h a d i n g WLF ahsent. He, as did tlir wtlrnvn, w:int~tI tnnre r~sprct his sales in interactions.

18 Religion and Morality in

Weight Loss Groups
KANDI M. STINSON
As p u llsvr seen in the previous readings, the expectations or our culture and of social groups afFect us der.p!v Yml have wen how oar ideas about hosp~tality, masculimty, and f r r n l n i n i ~ ~ use of space our as we interact with others, our gift giving; our pre~mtationof the self to others, the stylr of our conversations-all are the result of orir exposnrc to culture and of speclfic qrwps \r.lthin our w w i ~ t ~ In this reading, we examlnp another aspPct o h w deeply culture f anrl saciety affrct us We aren't born with ideas of what a 'pod" h d y looks like any more than we are born -7th ideas a b u t what makes a "pod"g ~ f t 0 i 1 r ideas of -pod" bodi~s-just like our ideas . o how we shnuld use social space o of how we rhould talk to othf r ers-are thr rpsult nf being sncial~md into a p r t ~ c n l a r society at a

Discussion
Interactions between salespersons and cuqtnrners are hrcorninp; nlorr pmit i e through the moderating effect of w o ~ l ~ e n the sales l'orcr.. T h ~ i conin r tlnued introspection anrl g~:t.rlrlrrrd V:II~IPF r ~ ~ r a ~ d have t stlhtle btlt significant influence. Car saleswoinen's definition of rucccss w m e d to Include more Factors than mprp p f i t Quality of life. both at work and in tIrr home, [was] more important to them than mpre gain R e h r m ~ r r r!rf]nutk s~tccess to include a stable work en\rirt~nm~nt rvhrre t r i ~ muld b b~tillt,and a ~t home life w h ~ c h could include a f a n ~ l vTIIPSP . genderrd valur5, r ~ F l e c t ~ d in the classification scheme used in rn! work. show that sales tacttcs basrtl on these ethics help women ta rpmain d l e c t i v e , as u~lE to 1)nild success. ap The linking bptween the Reformer and the Lad\q catwries IS an argl~rnmt in favor of thr i d ~ a the expression of evcn rtercoti*picalFemale hrhavioi that may Pxert a pesitive influence in improving relations in the workplace However. chanws that did take place dependcd upon t h strategies ~ dopted by the women. and the phitmphv of thr dealership where they wnrked. O f t ~ n h a n wews~ o permanent. Yet. the fact that R ~ f o r m e r s ~ ~ ~ t W P ~ Piis~ially top-~wlumes~llersmade them enviable examples to men they worked with. T h ~ y s h m ~ d that profit need not he sacrificed in order to men obtain other rewards such as job stability, tnlstful mlat~ons with customers, and shorter umrk horlrs to accommodate family 1 t k . These rewards, often t h o u ~ h to he unohtainahle. mav lure men to emulate wmen's ~xamples. t Decauw women ar? increar~ngIyrlnteriny male fields where humaneness in relat~onrhac b e ~ n drca'lrtd, tlw-ir ahilitv to construct rals models cornbininq profit-makinq with concern for athers needs f ~ ~ t u r e study.
I

w -L--G c pc F <
>

G & c h G r c t c r ~ \ r ~sirrular to reI:<~nn cs

IN THE cnmip of - ~ v ~ r n ~in t ~ that I studied, I was stn~ck rl ~ rs bv bow much their artiv~ties v f r t r r ~r p s ~ n i hthnw of a rrIi~ion. thiq and l~ In article, I will ILSP t h e metaphor of rrlicinn to a n a l w what I ohw-wedin this p u p : temptation, ~ n i l t conf~zrion, , sacrific~,ritual. i ~ n dahow all. &. evil. and moralltv The ever-present stn~q$ebetween p o d arid evil, or hetween t h~ sncrpd and thy profane, animates w i g h t loss groups The r c l i ~ i n r ~ r rnorl~lis ~ a r ~ l y recoff~ized popular crtlti~re A sin&= individual i~ literally split intn a good in p e r m , represented 6% angel, c o m p l ~ with white gown and halo, and a an t~ had person, represpnted by the r l ~ v i lhedecked in horns and tnil. With t h ~ s ~ , charactm perched on opposite shoulders of the person caught in the middle. the battle linm aw drawn A11 that is leFt iz to wait to srp which side arnerps victorious. In the context af w e i ~ h t loss, the b a t t l ~ e t w ~ r r l nod and evil i s h sirnilarfy played out.

