"Cankle anxiety?" Really, WSJ, that's something to induce anxiety in times like these?

Oh Chris, never underestimate the amount of anxiety that a woman can have over her body, or overestimate the current affairs it can trump.

We are all taught very early on that A) There is something wrong with us, and B) It is very important to our happiness and well being.

Did you catch the woman in the video say "suffer from" cankles? Social construction in action!

What is the illustration supposed to illustrate? It's a foot. I must confess that I have no idea what a cankle is?

I don't understand why WSJ considers this a new phenomenon. Wasn't the term introduced well over five years ago, in some sexist rom com? I don't know for sure, but I know that I've heard the word for quite a while. If it is something for women to have anxiety over, then they are late to the party.

Cankles are a "condition" women "suffer" from. Another example of the blurring line between health and beauty.

Like Kristina, I'm looking at my own ankle, which I have no problems with, and I see nothing significant about it or the illustration provided. I've heard the term before, but am still unsure of what a "cankle" is. The term's never been used to describe my ankles, and I don't see any reason it should be, but I don't see much of a difference between mine and the one in the drawing.

But, yes, I think this kind of specific targeting of women's body parts really keeps us from being able to accept our bodies as ... well ... within the norm. Being in Korea now, women here are pretty open about seeing each other nude, especially in "hot springs" type spas, as nudity isn't as closely associated with sexual intentions as it is in the states. Something that really struck me was how uncomfortable I was with having other (rather uninterested) eyes see me nude as well as seeing other women nude. But, I got over it, and seeing other women's bodies just made me that much more comfortable with my own. Back in the States, I rarely saw nudity unless it was not only sexualized, but usually manufactured in some way shape or form. Instead, I would hear women comparing specific areas of their bodies, rather than just seeing our bodies as a whole.

I'm not trying to say Korea is better or the USA is better, or even that there is better body image in Korea or that the culture is uniform throughout either country... This is just different approaches in both cultures that struck me. In any case, it's almost 2 am here and I'm rambling. Signing off.

I saw this too and rolled my eyes. Like we need any more reason to be insecure about ourselves and our bodies. What a load of crap.

This blog post has an illustration showing the difference between ankles and cankles. Interestingly, it also claims John Madden coined the term to describe a football players ankles.

1. I swear I first heard the term cankle at least 6 years ago when I was in high school.

2. I never knew exactly what it meant and I don't want to know now. As soon as I know what a cankle is, I'm going to start judging people for their cankles whether I want to or not, and that infuriates me!

3. If I ignore this cankle panic, it will go away, right? .... right?

I have fat ankles because I have bursitis.

Luckily for me I don't give a sh*t.

some boy told me i had cankles. i just stared at him blankly. he was obviously trying to upset me, but i didn't feel even a little insulted. i was mostly just kind of surprised that he actually expected me to care.

I blame John Madden for the existence of the word Cankle. I'm pretty sure he coined it while talking about Orlando Pace's cankles.

Orlando Pace is a BIG MAN, and it is so reasonable for him to have cankles. But of course, now this ridiculous standard of beauty should be applied to all women.

I'm going to go throw things.

With all of the problems going on in the world, women are supposed to care about some made-up malady called "cankles?" And this from the WSJ? Give me a break. There are a heck of a lot more serious - and real - problems in the world that need to be addressed. Sheesh.

Wait, wait, hold on--do you mean that there's slang for body parts? Not all of it complimentary? Oh my god, I had no idea! Thank you, Wall Street Journal, for finding Dr. Kemp and getting her to fill us all in on this startling fact!

Sarah Haskins hasn't put out any new videos in a while; I hope she tackles this topic soon.

Of all the issues I have with my body, cankles are not among them. Even if I was worried about having cankles, I don't see why the WSJ should care.

That definition of saddle bags is incorrect, though - the term actually refers to fat on the outside of the upper thigh, just below the hips. *shrug*

Really NL? She just put out a new video last week, if I remember correctly.

"Like, do you think he drew the cankles and then went home and made himself a stiff drink, stared at his art degree diploma, and wondered what had become of his dreams?"

This made me laugh so hard.

WSJ obviously fell asleep at the wheel on this one. Remember when people were saying that Hillary Clinton had cankles during the 2008 campaign?

"[C]an you imagine being the illustrator who got this assignment? Like, do you think he drew the cankles and then went home and made himself a stiff drink, stared at his art degree diploma, and wondered what had become of his dreams?"

S/he may have more immediate concerns, like when he's getting paid. A friend of mine did a freelance piece for them a while ago and still has not received the check.

Remember the visible clavicles "trend" of a couple of years ago?

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/fashion/10clavicle.html

Another one from the New York Times that pissed me off:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/02/fashion/02skin1.html

Oh yes, women are concerned about these things because they're "naturally" shallow and vain.

spider shanked made me laugh out loud. but um yea. i definitely don't obsess over my ankles. what's this foolishness?

