A message that bears repeating

[jujube]

But in that same class, you likely have a kid or two working hard just to hang on to Cs. And just like some kids have less than stellar academic ability, some people do have a "C" metabolism.

When I was in high school I was swimming competitively nearly year round and putting in 15-18 hours a week in the pool. Back then I was about 10lbs overweight, and I'm not talking about "muscle is more dense" sort of weight - I had a little pudge around my middle even when I was a size 7 and working out hard for hours every day. That was my starting point, and as we all know metabolism and weight only get to be a harder battle to fight with age. I'm active and I eat well, but I've made peace with the fact that I'll probably never fit into the "healthy" BMI range. Even now, running 5ks with my kids, biking 50 miles or so in an average week, and training for my first longer race, I have 50lbs or so to lose to get down to the upper end of normal for my height. And my weight is stable right now; actively losing takes stepping it up beyond the 45min or so of focused exercise I get each day and I don't have the time or energy for that at this point in time.

The students story was an analogy. Just tried to show that some have an easy time, some have to work a little harder, and others have to work a lot harder.

To get around high prices for good food, my husband built a square foot garden in our backyard. We had fresh vegetables all spring and summer.

 

[Christopher Robin]

Did anyone watch South Park last night?

 

[wvjules]

Just burns my chaps to see a MAN calling out a women with young children on her weight. He has NO idea what we go through. NONE.
Again I'm assuming that it's POSSIBLE as a mom of 3 young kids her weight MAY be related to child bearing/rearing.

But until a MAN goes through c-section, hormonal changes, breastfeeding, PPD they have absolutely no grounds in making any kind of comments about the weight of a young mother.

After reading all of your posts I would assume that all women that have had children should be obese? Or for that matter, all women should be obese.

 

[2girls4me]

My dh is overweight. As far as I know he's never given birth.

The guy who wrote the email is a *******, plain and simple. He's never watched the show yet felt compelled to write to her based solely on her appearance?!? Ridiculous.

 

[sunshinehighway]

Did anyone watch South Park last night?

Yes. It was good.

 

[beaucoup]

I take anxiety meds. Gained at least 40 lbs from it. I lived crazy for over 20 years unmedicated.

I would rather be medicated, happy & fat, than live the unhappy depressed mess I was before.

 

[Kennywife]

I take anxiety meds. Gained at least 40 lbs from it. I lived crazy for over 20 years unmedicated.

I would rather be medicated, happy & fat, than live the unhappy depressed mess I was before.

Yep. I've also seen people lose weight and be miserable. My mom is a wonderful woman, but after losing 4 dress sizes, you think she'd be happy. I've never seen a more angry and sad person. If given the choice between being skinny and hateful or fat and sassy, I'll take fat and sassy thank you very much.

 

[wvjules]

Yep. I've also seen people lose weight and be miserable. My mom is a wonderful woman, but after losing 4 dress sizes, you think she'd be happy. I've never seen a more angry and sad person. If given the choice between being skinny and hateful or fat and sassy, I'll take fat and sassy thank you very much.

So her weight loss made her hateful?

 

[LisaR]

Yep. I've also seen people lose weight and be miserable. My mom is a wonderful woman, but after losing 4 dress sizes, you think she'd be happy. I've never seen a more angry and sad person. If given the choice between being skinny and hateful or fat and sassy, I'll take fat and sassy thank you very much.

That has to be the oddest statement I've read in a long time.

You have decided that if you lost weight, you will end up angry and sad. You have determined that the only reason your mom is angry and sad is because she lost weight. So your conclusion is that if you remain fat, you will also remain sassy and this is your justification for staying overweight.

Okay, then.

 

[LisaR]

Here is an interesting article:
http://smallbusiness.foxbusiness.com/legal-hr/2012/10/04/will-chronic-disease-close-your-business/


Snipped:

Between now and tomorrow, 4,100 people will be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes; 230 amputations will occur in people with diabetes; and 55 people with diabetes will go blind. All of this will occur within a 24-hour period. For many of these people working at peak-performance or even working a full-time job simply isn’t possible, which means that every day hundreds, if not thousands of people, are less productive, or worse, removed from the workforce because of a single disease.

 

[FireDancer]

Here is an interesting article:
http://smallbusiness.foxbusiness.com/legal-hr/2012/10/04/will-chronic-disease-close-your-business/


Snipped:

Between now and tomorrow, 4,100 people will be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes; 230 amputations will occur in people with diabetes; and 55 people with diabetes will go blind. All of this will occur within a 24-hour period. For many of these people working at peak-performance or even working a full-time job simply isn’t possible, which means that every day hundreds, if not thousands of people, are less productive, or worse, removed from the workforce because of a single disease.

And does anyone doubt that many if not most of these cases are because of our lifestyles, specifically the foods we eat? I'm not even talking about obesity, though that is a contributing factor to diabetes, but even eating normal portions of all the processed food that has sugar and chemicals added.