QMI I

Knndi M. Stinqon

One week the informational topic was "being your own best friend " Gail arr i m bme from work. Her place set for dinner, Gail is just sitting down to eat when the phone rings. She answen. and apparently it's someone from the office who needs Gail's help w i t h a computer problem. She begins to talk him through the problem and at the same time begins to nibble on a cake that's sitting on the table. At the end of the phone conversation,the person tells Gail she can enjoy her dinner now and, looking down, she realizes that she has eaten nearly tbe entire cake. At this point. a member nxcla~mcd, -Oh, my p h , she ate the whole thing'" Amy turned to me and said quietly. "I've done that before." When Gail gets off the phone, she's very upset, chides herself for reaIly blowing it, and obvtously feels ver). guilty. At this point in the video, another Gail appears, who represents the negative voice inside her. The negative Gail points out that since Gail ate almost the whole cake, she might as well go ahead and finish it. Thc positive Cail now makes an appearance. and tells her that she doesn't have to eat it: she can throw the rest out. Gail struggles w i t h the twc voices for a while, but eventually, reaIizing that the pos~tive voice is the real Gail, she banishes the negative Gail. The video ends by dlrplaying the slogan, "Be your owp best
\

i ?
1,
r,

Religion and Morality in Weight Loss Groups

201

no surprise that resisting temptation is a frequent topic of discussion in weight loss gmups, particularly around holidays.

The Road t Righteousne~s: o Sacrifice and Depriwrtion

$.

i
)
#

1
I"

friend.-

The videotape is remarkable for several: reasons. Consonant with the

metaphor ofthe battle between good and evil, the character in the video is split into two separate, warrirq selves. ParticuIarly significant is the meaning of p o d and bad. The bad sdf gives in to temptiti& and loses controI. gwd self not only maintains sufficient self-control to withstand temptation,
e guilt and remorse when self-control is lost. Ultie ongoing

b t

E
!

battle is to remove the temptation.

Like

bad

food poses particular diffimltles in the battle against e v i l Being is equated with giving in to sensual pleasum, in this case, the sensual

pleasure of food. To resist temptation you must deny yourself that plewure. Fbod is divided into e d foods and b m . Bad food leads to the sins of w e r i n d u I p c e and loss of self-control. For group members. bad, or in this group's tr &] oe em -pr , the greatest danger ~ u ~ ~ o s e d l y . foods vary from one person to another, and the key is to know your weaknesses. In redty, t h a short Iwt oi common red-light foods. C -leads the ~ e t list, followed closely b y 2 1 adt n, saRy foods like potato chips. The potential sinfulness of red-light foods extends to the situations in which they are often eaten, including parties, weddings, and holiday celebrations. In a world where good and evil do constant battle, temptation i 5 everywhere, so it is

.I .*=

[
A

r.