For those who care, "cankles" is when there is no differentiation between the Calf and ANKLE. An "attractive" ankle is more slender than the calf and clearly defined. A cankle, on the other hand, is a thick or "fat" ankle that is not defined. Sigh.

Thank you, Luey, I was completely befuddled by a term I had never heard of until this post.

The WSJ wasn't the only "news" source to engage in cankle panic: There was a segment on the Today show this morning in which various "experts" explained cankles, recommended exercises, and gave fashion advise to women with cankles ("wear long pants"). ABC News (Good Morning America I think) called cankles "thunder thighs of the new millennium."
Aren't hurtful insults about women's bodies so funny? - is what they all seem to be saying.

The trend for the new millennium is to have vomitously saccharine neologisms for everything, I guess. Even if women must obsess about their ankles (which I note has been going on for probably a century or so), must we have a cutesy-poo term for ankles which do not meet the arbitrary aesthetic norm?

Both "cankles" and "muffin top" ought to be removed from the public lexicon as moving taste violations.

interrobang, cankles is certainly not a new millenium thing, I've been hearing it since highschool, which makes it at least ten years to fifteen years old.

the process of making women hate their bodies is so interesting.

better watch out. It might become a cankle epidemic. The cdc might have to get involved

Yet another example of how modern man assumes some sort of monopoly over how women "should" feel about themselves.

From my observations, muffin tops are the result of women trying to say they can fit into a size whatever, when they should really be wearing a larger size than that. Now, if you can't *afford* to buy larger clothes that properly fit, then that's different. But these are often women who can afford these things, but their vanity won't allow them to buy a size up, because heaven forbid they have to admit they've gained weight! That would mean they're fat and gross and hideous and can't be seen in public! At least that's the logic I believe is going on in their heads, because it's the only reason I can find for trying to squeeze yourself into pants that are too tight. I prefer to wear clothes that fit me, and are comfortable. I'm a size 3 in jeans, and while some might assume that I can't have a muffin top since I'm petite, you bet your ass if I squeeze my ass into a 1, my parts will be popping out all over the place. Since I'm not all hung up on being a size 1 or 0 or even a 00, I can wear the size that fits my body and as a result avoid the muffin top situation in the first place.

Now, if there is more to the muffin top situation than I'm aware of, please let me know. Maybe I'm wrongly assuming that wearing a larger size prevents hips and tummy from bulging out the top, but that's how it works with my own body. I'd love to hear if its different with other bodies (I'm being genuine, not facetious!).

Yeah, this little momma has cankles at 86lbs and at 220+ lbs. You know, they have surgery for this sort of awful curse, they ground down your bones and reknit your tendons and muscles together to get that neccesary shapely ankle that is so good for our health. It's closely related to the surgery to cure big footitis so that the ladies with large feet can wear those sexy little stillettos. I love that the doctors have researched such wonderful, helpful and life changing operations to help all of us ladyfolk who must trudge through life with our large feet and cankles.

@Nique: I often have a muffin top because I have to wear slightly tight pants in order to keep them from falling off me. Don't know why, but it's the only thing that keeps my pants besides pulling them up every three steps. So it's not always about poverty or vanity. Clothing just isn't custom made for the variety of shapes people come in, y'know?

@ Nique

Belly rolls can happen even when a person wears clothes that fit them well. It all depends on how much flesh (not necessarily fat) there is around a person's midsection, and how it's distributed.

I'm a pear-shaped person, so I tend to have the REVERSE of bruiser's problem. By thighs and booty keep may pants from falling down, but they tend to gap open at the waist, creating an awkward, lumpy look. Clothing is definitely NOT custom made for everyone's shape.

Where EXACTLY did we get the idea that we could expect store-bought clothes to be comfortable, while looking PAINTED ON?

I do think that that overly tight pants can be unflattering. On the other hand, some pudge on the belly can be cute. ^_^

SM

@Cute Bruiser, have you tried using belts? I used to avoid belts like the plague hahaha but ever since I gained weight and got too big for a 1, the 3 is still big enough that it can slide off when zipped and buttoned. I wish wish wish they had in-between sizes (like they do now with bras!), but they don't. So I can feel your pain with things not fitting perfectly. I just didn't really think of it since it hasn't been a problem since I discovered belts. And speaking of things fitting perfectly, I'm so happy that I also discovered petite and short fit jeans. But, to the point, thank you for pointing out a problem that I had overseen. I knew there had to be a ton of things going on with the muffin top situation, so that's why I wanted to know what other people had experienced.

It really irks me how they're acting like these things are health conditions. As soon as cankles are linked to something like, I don't know, jello for bones, then they can start calling it a health issue. Please let me know if that becomes the case, especially if it's contagious. I would hate for my years of calcium intake to go to waste. "Spider shanked" sounds like what happens after a scuffle with a black widow, though, haha. I crack me up :-D.

Well, a usually reputable newspaper reporting such a fluff piece must mean that there's nothing important going on in the world, like wars, a recession, or human rights violations, right?