If we eliminated all the lifestyle diseases and illnesses we bring upon ourselves we would be a much healthier and more productive country in need of less medication. Some diseases are very hard to prevent, others are not. Those easy diseases are low hanging fruit that we as a population are ignoring. Of course it is easier to pop a hand full of pills every day than to correct our health properly but those pills come with high price tags and side effects and in many cases don't address the cause of illness but instead mask the symptoms. There will always be the need for medication but I view it as the last resort, not the first.

 

[nathalee81]

And does anyone doubt that many if not most of these cases are because of our lifestyles, specifically the foods we eat? I'm not even talking about obesity, though that is a contributing factor to diabetes, but even eating normal portions of all the processed food that has sugar and chemicals added.

If we eliminated all the lifestyle diseases and illnesses we bring upon ourselves we would be a much healthier and more productive country in need of less medication. Some diseases are very hard to prevent, others are not. Those easy diseases are low hanging fruit that we as a population are ignoring. Of course it is easier to pop a hand full of pills every day than to correct our health properly but those pills come with high price tags and side effects and in many cases don't address the cause of illness but instead mask the symptoms. There will always be the need for medication but I view it as the last resort, not the first.

And, how exactly are people supposed to change their lifestyles if we, as a society, don't change?

Food prices have increased and some salaries haven't. How are people supposed to afford fruits and vegetables if their salaries haven't kept up with the cost of inflation?

How are kids supposed to grow up valuing exercise and being outside if they are kept inside at school to study so they can pass the next set of standardized tests?

How can a mom and dad keep themselves healthy if they are at work 12 hours a day and then spend 2 hours in the car trying to get to work?

I totally agree that anti depressants may be over prescribed, but how are people supposed to get therapy if their insurance doesn't cover it? Or, if they can't get off of work for appointments? It is much easier to pop a pill, and employers could care less as long as it means they don't miss any work.

I am not saying that there aren't unhealthy people who just don't exercise, but I think the "obesity problem" in America goes far beyond that.

 

[Andtototoo]

Obviously, we have a weight problem in this country. The causes of it are complex, interconnected, and variable, which is why the simplistic ideas we have about weight loss don't work.

The students story was an analogy. Just tried to show that some have an easy time, some have to work a little harder, and others have to work a lot harder.

There is a persistent myth I've encountered -- usually promulgated by people for whom weight loss is relatively easy -- that all a person has to do is try "harder" or "better" and the weight will come off.

You can work as hard as you possibly can and still end up with a "F" grade, whether it's algebra or weight loss.

 

[sunshinehighway]

And, how exactly are people supposed to change their lifestyles if we, as a society, don't change?

Food prices have increased and some salaries haven't. How are people supposed to afford fruits and vegetables if their salaries haven't kept up with the cost of inflation?

How are kids supposed to grow up valuing exercise and being outside if they are kept inside at school to study so they can pass the next set of standardized tests?

How can a mom and dad keep themselves healthy if they are at work 12 hours a day and then spend 2 hours in the car trying to get to work?

I totally agree that anti depressants may be over prescribed, but how are people supposed to get therapy if their insurance doesn't cover it? Or, if they can't get off of work for appointments? It is much easier to pop a pill, and employers could care less as long as it means they don't miss any work.

I am not saying that there aren't unhealthy people who just don't exercise, but I think the "obesity problem" in America goes far beyond that.

They could start by admitting lifestyle and food choices are often a problem. Nobody ever admits to eating poorly or too much. The weight excuse is usually about their slow metabolism. Being able to talk about poor lifestyle choices without being called out biased against overweight people, would be a place to start. How can anyone find a way to change something if they won't look at what is really going on?

 

[FireDancer]

And, how exactly are people supposed to change their lifestyles if we, as a society, don't change?

Food prices have increased and some salaries haven't. How are people supposed to afford fruits and vegetables if their salaries haven't kept up with the cost of inflation?

How are kids supposed to grow up valuing exercise and being outside if they are kept inside at school to study so they can pass the next set of standardized tests?

How can a mom and dad keep themselves healthy if they are at work 12 hours a day and then spend 2 hours in the car trying to get to work?

I totally agree that anti depressants may be over prescribed, but how are people supposed to get therapy if their insurance doesn't cover it? Or, if they can't get off of work for appointments? It is much easier to pop a pill, and employers could care less as long as it means they don't miss any work.

I am not saying that there aren't unhealthy people who just don't exercise, but I think the "obesity problem" in America goes far beyond that.

I just don't let society dictate what I do. I'm not willing to wait for the slow moving Manatee that is society to decide to change, I want to and did decide to do it myself. I look at whatever my current situation is and decide to find ways to make my goals happen instead of making excuses.

You can eat healthy without spending a lot of money of food. I wouldn't take a job that had a 2-day daily commute. I would not let my kids sit inside all day after school just as my parents didn't let me and many of my friends now with kids don't let theirs. I also think it is extremely important that parents teach their kids about food and how to cook. I was helping my mom, grandma, and great grandma cook as far back as my first memories (to varying levels of actual help of course) and plan to do the same with my kids. Thanks to them I can make a pretty good meal out of pretty inexpensive items that you find in the produce section or on a farmer's stand. We also all went as a family and played sports, went on bike rides in the evening, and were told to go outside and run around. This was with both my parents working and for some of my childhood both my parents working 2 jobs.