1, 5 I

The dieter who withstands tenpation is willing and able to deprive herself of tempting, desirable foods.t h e association of &eting with d~privationis pervasive. Accordmg to popular understanding, if o v e r e a t i n _ e h t g a a e n feod r e s s c a u s e s w i g h t loss. I n the name of losing weight, you +pr~ve yourself of pleasurable foods and experiences, but the sacrifice pays i f f , as pounds are lo* Altering food or s u b s t h i n g a "better" food for the one that's desired is a commonplace response to the need to sacrifice, one that simultaneouslv minimizes the sense of deprivation. At the beginning of one meeting, & D bie had on an apron md she meeted the emuD bv saving. 'Hi. I'm fmm Certie's Home Cooking Restaurant. \Ye have f r i ~ dchicken and evervthinv J - ---e homemade from scratch." Debbie asked the group bow we w u l d feel about being somewhere like that. Betty laughed and said. "l'd love ; ~ y Y Y ~ t it. OF e I love that food? But really, I'd rather not be there if I had a c olce This led to a discussion of common substittltions that can be made to make food healher. Debbie asked for substitutions for foods she had listed on the flip chart: sour cream, sausage, light cream, butter, sugar, and cooking oil. Members sugqested yogurt, low-fat or nonfat products, or using less than wm called for in a particular recipe. Debbie then told us to take out our trackers (forms on which members aee to record the foods they eat), write down a Food we wwld be cooking that week and suggest substitutions we could make. She gave us a cmple of minutes and then asked someone to share. Betty said she was making a rump rout for friends who were mo~ing. She was going to cook it ahead, and then refrigrate it, so she could s i the fat km off before using the broth for gravy. When faced with the prospect of traditional home cooking, Betty's first s h response is that Ae would love it, but on second thought, shesuggests that the best choice is to choose not to be at the restaurant in the first place, thus avoiding temptation. The subsequent group discussion reinforces t h s as a wise choice. Betty can choose to eat trahtional home cooking if she wants, but it is best if she eats it at home. rather than in a restaurant, and only after she has altered it to make it a better choice. In either case, she iss sacrificing (or giving up) something she wants. Traditionally, sacrifice plays a central role i11 religion. In the JudeoChristian tradition, the Rible is filled with stories of extraordinary sacrifice,

8 ,

.,

'

! $

1: '8
including that of Abraham. who is willing to sacrifice his son, and of Jesus, wha sacrifices his life. On a more mundane Ievel, followers are often expected to sacrifice (or glve up) certain activities in the name of religion. Tithing, whereby church members pledge a certain percentage of their income to the church, at tirnes requires a considerable sacrifice. In mmy cases, religion involves sacrificing certain pleasurable activities, including food $onsumption. At times the sacrifice is restricted to specific time periodr. as when Catholics were previously prohibited from eating meat on Fridays, or when Christians "give up" something for Lent. At other times, the proscription involves food that is not to be consumed at all, whether it be alcohol, beef, pork, or some other food. Ciyen the strong cultural association between heting m d P J l r l v a t r o n , p members see a c e n t d c o r n p a of their weight loss efforts.

I
!I

Religion and Morality in Weight Loss Groups

203

2
2

a a r
t

\'

weight loss requires both refonned eating habits and r e e x e r c i s e . M w hers receive a number of written materials with suggestions and guidelinss for incorporating exercise into weight loss efforts, and the weekly journals for recording food intake also contain space for recording exercise. Mmbers arc? - - - -supposedto exercise for st ad nage members to increase s w s t easywgs to become more a good number of mambrs, if At the same time, members fd

,A

srcira as an extra for which they of-fact way in which members

Giuing in to Temptation: Guilt

Given t h e discomfort of deprivation and almost endless temptation. there is plenty of p l t to go around. When Peggy finally lost two pounds after several unsuccessful weeks on the program, Debbie asked her what she had done differently. Peggy admitted that she had finally used her tracker to record everything she ate. Sheepishly, she said, "I'm embarrassed to admit it now, but this is the first time I've done it. . . X could really see what I was eating

2
I

1 B
4
"I

suggests that most simply did not a requirem>nt. Consequently, if you don't exercise, there's na need t fed o guilty. Members resist the organ~zation's efforts to formalize the expectation of regular exercise, and as a result it is virtually impossible to induce any r i g nificant degree of p l t for not exercising

