabetes and heart disease for which weight typically takes the blame. With the rise of social media, the movement began to infiltrate the culture in other ways, too. Fat-acceptance and body-positivity activists began posting pictures of themselves on Instagram — just regular pictures, defiant for their lack of apology. There were intuitive-eating workshops and body-positivity training camps. There were bloggers and authors asking exactly how much of your life you were willing to put off in pursuit of a diet, or until you got to a certain weight, even temporarily. Normal, nonmilitant, nonactivist people began asking themselves if it was that bad to be fat — if it was that unhealthy, or that ugly, to be fat. And yet the most telling thing about the way the fat acceptance movement is received in our society may be that its Wikipedia entry contains two quotes from people criticizing it before it mentions even one person who espouses it.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

August 2, 2017

“

HE USED ALL AVALIABLE MIND-BODY RESEARCH TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT A WAY FOR MEMBERS TO APPREICATE BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM BESIDES WEIGHT LOSS

FULL SPREAD R4

F U L L S P R E A D R 4 - s p r e a d t h u m b n a i l s k e tc h e s

anti

August 2, 2017

DIETING age

By Taffy Brodesser Akner Photo by Todd McLellen

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of b eing over weight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

16 THE NEW YORK TIMES

T H E AG O N I E S O F B E I N G OV E RW E I G H T THE NEW YORK TIMES 18

“

IN THE DIETING BUSINESS, JANUARY WILL TELL YOU EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE REST OF THE YEAR

August 2, 2017

THE TOXICITY OF DIETING AND BEAUTY STANDARDS IN A CULTURE THAT PRETENDS IT ONLY CARES ABOUT HEALTH NOT SIZE.

August 2, 2017

“

ALL BODIES SHOULD BE ACCEPTED, AND ANYINCLINATION TO CHANGE A BODY WAS PROOF OF A LACK OF ACCEPTANCE

THE NEW YORK TIMES

The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own

Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company.

21 21

August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

“

HE USED ALL AVALIABLE MIND-BODY RESEARCH TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT A WAY FOR MEMBERS TO APPREICATE BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM BESIDES WEIGHT LOSS 23

anti

August 2, 2017

DIETING age

By Taffy Brodesser Akner Photo by Todd McLellen

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of b eing over weight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

16 THE NEW YORK TIMES

T H E AG O N I E S O F B E I N G OV E RW E I G H T THE NEW YORK TIMES 18

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IN THE DIETING BUSINESS, JANUARY WILL TELL YOU EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE REST OF THE YEAR

August 2, 2017

THE TOXICITY OF DIETING AND BEAUTY STANDARDS IN A CULTURE THAT PRETENDS IT ONLY CARES ABOUT HEALTH NOT SIZE.

August 2, 2017

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ALL BODIES SHOULD BE ACCEPTED, AND ANYINCLINATION TO CHANGE A BODY WAS PROOF OF A LACK OF ACCEPTANCE

THE NEW YORK TIMES

The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own

Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company.

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August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

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HE USED ALL AVALIABLE MIND-BODY RESEARCH TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT A WAY FOR MEMBERS TO APPREICATE BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM BESIDES WEIGHT LOSS 23

FINAL FULL SPREAD

anti

August 2, 2017

DIETING age

By Taffy Brodesser Akner Photo by Todd McLellen

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Losing it in the anti dieting age. The agonies of b eing over weight, or running a diet company, in a culture that likes to pretend it only cares about health, not size.

16 THE NEW YORK TIMES

August 2, 2017

THE TOXICITY OF DIETING AND BEAUTY STANDARDS IN A CULTURE THAT PRETENDS IT ONLY CARES

T H E AG O N I E S O F B E I N G O V E RW E I G H T

ABOUT HEALTH NOT SIZE.

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THE NEW YORK TIMES

IN THE DIETING BUSINESS, JANUARY

James Chambers was watching membership Chamber called Deb Benovitz, the company’s sign-ups on Jan. 4, 2015, like a stock ticker — senior vice president and global head of conit was that first Sunday of the year, the day sumer insights. ‘‘We’re having one of the worst we all decide that this is it, we’re not going to Januaries that anyone could have imagined,’’ stay fat for one more day. At the time, he was she remembers him telling her. In the dietWeight Watchers’ chief executive, and he sat ing business, January will tell you everything watching, waiting for the line on the graph to you need to know about the rest of the year. begin its skyward trajectory. Chambers knew ‘‘Nothing like we had anticipated.” Chambers consumer sentiment had been changing — and Benovitz knew that people had developed the company was in its fourth year of mem- a kind of diet fatigue. Weight Watchers had ber recruitment decline. But they also had a recently tried the new marketing campaign, new marketing campaign to help reverse the called ‘‘Help With the Hard Part” an attempt generally dismal trend. But the weekend came at radical honesty. No one wanted honesty. and went, and the people never showed up. Chambers told Benovitz that they needed to More than twothirds of Americans were what figure out what was going on and how to fix it public-health officials called overweight or before the February board meeting. obese, and this was the oldest and most trusted diet company in the world. Where were the Benovitz got to work. She traveled the country, people? Weight Watchers was at a loss. interviewing members, former members and people they thought should be members about their attitudes toward dieting. She heard that they no longer wanted to talk about ‘‘dieting’’ and ‘‘weight loss.’’ They wanted to become ‘‘healthy’’ so they could be ‘‘fit.’’ They wanted to ‘‘eat clean’’ so they could be ‘‘strong.’’ If you had been watching closely, you could see that the change had come slowly. ‘‘Dieting’’ was now considered tacky. It was anti-feminist. It was arcane. In the new millennium, all bodies should be accepted, and any inclination to change a body was proof of a lack of acceptance of it. ‘‘Weight loss’’ was a pursuit that had, somehow, landed on the wrong side of political correctness. People wanted nothing to do with it. Except that many of them did: They wanted to be thinner. They wanted to be not quite so fat.

