Here’s the deal: I am a plus size travel blogger. There it is. I said it. I’ve come to terms with my body and size but have been hesitant to label myself that way. Unfortunately I care way too much about what other people think. It also seems like the term plus size still makes some folks uncomfortable. That’s too bad, people need to get with the program.
I want to explain something else: I didn’t want to have to label myself that way, especially on social media. I thought, ‘well, there’s no reason to acknowledge that. Travel bloggers should be considered all the same, right?’ Sadly, no. Look up #travelblogger on Instagram and you’ll see great content, but all by straight size people. I just looked and it wasn’t until 33 rows down that I found one photo of a #curvy travel blogger. She was probably a size 10 and doesn’t consider herself (or label herself) plus size, so I’m hesitant to even count that.
The Problem?
There is an obscene amount of content on Instagram. Duh. I’m pretty sure several of the photos I scrolled past were photographers or random people using the hashtag to get likes. More power to them! The problem is, when I scroll through that hashtag, nobody looks even remotely like me.
Here are the numbers of posts per hashtag I pulled as of May 25, 2018. Note: #pstravelblogger only had three pictures below it.
I chose these hashtags because those would be the terms we would use for anyone other industry. For example: you could search #fashionblogger, #psblogger or #plussizeblogger. I wouldn’t normally add the #fat, but I happen to know about #fatgirlstraveling and #fatgirlstraveltoo. The women behind those two hashtags are also trying to normalize things.
Why do I care and why should you?
Because when I look for recommendations, ideas and inspiration, I look to Instagram hashtags before anything else. Ideally, I’d look to my peers. In this case, other travel bloggers are my peers, but their travel experiences are going to differ greatly from mine. To get a closer comparison, I would love to look at other plus size travel bloggers, along the entire gender spectrum.
What some people may not realize is that our experience is different from a straight sized person’s. Everything from the time spent on a plane and seating at a restaurant to tours and more physical activities is different. I’m not saying we need any special permissions or anything, but I’d want to know how a plus size travel blogger felt going zip-lining or hiking. You know those stares that super gorgeous people get? Once-overs? We get those too and I’d like to know before visiting a city what to expect.
What do I want out of this?
I want to see more people like me out there. Not only out there but also being represented and working with brands. I also want people to understand that just because we are plus size does not mean we are physically unfit or that we don’t care about our health. Plenty of plus size people are incredibly fit and lead very health lives. Tons of straight size people are unfit and lead unhealthy lives. One thing does not necessarily lead to the other.
So yeah, I wear a size 16-20 US and love traveling. I try to work out four to five times per week and try to eat clean. When in a new city, I can clock at least 7 miles a day walking, exploring. I want the same experiences my [size 2-6] sisters want…and we can usually all do them.
*Taking on this label felt kind of scary at first, but as I go through and do research, that feeling has changed. There are so many awesome, inspiring plus size bloggers out there doing the work. I’m feeling incredibly empowered to join them!
Are you a plus size travel blogger or plus size traveler? Say hi! I’d love to meet some friends out there!
This was awesome to read! I’d love to see more diversity in the travel field, but also more diversity in bodies with fashion bloggers, lifestyle bloggers, everything to be honest. I feel like a lot of the people dominating those platforms all have the exact same body type.
Julia // The Sunday Mode
That’s so true! There are times when I try to dabble in those topics as well, and I’m thinking of doing even more. Thank you so much for reading!
I love this! We are new to the travel blog scene, and can totally relate to the “no one looks like us” notion! You are awesome inspo! I’d love for you to check out our blog as well carryoncousins.blog and you can find us on Instagram too!
Hi girls!! Thanks so much for popping by! It’s a small community but the plus size travel blog group is growing and it’s wonderful! I’m going to stop over to your blog too.
I really like your blog Kristina and I think it’s an awesome read. I’m very happy we connected and you joined my collab post. Keep it coming and don’t give a damn about what people say. You are great 💛
Thanks Sabrina! I’m glad we connected as well 💕
I love how refreshing and honest your post is! Thank you for sharing this. Although I’m more of an average-sized person, I can understand what you mean about experiences feeling different when you’re a different size, so this post hits me.
Before I graduated from college, my weight stayed at a range of 105-110 lbs. After I graduated, I stopped being super active outside of my occasional travels, so I ballooned to about 135 lbs, the heaviest I’ve ever been my entire life. I’m 5’7″ btw and I didn’t realize how much those extra lbs would impact me.
My favorite travel clothes no longer fit comfortably, what used to be “walking distance” for my old size is no longer true for my current size, I get tired faster than before, and of course, I feel much heavier. I know I’m probably just feeling all those because my weight gain happened super fast, 25 lbs within maybe 3 months of graduating. But it was still hard accepting the changes. Back then, I can stay in the ocean for maybe an hour without getting tired, but now, I have to stay a bit closer to the boat because I’d get out of breath. I used to like walking in denim shorts, but not anymore because I can feel my inner thighs touching and it messes up my walking. Taking pictures of myself is no longer as fun too, because I can’t look at a photo and not see how big my arms, thighs, and face are now compared to three years ago.
Despite what the previous paragraph may suggest, my new size doesn’t really bother me much though, haha, at least not always. I get annoyed sometimes with all my family and friends who tease me so much about my weight gain, but it’s okay, I can roll with the punches. I eventually learned to adjust while traveling. I prefer cotton shorts to denim now, I just take photos of K in lieu of myself, and I make sure to bring water at all times in case I get too tired. Still, I understand the sentiments entirely. It’s interesting to read posts from all kinds of people, of course, but there’s also something special about reading posts from people who are more likely to have the same experiences as you.
Thank you so much for reading and your feedback. There’s no “right” size and at the end of the day this is about making people realize that our bodies do affect our experiences and we all deserve to enjoy and be respected. I’m glad you’re so self aware and still accept yourself 🙂
This post is so honest and refreshing. I genuinely appreciate your vulnerability and agree with everything you said! Your post has inspired me to rethink my current niche and brainstorm ways to shift it toward a plus-sized audience. THANK YOU.
Thank you for reading! I’m glad it made you rethink a bit. If you’re not plus size yourself, I urge you to reach out to someone plus to get better insight from them before attempting to speak to that audience too much. Feel free to reach out and we can get in touch!