QIr

Confwsirm and Forgiueners

When members do see the error of their ways and feel guilty after transgres. sions, meetings provlde a forum for pubiic confession. As members admit to the group tbe various ways they have cheated or broken rules, the meeting becomes a public confessional,with other members as witnesses. Leaders am particularly significant as they make their own confessions. solicit cmfess i o m . f m members, and model appropriate responses f o r i n e m h . Linda was an ef-del, as she regularIy began discussions with stories of her own mistakes. Indeed, Linda frequently repeated her story abont sneaking donllts from her co-workers. Similarly, Debbie often told her own story abwt eating nearly an entire cake at a family celebratim AS leaders make their own confessions, they promote si& chnw by members. The first time I heard Linda confess about the donuts, the : & d personal and potentidlyambarr&ing topig know one another very d l . Linda broke the ice, provided specific examples of the kinds of secrets she had in mind, and created a more comfortable and less threatening atmosphere in which members could confess their transgressions. At other times,leaders directly pmmpt eonfersions, as when Linda asked the pmup, ' W a s there ever been a

and how I b'ad been cheating before.* The prospect of getting caught cheating by others, and the resultant guilt, also came up in conversations. It is not coincidental that when the meeting topic was food secrets, the Issue of hiding food fmrn other people was a mminent theme. Linda began the discussion by telling members that she regularly snuck donuts from the break room at work so that co-workers would not see her eating them. %en Linda arked & b a h v they thought &e acted that way. one member sumertad that Gnda pmhably felt "guilty or ashamed." Later In the discussion of food secrets, Linda said that for a m s h e let her daughter help her by writing what Linda ate in her food tracker. The problem w a s that Linda would purposely not tell ber daughter everything she ate, with the pnehctable result that Linda ate mare food than she should have eaten. Although the organization formulates the rules and tries to m i a l i z e members into accepting them, it is not entirely successful. U i s i s particularly evident in osition i s clear: successful

r 5

204

Kandi M. Stinnon
i

Religion and Morality in Weight Loss Groups

205

time when you didn't do very well, or pay attention to what you ate all week, and then the day before coming to the meeting, not eat or drink anything?' L u i> q u @ o n provoked laughter and heads k d & n g throughout the r o b , so apparentlv the practice is fairly common. In this case Linda explicitly identifies a specific transgression, and then allows members to confess as a &, rather than put an individual member on the spot. As previous weight-losers and current lifetime members of the group, leaders are especially well suited for modeling confession. Not coincidentally, leaders' confessions frequently take on the tone of evangelical preachers who publicly ey have seen the light. new members are sosten to members conogether, as members ereby highlight and strengthen the moral boundaries surrounding the p u p . gmup members are reinforced in their beliefs that there are good and ad ways of confession is a useful way to relieve stress for init is through confession that sinners receive foreeness. By confessing their sins to others, whether it is to a priest, the church, or the larger community, sinners publicly admit the error of their ways, and in return they receive absolution. Although members of the weight loss p p d o nqt literally receive forgiveness for their sins. nonetheless, q ~ of forgiveness is experienced as members admit their transeressions to the group and simultaneously reaff~rmtheir commitment to follGw the rules When the meeting topic was food secrets, members were in the encouraged to confront and deal with their secrets, first by talkine to " themselves about what they were doing, and then by telling someone else. In addition, public confession is a useful wav to relieve stress for individual members. Confession is clearly @both for individual members and for the group as a whole. But at the same time, the effects are more insidious: The good dieter not only accepts the group's teachings but continually examines herself for faults-and finds them. Confessing your sins provides relief from guilt, but it is temporary at best.

u'

r;

$ r

C ~ o o is divided into the good and the ba&~o&hat d is healthy, that is, nutritionally sound, i s ~ o o d and acceptable, wh~lefood that leads to overindulgence and weight eain is bad and forbidden. In the language of group members, <red-light foodDignal temptation, danger, and sin. & members use grou; time to confess thelr sins, they frequently express guilt due to overeating. But at least as common, it not more so, is m l t over eating " foods te -y &ouldnpthave eaten. Exercise can be viewed as punishment for overeating or for eatincbad" f* o. Such sin is followed by guilt that literally can be worked off through the hard labor of exercise. Alternatively. exercise is
L.

a ,-,

or
I*

P
1

to future indulgt&. Rarely do members or leaders Lalk about the health benefits of exercise independent of weight loss, and it is virtually unheard of to suggest that exercise can be pleasurable In and of itself.

1?

