I got a little surprise this morning when I got home and read the paper!!
I was approached by the great people at Oxfam to do a story about the launch of the Grow campaign in the Sunday Telegraph. Naturally, as their ambassador, I agreed. A phone interview with the journalist and a photo shoot was lined up.
At the very end of the phone interview, a bit of a “oh by the way before i go” bombshell question was dropped – was I doing personal training with the Commando?
Well that threw me a bit, I thought it was an article about Oxfam? So i kind of stammered a bit about doing some exercise, with a CC Mariners player (who was quite pleased to be mistaken for the Commando and is considering buying himself some dark sunnies). I did point out that it’s not a weight loss attempt, just a part of my life and commitment to being an active healthy person. Plus, it allows me to actually eat some of what I cook without gaining weight either.
The next request was for the photo shoot to be with me exercising…uh…no, it’s meant to be an article about charity??? Plus, and trust me on this, NOBODY wants to see me exercising. Nobody.
The article didn’t run as scheduled. I was asked for another interview which I declined because I didn’t want the charity article hijacked by some story about my weight – which in the scheme of things is so banal and unimportant as to be laughable in the face of the shocking famines facing millions of people at THIS VERY MINUTE.
And this morning, there it is. I don’t know how the paper found out that I had been approached by Jenny Craig. Neither my management nor I have ever disclosed that. And I certainly don’t know how they came up with those figures – negotiation stage was never reached. I would never disrespect Jenny Craig and the work they do, nor would I ever criticise anyone for taking control of their weight in this way. It just isn’t for me.
At the end of the day, if talking about my attitude to weight gets the Oxfam story on page 3 of the Sunday Tele, I am not going to complain about it. It’s a good result for the charity and I hope it raises some awareness of the food injustice issues facing so many of our fellow human beings. There’s a beautiful editorial too, which I am very grateful for.
I’ll be on the Today show tomorrow at 8am to talk about it further. Thanks to all who have been truly beautiful and supportive this morning. It is such a blessing to feel that supported.
What a storm in a teacup! Think I’ll have a cupcake with that…
More on Grow campaign : http://www.oxfam.org.au/grow/about-grow/
See also : http://today.ninemsn.com.au/article/8285533/julie-rejects-jenny-craig
Good on you Julie.
Let’s hope your phones haven’t been hacked by the Murdoch press (especially if you hadn’t disclosed any information to anyone). I would be checking that out…
All the best with your future endeavours… x x
LOL! that would be one explanation but only if they’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel for news….
You have to wonder where newspapers get their information from…but good that Oxfam got some good coverage out of it.
Hey Miss Piggy, in my experience they often get their information out of thin air. Imagine my surprise to wake up one day and read that my marriage was on the rocks! I have very little faith in what i read in the papers or tabloid mags any more as I know exactly how full of it they are.
What a change to see a larger woman refusing to go along with the stick thin mantra that torments so many women and young girls. the fact that you use your media profile to highlight the work of oxfam and the inequalities in our world is such a relief. so good to see a decent woman who is sticking up for what she believes in instead of shoving her ‘sexy body’ in our face. GOOD ONYA JULIE.
Thank you Renee.
Hi Julie,
If all the billions spent on diets were spent on feeding the hungry we might make a dent in the hunger problem. But that would take women like you not buying into the self hating messages the diet industry sends us. I think your stance is so freaking brave and righteous (Not self righteous, just righteous) and just brilliant. Thanks for doing it. I am sending money to my local foodbank in your name!
Naomi you make a really great point about the diet industry vs feeding the hungry. thanks for your comments!
What an amazing turn of events. Still, good publicity for Oxfam and great self esteem boost for us cuddly girls everywhere. Love you Jules.
Lyndal xx
Hey Lyndy how are you going? Please give my love to your family, hope you are all happy and well. xx
Julie thank you from the bottom of my heart…whilst I realise you are simply just being yourself – the ‘Julie’ which we have all come to know and love, I was blown away *but not suprised* to read you knocked back yet another one of these banal, celebrity endorsed weight loss deals. Who you are and what you symbolise to me is sooo much more than a dress size! You are one of true individuals who knows themselves and brings a warm, open and generous spirit to her work. From your opinions on ‘Can of Worms’ to this, all I can say is THANK YOU for keeping the light of sanity aflame. Much of modern life is wastefully concerned with the material and the aesthetic. Our papers and magazines projecting back to us images we can never be….why? All I do know is that our greatest good in this life isnt to look ‘hot’ in a bikini (boring!), but perhaps to honour and respect ourselves and in turn liberate those around us to do just the same. Thats certainly your gift to me.
Natalie your post made me quite emotional. Thanks so much for your beautiful words. Not everyone agrees with everything I do and some people are quite vocal in their disagreement, so it’s wonderful to hear from someone like you. I appreciate it tremendously.
For whatever reason, I am very glad you turned down Jenny Craig. Diets like those have a very high failure rate, they physiologically program our bodies to be better at making fat. Yo-yo dieting is also associated with high blood pressure, diabetes and eating disorders. You made a very healthy choice, and are a very healthy role model. Blessings to you!
Thanks Sherie.
Re: Where does the news media get its facts? Simple – what they don’t have they create from fantasy. Many people never question it so they know they’re safe. 🙁
I READ THE ARTICLE YESTERDAY IN AMAZEMENT,HOW DARE THEY!!.GOOD ON YOU JULIE FOR SAYING NO.IT IS ABOUT TIME ALL OF THESE PEOPLE STOPPED TRYING TO PIGEON HOLE EVERYONE.YOU ARE RIGHT TO SAY THAT YOU ARE HAPPY WITH YOURSELF,YOU HAVE GREAT SELF ESTEEM.CONGRATULATIONS FOR BEING TRUE TO YOURSELF AND ALL WOMEN WHO ARE NOT A SIZE 10!!!!!WELL DONE
Thank you Julie!
Keep up the great work Julie. You are doing a terrific job GROW-ing the campaign, getting the message out there and waking up the world.
There are a billion good reasons to keep doing what you are doing; helping to create a world where everyone always has enough to eat.
Thank you Paddy. I appreciate that.
Hi Julie,
I’m from Holland and where about to see you win Masterchef within two days ;]]
You inspire me, to be more me, does that sound strange? Well you really touch my heart, by just be you.
And i understand now that this is the key for me, i hope i can achieve that.
Sorry for my terrible englisch
Christa
Christa that’s a lovely message thank you, and your English is just fine!
Dear Julie,
I’m from the Netherlands and just 2 days ago I saw you win the 1st Masterchef Australia, many congrats!
What a emotional finale, the moment your family joined you, the joy you all showed was a moment to cherish and when the jury was tearing up, when even Gary had to turn away to compose himself, the tears were running down my cheeks….
I sure hope you’ve made your dream come true and wish you all the best in the future.
With love from Amsterdam x
Hi Julie,
I saw you on the show and thought you handled yourself with such dignity and grace. It was so refreshing to hear you say that you are happy with yourself and advocate healthy eating rather than being obsessive. Then following up with the perspective that it would mean more for people to be focusing on your cause of getting people food throughout Africa than on whether you put on or lose a kilo was just so perfect. I don’t know how you managed yourself so well but all credit to you. As you say, Jenny Craig may be right and do good work for some people in some situations but that’s a different issue.
Thanks for being such a great role model for being a healthy, thoughtful woman.
Carmel
carmel thanks so much for your lovely comments. I really appreciate it. I can’t believe such a big deal is made out of people’s weight, honestly. It must sell papers! Thanks again.