Well, as a former porker and now a fitness fanatic, in the past I was very embarrassed about my weight in public and it did have a big effect on my confidence. I'd never strip off in public, even on holiday, and would always be dressed as though it were winter, fooling precisely nobody of course! Whether the judgements of girls and others are shallow or not, it does exist. In part it exists in the judgements of others, but mainly it's how you feel about yourself. Some people can be heavy and not care about it and strip off, I'm not one of those. I did some sprint work in the park the other day with my shirt off, never would have done that even a year ago. Nobody around cared but me, but it felt good not to feel ashamed.

PS