1
i,
L

Keeping Them in
In the face of nearly endless t e m E o n , guilt and confession are not the only techniques used to keep members on t h x g h t track. The effectiveness of inducing guilt rests on another technique, continual surveillance. To the extent that members feel that they are being w a t c h e d , a y be less likely to break the rules. About a month after I joined. Richard got out his stickers and ribbons and azked, "Does anyone get a ten-pound ribbon? H s a anyone lost their first ten pounds?" As Richard was handtng out ribbons, Amy turned to me and said. "You'll get'that next week!" I immediately felt some pressure. knowing that someone else knew how close I was to losing ten pou@s. At other t~mesmembers play more direct and active roles in surveillance. When I arrived one evening, Debbie asked Judy how she lost weight on vacation. Tmone other thines. Tudv said that she and h e i daughter c0 <watc,h"d each othe-nd on numerous occasions Joyce spoke openly, freely. and critically about her friend Peggy and the problems she had sticking to the program. Group surveillance is important. even if unintentional. Early one morning. a few months after I joined the gmup, I was out walking for exercise. & I crossed the street in front of a neighborhood elementary school, the crossing guard on duty looked at me, and then exclaimed, "Hey, I saw you at [the
" a d

i ;*
b

future.

6
1
I

2
i
5

' i

k
B

Removing Sin and Guilt T h , m g h Good IVorks

Just as in some religions, where sins can be removed, atoned, or made up for by dbing good works, so it is in the weight loss group--but with a twist.

ic

9 $

..
Religion and Morality in Weight Loss Groups
1

w s
207

lose weifit--clr, even worse, gain weight. In these situations, members des-

tendency-to rr~trunwater,

h%~PY
vert siirveillance, most notably by hihng food or not eating in front of others. Members, too, frequently admit hiding food or tying to eat when no one else is around. .4t the verv least, members feel as if their behavior is under public scrutiny, and several incidents suggest that this is not a figment ~f their imagin-\.Vhen ($&onfessed that she hid donuts from her co-workers, she Z t e d that s i n c e h r colleagues knew she was a leader for a weight loss group, . she f ~ l self-conscious about eating donuts in front of them. Shewent on to t ask members whether other people had ever made them sdf-conscious about what they were eating. This was an experience widely shared by members. Aware that their eating habits are viewed and scnltinized by others,
ciloccs. ~

rcn!entio~

groups and parents come to find out, controlling memlwrs' behavior through external weans is highly inefficient. not to mention difficnlt. Consequently religious groups and parents spend considerable time and energy instilling -. individual consciences in converts and children. If individilals watch thems~ives, organization doesn't have to. Meticu!orlslv recording evervthine the you eat takes oncconsiderabIe importance in this reqard. With repeated references to the tracker's importance in 'preventing and uncovering cheating. the food tecord is one strategy for careftilly monitoring your own behavior. In effect, guilt can be self-induced, freeing the organization and leaders to provide mutrial support and reinforcement.

>

Explaining the Inexplicable

r-

.to explain the inexplicable, to provide U e i , does this primarily by appealinr to God+?eU&&Wka-W EFnq to 'nse w ~ i ~ RIFO to expfain the inexplicable. W~ight h t wek gain 1s no mystrrv when members. eat more than they th~nk they shmdd, indulge in high-calorie foods, or otherwise act in ways that can be expected to result in additional pounds. But at other times, w e i a p a i n is unexpected. Members do what they are s n p p w d to do, Pat what they are supposed to eat, hilt nrv~rtheler;~ not do
P

