‘I Never Set Out To Be A Body Positive Activist’: Cassey Ho Speaks Out About Weight-Loss Controversy

Fitness blogger and founder of Blogilates, Cassey Ho, has recently come under fire after being accused of taking things too far for wanting to go on a new weight loss plan.

“Today I woke up and decided that I needed to take back the life that I want to live,” she wrote on her website.

The goal is the go from 135 pounds to 120 pounds in 90 days, however, the blogger made sure to clarify that this new challenge was about bettering herself, not about letting numbers on the scale dictate her self-worth. “I’ve learned to not let the scale control me or put a number on my self-worth. The scale’s job is to provide me with information. That is all,” she clarified.

Shortly after this announcement, Ho began to receive a wave of Tweets accusing her of triggering eating disorder survivors, being a poor role model for her female followers and posting images that supposedly work against the body positivity movement.

Ho spoke to NextShark about her recent experiences regarding this backlash and her decision to ultimately stand her ground and continue with the 90-day challenge.

“Overall, the body positive movement has helped so many women, including myself, learn how to be more confident in our bodies. It’s been so cool to see women of all shapes embrace their bodies on social media in ways traditional media never let happen,” the fitness blogger told us.

“Recently though, I’ve seen people use the movement to their advantage – taking the term and twisting it to how they see fit in order to prove a point.”

Like many things in life, Ho pointed out that the body positivity movement is not a one-size-fits-all. The definition itself is vague, yet the core of the movement is to feel happy in your own body, whatever that may mean for each individual.

“Here’s the thing – ‘body positivity’ means different things to different people. Don’t shame someone for not being ‘your’ personal definition of body positive,” Ho said. “All we can ask for is that people are happy in their bodies, and that’s going to look different on everyone!”

And although many of her followers have put her on a pedestal, Ho’s intention with her blog was never to become a role model or an activist, it was simply meant to be a space for her to be herself.

“I never set out to be a body positive activist – I was just being me, in my body, doing my thing. My mission has always been about making fitness fun. That’s it! But I think because of the way I look, the media labeled me a certain way and I got put in a category.

“That’s why a lot of people know me as a body positive role model – a true honor! But, I think body positivity a few years ago had a much different definition than what it is now… hence why my 90-day journey has caused such a stir!”

Although the body positivity movement started as a way for women to lift each other up in a world where we are judged and scrutinized for every little thing, in Cassey’s case, some were using the movement as the reason for shaming her and telling her what to do with her body.

In a recent blog post, she once again addressed this controversy by highlighting the blatant double standard between women who choose to diet versus men who do the same thing.

Upon discovering a “Men’s Health” article praising a man for doing essentially the exact same thing that Ho was doing with her own challenge, she wrote, “I don’t think it is a coincidence that both our journeys started with us stepping on the scale and realizing we needed to make a change. But I find it absolutely sexist that my decision to lose weight and shred fat is considered “disappointing” while his is being celebrated.”

“I mean, think about it. Women can’t do anything without being judged for how they look – even when it DOESN’T MATTER.”

While several Twitter users have tried to put down the blogger, many supporters have since come to her defense and encourage Ho as she continues to document her challenge.

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