How Gwyneth Paltrow Shamed A Man Into Losing 40 Lbs.

As you may know, Ross Mathews, the late night TV comedian from Chelsea Lately (also known as Intern Ross from The Tonight Show with Jay Leno), lost 40 lbs. And Gwyneth Paltrow had a hand in motivating him.

Ross, who used to weigh around 220 lbs, tells the story of how Gwyneth helped:

“We were taping a Chelsea special, and she pointed at my tummy and said, ‘What’s going on here? I love you. Get it together.”

Look, even couched in the softness of love, pointing at a person’s gut and making a comment about it is rude. It’s hurtful, embarrassing, and objectifying; the other party isn’t seeing you, he or she is only seeing your fat. This behavior is in no way acceptable. In addition, while some people may be obese, others may be pregnant, have PCOS, be on medication that causes them to gain weight, have an eating disorder or just carry weight in their middle. The general rule is that unless you are a family member truly concerned about a person’s one’s health, it’s none of your fucking business, no matter how much you “love” someone. Love involves acceptance, not pointing and commenting.

But the truth is, this awkward encounter may not be so irksome had it occurred between mother and son or sister and brother or BFF. But it didn’t. It happened between an incredibly famous actress and an entertainment reporter. An uneven socio-economical balance. The rich lady with the pricey personal trainer, who can afford to eat macrobiotic when she likes and remains a famously finicky eater, pointed at a chubby guy’s belly and said “get it together.” With a friend like, that, who needs the massive, crushing, consistent flood of fat-shaming messages from the media?

How Ross Mathews Lost 40 Lbs.[People]
Gwyneth Paltrow likes to point out how fat you are [Salon]