weight cam, but water retention ltself is seen as having multiple u r y my~first week on the program, I lost about five pounds. ~ f t e r n following the program for a second week@s disappointed when I lost only one pound. Feeling that I had worked hard all week, I hoped to lose two or t h r e z o r e pounds. In some ways, thy first week's rapid loss set me up for disappointment. Searching for possible explanations for the low Ioss, I wondered if I had eaten something I shouldn't have, possibly the cheese omelet I had for breakfast on Sunday. But 1 had charted it, probably generously, and even if I hadn't. it fell well within the week's optional calories. Then I noted the date, and wvndered whether it could be water retention related to the menstrual cycle. Even though it was probably a little early, I assured myself that it was close enough to be the probable cause. Besides the menstrual cycle, high sodium intake is often blamed for nd consequent weight gain. One evening, Debbie asked had to share. Peggv said that she gained a pound, and was p d e d since she had done exactly what she had the week before. Peffgy said that she drank a diet pop that day and wondered if that had anything to do with it. Joyce said, "Pop is high in sodium," and Debbie explained that sodium leads to water retention. The explanations for water retention gu wen further. Ruth said, "U'be~it'shot and humid you retain water. Lots of people complained about their rings being tlght." As amuslng as some of f i e explanations are, members take them quite seriously. as do leaders. To some extent, the explanations are accurate. Sodium intake, the a1 c cle, and t h weather all affect water wten~ At the same time, in at least some inb m n turn=ht. stances, water retention is not likely the sole or even the major explazntion of lower than expected weight loss or unexpected weight gain. The e lanations are nseful not because they are n e c e s s a r w ~because they ulhma e y t &ke R ~ F A thus heln to make a sremineiv irrationa situation underancl w k l i e v l n g that can of diet soda can result in a one-pound we~ght gain is far more reassuring than fe~ling vour efforts have had no payoff that wh ategory of explanations for 1 in\ consistencies and m y s t e r ~ ~ s these explanations involve the tendency of down in response to deprivation. One week I lost a quarter pound, following

?\

-.

!Iqr

Religion and Morality In Weight Losq G ~ O U P S I

a loss of four pounds the previous week. When I expressed disappointment over the small loss, Donna said, "With the kind of loss you had last week, it's not unusual to have a smaller one the next weak. Anyway, it's headed in the right direction." Donna's response wac typical. On numerous occasions, receptf-cts helped members justify snlall losses by suggesting that the metabdism slows tn response to a large Ioss. Body metaboIism does play a roIe in weight loss. But as in the case of the explanations involving water retention, the accuracy of" the exolsnations is unimportant. The body and its workings are myshriaus and pose difficulties and anxieties far the dieter, who is trying to contror not only what she eats anxibut her body's response to what is eaten. The explanations Iielp rplipv~ ety by trying to make some sense out of a perplexing situation. In members' discussions, the body IS not reduced to sheer physiological matter that behaves in scientifically predictable ways. In contrast. the bodv 1s viewed as

209

1 4
I
g

weight.-:

$.

1
9

+&iRht loss p p s may find-it ahntapurt6%fE&%&> wetght:at least to same extent rov~des.m-&mllent'example of how'thk &b%Iari&s -ight and-at the same-timenot violating t h i s - h h o . few min~ltcs prior to the rnwtin~'smfficialsi!iirt,.when rnemhaG-d, are ,k.frir the most anxiety provoking i n ~ h e : o e G atthe r'nqsihl('. % ? !

unpredictable and ultimately inexplicable.

$
?

Tabom
Occasionally, much to the amusement of everyone present, a member or leader would come across old organizational rnateriis, sometimes from as many as thirty years ago, and share with the group various tabom, restrictions. or requirements. At one time, potatoes could only be eaten early in the day, and liver had to be eaten once a week. Although members found the stories funny, leaders used them to emphasize how much the program had changed and especially how much more freedom members now had to eat what they wanted. Taboos are associated with "the old days." and are presumably no longer necessary as we have become more enlightened. &.the same tirne. a n d ~taboo operates in the m u p and s i m i f i m t l v r * affects group interactionfi&aring your body weight with few instances when i n d ~ < duals are forced to pubiicly M t , such as when renewing a.driver's license, are fraught with anxiety d - e m h m s s m e n t . When the information 1s potent~ally stigmatizing, individuals may use a number of techniques of information control in order to hide, obscure, or select~vel reved the stigmatizing condition. Since obesity is a visible stigma. t e obese person is already discredited;&t the same time. & persons conceal their exact.weikht;arat least contra$to whom 4& I what circumstances the information is revealed Nanetbeless, this can be very difficult, if not impossible. In weight lms groups, body weight is the central concern. & m k may be p~lblidy acknowledging h a t h y are .ausrweight bu&.th does not mean that thymust vily'diwlge ; h e r
-2