FFFFUUUUU-

@vegkitty, it's just too depressing for everyone to keep focusing on that stuff. So instead they choose to depress only half the population by reporting on flaws for us to worry about, yay!

@Nique Don't forget some of the women with newly identified "perfect" ankles now get to feel relieved and smug too.

re: muffintops - If you're squishy around the waist (as I am) and the flesh gets exposed you get a little bit of muffin top effect. I think the effect is most pronounced on people with small behinds and larger bellies as it's far more comfortable to button pants around the hips leaving the belly free to poke out a bit. I don't think it's vanity so much as another way to criticise people who don't fit the ideal shape.

@Annoyed I'm totally making a fake band T-shirt for "Cankle Epidemic"....thinking about linking to the CDC's website on the back. "See how much cankles are costing your business!"

We forgot to note the rule that the on-the-spot reporter bringing the public the "news" (and cankles are so 2007) of the "calamity" must be a young, cute female reporter who does not suffer from said tragedy.

That was what the WSJ calls "In Depth"?

@Lindsey, I know about that smugness. It feels like a lot of internalized sexism, really. How women will sometimes want to one up each other. I'm guilty of it. "I may not have big boobs like she does, but at least I don't have cankles!" Yes, I'm horrible, I know. But that would be a whole other story.

About the muffin tops, I see how that would make sense with your body shape. Mine isn't "ideal", either, but different from yours. I'm not "curvy in all the right places", I have a butt but its somehow not attached to any hips or tummy. Yet I have gotten muffin tops from wearing things too tight. So again, it's good to hear how other people experience it, because I can only be in my body and this isn't something often discussed among friends, or at least not with mine.

Good for you on choosing to wear what's comfy though! As I said earlier, I often thought those people were uncomfortable and vain, since in my experience anything that gave me a muffin top was waaaaaaay too tight and constricting for me. It's good to know that I was unfairly lumping everyone into one box, because seriously I was beginning to think the world was crazy. Knowing there is more to it gives me hope. And if I'm not making any sense, let me know :-D.

"wide in the boughs" - are the WSJ staff really that illiterate? Was their sub-editor asleep at the red pencil station?

The phrase is "wide in the bows" as in the bows (rhymes with cows) of a ship not as in bows (rhymes with toes) in the hair. At least ships generally have a quality of substantial width about them, whereas tree boughs (also rhymes with cows) are notoriously poetically slender, meaning that the phrase makes some actual sense when spelt correctly.

Did someone just read Kemp's book out to the WSJ, to someone who didn't take proper notes, or couldn't be bothered to ask clarifying questions? Or did Kemp's publisher let that howler through? Shouldn't someone in this chain of authors/editors/publishers have passed the homonyms test in high school English?

A rubbish article from top to bottom.

Nique: I get like... a partial muffin top? Jeans have a pretty circular waist but my waist/hips are wider side-to-side than front-to-back (like most people's, I suspect?) so jeans tend to gap in the back, squeeze on the sides, and fit perfect in the front. So I just get little side muffinlets over my hips but nowhere else. I used to wear belts but they just exaggerated the effect so now I just make sure I wear shirts that are long enough to cover any baked goods I may be smuggling and I call it a day. ^^

(To completely de-muffin I would have to wear those god awful high-waisted pants that are the bane of Go Fug Yourself and that's a sacrifice I'm not willing to make!)

It’s good to know that I was unfairly lumping everyone into one box, because seriously I was beginning to think the world was crazy.

I *do* think it's crazy when people wear jeans that hit right under the muffin and then a shirt that ends right above the muffin. So you can have that one. :D

(At this point I'm just having fun saying the word "muffin." ... Hee, muffin.)

"(As an aside, can you imagine being the illustrator who got this assignment? Like, do you think he drew the cankles and then went home and made himself a stiff drink, stared at his art degree diploma, and wondered what had become of his dreams?)"

You assumed that the illustrator was male. There are a lot of female illustrators out there, including me. ....I don't think I could with myself if I took that job, though. whew

@tigtog,

Thank you for that! I'd never even heard/read the phrase "wide in the bows" before, but still, I did a double-take when I read it there (with "boughs"). It was the only one I didn't "get".

I will worry about cankles only after they have dealt with the heartbreaking conditions of Kneesles and Toliosis, two other made-up "conditions" that sound much more serious, in my estimation.

Oh Bagelsan, please smuggle some baked goods my way. Bagels are acceptable, cupcakes would be great, but no muffins. Seriously, I don't like them (as in, this is not a muffin top joke).
attack_laurel, toliosis is a serious illness! I have it! Just kidding, I have scoliosis and I have toes, but my toes don't have scoliosis. I guess I'm still safe, then.

Are people really treating body diversity and normal physical differences as though they are a disease that people need to be made aware of? Why not spend less time thinking about the size and shape of your ankles and more time doing things that matter and that will make you feel good about yourself? We recently wrote an article about this issues and would love to hear your thoughts on it. You can read more at http://eatingdisorder.org/blog/2009/08/03/appreciate-your-ankles/.