As for societal reform, I'm right there with you. I want real farm bills that help small farmers instead of our current bills that help factory farms and put small farms out of business under the guise of food safety or regulation. I want preventative things like gym memberships and nutrition counseling covered by insurance and I want real health care reform that puts our health above the profits of pharmaceutical companies and insurance companies. Am I willing to hold my breath and wait for our compromised government to do it though? <Expletive deleted> no!

As Mahatma Gandhi said, "Be the change that you wish to see in the world".

 

[Kennywife]

That has to be the oddest statement I've read in a long time.

You have decided that if you lost weight, you will end up angry and sad. You have determined that the only reason your mom is angry and sad is because she lost weight. So your conclusion is that if you remain fat, you will also remain sassy and this is your justification for staying overweight.

Okay, then.

Didn't cause it obviously, but she does seem moodier now than before. That's what I'm saying.

Ido work at it, but if I want a treat sometimes, I have one. I learned that if I never have a treat at all, I will binge like crazy.

 

[wvjules]

Didn't cause it obviously, but she does seem moodier now than before. That's what I'm saying.

Ido work at it, but if I want a treat sometimes, I have one. I learned that if I never have a treat at all, I will binge like crazy.

Thin people have treats too. Do you think that all they eat is lettuce and fish?

 

[Colleen27]

Yep. I've also seen people lose weight and be miserable. My mom is a wonderful woman, but after losing 4 dress sizes, you think she'd be happy. I've never seen a more angry and sad person. If given the choice between being skinny and hateful or fat and sassy, I'll take fat and sassy thank you very much.

Amen. I know many people who have lost weight and loved life all the more for it. I also know several for whom losing and then maintaining became a very stressful daily battle that changed their entire outlook for the worse. Losing weight is liberating when it is a lifestyle change you enjoy. But when it is a lifestyle change that you resent or that takes an immense amount of energy to hold on to, that takes a toll.

And does anyone doubt that many if not most of these cases are because of our lifestyles, specifically the foods we eat? I'm not even talking about obesity, though that is a contributing factor to diabetes, but even eating normal portions of all the processed food that has sugar and chemicals added.

If we eliminated all the lifestyle diseases and illnesses we bring upon ourselves we would be a much healthier and more productive country in need of less medication. Some diseases are very hard to prevent, others are not. Those easy diseases are low hanging fruit that we as a population are ignoring. Of course it is easier to pop a hand full of pills every day than to correct our health properly but those pills come with high price tags and side effects and in many cases don't address the cause of illness but instead mask the symptoms. There will always be the need for medication but I view it as the last resort, not the first.

That isn't a problem that can be addressed strictly on the individual level, though. So long as we subsidize the worst possible food choices, allow the untested and unchecked approval of science-experiment foods and additives, embrace a "work first" mentality and an economic system where things like free time and health care are viewed as privileges earned only by those with the most marketable skills, and generally place health below a million other forces we can't expect to see widespread change.

They could start by admitting lifestyle and food choices are often a problem. Nobody ever admits to eating poorly or too much. The weight excuse is usually about their slow metabolism. Being able to talk about poor lifestyle choices without being called out biased against overweight people, would be a place to start. How can anyone find a way to change something if they won't look at what is really going on?

I think that's a product of the "personal responsibility" filter that people read these discussions with. I've seen many people admit to eating poorly/too much and especially to not being as active as they should. But it seems like discussion of any factors beyond that is immediately dismissed as pointless excuse-making.

 

[Wendy31]

A little OT, but, just to illustrate the difference between men & women...

DH & I regularly do the P90X routines together, we watch what we eat, etc.

in the weeks prior to our most recent WDW trip, we were both doing P90X every day & were on stricter diets.

During our trip, we ate basically the same (except he ate bigger portions) &, of course, walked the same amount. We were both eating desserts, & the only exercise we were getting was the walking we were doing - so we both went from a relatively strict diet to a not-as-careful diet & we weren't doing any cardio/weight training like we'd been doing w/ P90X.

When we got home, we weighed.

He had lost 2 pounds.

I had gained 5 pounds.

Soooo not fair!

But, then, the day after we returned home, I got a stomach virus & lost 6 pounds over night...

 

[Colleen27]

I am not saying that there aren't unhealthy people who just don't exercise, but I think the "obesity problem" in America goes far beyond that.

Exactly. Right now, both the problem and the solutions are being defined mainly by upper middle class people with lots of options, and they aren't particularly in tune with what it is like for people with fewer options. To pick on FireDancer for a moment - just not taking a job because the commute is too long isn't a luxury most people have these days. I know people who commute over an hour each way for $8-10/hr jobs because the alternative is no income at all. Teaching kids about how to cook? I know a lot of parents who don't even get home in time to have dinner with their kids, much less prepare it! This is the reality for the demographics where the obesity epidemic is most evident.

And keep in mind that both stress and sleep deprivation have been shown to increase weight gain/slow weight loss even after controlling for caloric intake and activity level. The constant low-grade stress that a growing segment of economically marginal families live with cannot be ignored in any thoughtful conversation about the reasons behind skyrocketing obesity rates.