;
5.1

walls. Slnall windows were cut in the wal!s, so receptionists in adjoining cubicles cwld pass materials and tools, such as stamp pads, back and forth, and could easily talk to -of the s ~ . s b ~ ~ : dike those m most phy~icims* &c& d body wight was turned b m k w a d The-nomber%onthe scale were hidden not bn?y from p - l e d t e i n line hut &fmm ?lie person getting weighed. The'ont~p ~ who could observeth b numbers w& the recephonist. The numbers were turther obscurcd b~.r a d,@ e r ' o Bare Feet on the Scale." N %i&& &-a ritual, highly structured and p&c!abIe. ~ f t e a member r steps oil the scale, tho reeeptlonirt r e d the scale and records the weight in I \ the member's record. Although receptionists frequently-say , u~~on~thirweek,"orm'Gadjo~~imt~pwqd~.'lnsxr It.' ,\ obsealred a reeept~onist a member her actual-waght R a t l t t . r : w tell 1 the r-rd , book,-id-then.pointl o the J( ists mutiir? write t to hnd out their body weight, members b e $$' dil) ' wsgbt+th (heir tcaabtd-heir books. Ln Sn ~nmained ,* , , - ---3- was the ritual that I never asked a receptionist what I actually weighed Rather, after aittinq dmw, I checked my weight in my recod book. The combmation of ritualizing weigh-in and providinc a t least a bare minimum of privacv aflowecl members to Eet piibliclv wej&ed but retain some control twer personal information.
r , .

$4

*)(

A\

+Lt.A

>

B\' , idv'

-4

Conclusion
As members and leaders talk about lr~sing weight. they draw heavily on religious language and imagery Good and mil, temptation, sin. guilt, and confession animate members' speech they try to make sense of complex and ambivalent emotions surroullding food, the bodv, and weight loss. Durkheim argued that the division of the world into the sacred and the profane is at the very care of religion. The concept captures the high d q e e
2
I

1 F
r

of moralizing that characterizes these dieters' thinking about food,eating, obesity, and weight loss. The &vision of the world into the sacred and the . profane deeply colors their everyday with notiom of right and wrong, good the most common states of woale n the Uruted States, particularly in women's experiences, food intake is a central arena in-which moral ideologies are played out. The fat body, assowith self-indulgence, lasing self-control, and giving in to temptations of sensual pleasure represents the profme.The t i b y i the outward sign , +,-M that the mind has woo its battle with the body The thin body i s redeemed: It represents restraint, control, and resisting temptation. . L For Durkheim, community is at the core of all religion. in religion, community is defined. constructed, and experienced. Communitv is also conatructed and reinforced in the weight loss group. As members share then frustrations and accomplishments, they make connections with one another. Even as a critical observer, I fowd it impossible not to be touched by Corinne's pride in lasing enough weight to be able: to help her young daughter learn to ride a bike, or by h i s ' s isolation due to extreme obesity, and her newfound freedom as she shed her oxygen tank and was able to leave her house. .The weight loss group is a supportive communitv, in some ways similar to a church. Not coiocidentally, as churches build fellowship and community -aring food, food i s also at the center of the weight loss group's fel1 0 w s 6 ~ t+ beverage table is set up for every meeting, and members corn. m o n l y b r i d tea. both r d a r and decaffeinated coffee, or nonfat hot cocoa during tbe meeting.OccasionaIly members bring in food to share when they have tried a recipe for low-fat cookies or some other low-point dessert. And at times, the oqanization gives away fond products as door prizes for members in attendice. More cornrnmly, food is figuratively shared, as rnernlxrs exchange recipes, sumstions for accommodating restaurants, and other .> -.tricks of the u;eigbt loss trade. But while food sharing does occus it is food restriction that unites members o the we~ght group. f loss

'

2.

Ii
-;
I

I
I

1
,I
I

1 1 1