I've lost nearly 100lbs (250-160ish) over the past ~13 years simply by being more aware of what I was putting into my body and gradually consuming less. I wasn't really taught that excess caloric intake = increased body fat when I was a kid and I guess no kid really should. Parents need to be taught so that they can be that health-buffer. (a tangent) Over the past few years I've been incorporating more exercise and I intend to start a bit of weight-lifting before I hit that age peak where performance drops off. I figure it's an investment into my body that will pay off in me being more mobile should I make it to old age. I've elders in my family that have different levels of fitness at around the same age (say, 60s-70s) and the gap in quality of life is astounding. I do NOT want to be feeble or immobile in my late 60s-early 70s. Naturally, I'm also self-conscious/narcissistic and want to work myself to a good 'bod' while I still can. Sure, societal pressures drive this a bit, but I don't think it's harmful to my sense of self-worth. Basking in the glory of a six-pack would just be the icing on the cake of my being.
By way of contrast, my parents restricted me to 600 calories a day when I was 7 and spent 8 months requiring me to do half an hour of Canadian Air Force calisthenics before bed. And when that didn't work, they gave up. When I went from outweighing my father by 50 lbs to underweighing my father by 50lbs in the space of three months, they said "congratulations." I'm 7 inches taller than my father.I wasn't really taught that excess caloric intake = increased body fat when I was a kid and I guess no kid really should. Parents need to be taught so that they can be that health-buffer.
Jesus Christ. My mom is a huge (negative) influence on my body image as I grew up — she’s a former anorexic who never seems to have gotten any therapy about it — but your parents are just fucking next next level. As sadly seems usual hearing from you about them.