Where do you draw the line between legitimate fat acceptance and science denialism?

[Rev. Rye]

1)  Desire to lose weight is inherently fat-phobic and it means you hate fat people

Not necessarily.

2)  There are no health risks to obesity

Do I really have to say this is bullshit?

3)  There is extreme health risks to losing weight because you're giving yourself an eating disorder

Sometimes it is, but it's worth noting that not everyone who wants to lose weight thinks like this:

4)  Losing weight is nearly impossible and long term weight loss IS impossible.  If you're lucky enough to lose weight, you'll just gain it right back

There is some basis in truth here, but formulating it like this, it just makes you sound like an incel who insists that getting a significant other is impossible FOR EVERYONE.

5)  Fat people can be just as physically active as non-fat people

Also accurate, especially if you stick with the "can be" formulation. See Chris Farley. He actually did many of his own stunts and many of the moves he did in this famous skit are actually difficult to pull off even if you actually had Swayze's build:



Of course, just because they potentially can, doesn't mean they do.

6)  BMI is garbage since professional athletes will have a high BMI despite being in great health

This is one I actually agree with wholeheartedly. Arnold Schwarzenegger, during his Pumping Iron days, had a BMI of 30.3 and Chris-Chan, an infamous Internet personality, who, among many attributes, is shockingly obese, has a BMI of 31.0 (if the weigh-in video is any indication). How can this happen? It turns out muscle is denser than fat, and thus, someone who exercises a lot can easily register as obese according to the BMI, and someone who's so inactive they count standing up without moving as exercise can have a BMI that's actually not that different. Hell, counting Schwarzenegger's off-season weight of 260 lb, he had a BMI of 33.4, which is actually higher. That said, there are several alternatives that are less problematic than the BMI.

7)  Since thin people can have these health issues (like heart disease, sleep apnea, diabetes, ect), then that means being fat doesn't cause them

Do they legitimately not understand the concept of a risk factor?

Am I alone in thinking that this has a nasty habit of going into junk science?  Or science denialism?  Is it wrong for me to want to keep this weight off or to work hard to stay strong and healthy and, yes, thin?

No, you are not alone. Yes, it's clear that Fat Shaming is a hell of a lot more trouble than it's worth, but that doesn't justify going to the other extreme. I know these fuckers' attitudes aren't anywhere near as pervasive as the reverse, but I know that if they jump to either extreme, I WILL call bullshit, and that's honestly my attitude towards most political issues. Prejudice accompanied with power is objectively dangerous, but I believe to not challenge prejudice that's merely gaining enough traction that it could get some power just does a disservice to everyone in the long run.