WILL TELL YOU EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE REST OF THE YEAR 19

August 2, 2017

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ALL BODIES SHOULD BE ACCEPTED,

AND ANY INCLINATION TO CHANGE A BODY WAS PROOF OF A LACK OF

THE NEW YORK TIMES

ACCEPTANCE

lean! Control your eating! Lose 10 pounds this month! In late 2015, Women’s Health, a holdout, announced in its own pages that it was doing away with the cover phrases ‘‘drop two sizes’’ and ‘‘bikini body.’’ The word ‘‘wellness’’ came to prominence. People were now fasting and eating clean and cleansing and making lifestyle changes, which, by all available evidence, is exactly like dieting.

The change had been spurred not just by dieting fatigue but also by real questions about dieting’s long-term efficacy. In Weight Watchers’ own research, the average weight loss in any behavior-modification program is about a 5 percent reduction of body weight after six months, with a return of a third of the weight lost at two years. There were studies that appeared to indicate that the cycle of weight loss and weight gain could cause long-term damage to the metabolism. Those studies led to more studies, which suggested that once your body reaches a certain weight, it is nearly impossible to exist at a much lower weight for an extended period of time. Even more studies began to question whether or not it’s so bad to be fat in the first place; one notably suggested that fatter people lived longer than thin ones.

Diet companies suffered for being associated with dieting. Lean Cuisine repositioned itself as a ‘‘modern eating’’ company, not a diet company. In fact, Lean Cuisine went so far in their pivot that in 2016 they introduced a Google Chrome extension that would filter mentions of the word ‘‘diet’’ and ‘‘dieting’’; it apparently did this to show that just because it was called Lean Cuisine, that didn’t mean it was a diet company. You can’t be held responsible for what your parents named you!

Weight Watchers saw all this happening and concluded that people didn’t have faith in diets. The company decided that what it offered was not a diet program but a lifestyle program. It was a behavior-modification program. (For the sake of expediency here, I will call its program a diet because it prescribes amounts of These questions began to filter into the main- food.) When Deb Benovitz returned from her stream. Women’s magazines started shifting travels with news of the new language changthe verbal displays on their covers, from the es, the company realized that something had aggressive hard-body stance of old to one to change more than its marketing approach. with gentler language, acknowledging that perhaps a women’s magazine doesn’t know for sure what size your body should be, or what size it can be: Get fit! Be your healthiest! GET STRONG! replaced diet language like Get

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August 2, 2017

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Weight Watchers’ chief science officer is Gary Foster, a psychologist — the first in that position, which previously had been held by dietitians. What he and his team realized from Benovitz’s research was that dieters wanted a holistic approach to eating, one that helped really change their bodies, yes, but in a way that was sustainable and positive. He got to work a new approach that would become known as Beyond the Scale: He used all available mind-body research to try to figure out a way for members to appreciate benefits of the program besides weight loss. This would help them stay on the program during setbacks and beyond their weight-loss period and allow the program to infiltrate their lives beyond mealtime and beyond plain old eating suggestions.

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HE USED ALL AVALIABLE MIND-BODY RESEARCH TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT A WAY FOR MEMBERS TO APPREICATE BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM BESIDES WEIGHT LOSS

With the rise of social media, the movement began to infiltrate the culture in other ways, too. Fat-acceptance and body-positivity activists began posting pictures of themselves on Instagram — just regular pictures, defiant for their lack of apology. There were intuitive-eating workshops and body-positivity training camps. There were bloggers and authors asking exactly how much of your life you were willing to put off in pursuit of a diet, or until you got to a certain weight, even temporarily. Normal, nonmilitant, nonactivist people began asking themselves if it was that bad to be fat — if it was that unhealthy, or that ugly, to be fat. And yet the most telling thing about the way the fat-acceptance movement is received in society may be that its Wikipedia entry contains quotes from people criticizing it before it mentions even one person who espouses it. In this world, we are witness to a moment when the word “optimal” is used in conjunction with the word “body,” when people are trying to mold themselves into high-performance, precision machines. The idea of a fat machine makes no sense when you are easily fueled and refueled on Whole Foods and Soylent. In other words, all this activism didn’t make the world more comfortable with fat people or dieting. Society doesn’t normally change the words for things unless we’re fundamentally uncomfortable with the concepts beneath them. Consider the verbal game of chicken we’ve played with the people all this affects: Fat people went from being called fat (which is mean) to being called overweight (a polite-seeming euphemism that accidentally or not implies that there is a standard weight.

MOCK UPS