Thin privilege is having gym class be a nuisance and not a nightmare.

Usually I have a good work ethic when it comes to school. I needed one more gym credit, so I chose a “personal fitness” course, and it was mostly what it says on the tin; “personal” fitness, like weight training and work out videos. It was getting harder and harder to deal with the fat-shaming dialogue in almost every work out video (telling me to “trim, tighten, and tone” instead of just try to get my heart rate up) but I managed to remember it was about being healthy, not just skinny, and I kept going.

But then, the dreaded physical fitness tests came to ruin my day.

Let me be clear- I’m always the one going fastest on the stationary bikes, and keeping up too, not to mention lifting the most weight for someone’s who’s not an extremely muscular guy. But distance running isn’t one of the things I can do well. I know and accept that about myself. Instead of looking at all the things I can do, apparently running a mile in under 14 minutes is the best test of fitness. Nevermind that I have to carry around more weight than anyone else, as I run slower and slower around the track, legs and throat burning as my breath gets more and more shallow. Because at the end, all I’ll be rewarded with is a bunch of pitiful stares as the “fat kid” finishes her run. In the end, the fat one is always the lazy ass, no matter how hard they work compared to everyone else.

And if that’s not thin privilege, I don’t know what is.