How can some people not get why they are overweight?

[bicker]

With regard to Weight Watchers, it is often touted as the most successful of all of the diet programs.

Weight Watchers is the most financially successful national commerical weight-loss program, perhaps, but it is, as I noted above, among the least successful weight-loss programs in terms of the typical measures of success for weight-loss, such as the percent of patients maintaining at least a 10% weight loss at least six months.

What helps them, and in fact probably is responsible for them acheiving that "status" is that they keep records with "weekly weigh ins" and life time free memberships which also require weigh ins.

Every national commerical weight-loss program I've participated in or researched had weekly weigh-ins.

When individuals diet at home with any number of the good diet programs that they can do within the privacy of their homes, there are no statistics and so the success is actually unknown.

Not really. What you could say, perhaps, is that the statistics are less reliable because the data is self-reported.

The National Weight Control Registry gathers, analyzes and reports on thousands of patients who have lost a significant amount of weight. Their research shows that about half of the successful patients lost weight in a self-administered weight-loss program, rather than a group or personal assistance program like Weight Watchers. That doesn't say anything, to me, except that some people are more successful with weight-loss with outside assistance, and some people are more successful with weight-loss without outside assistance. I suspect we can also say that there are probably a number of people who could be successful with weight-loss either way.

 

[bicker]

The law in itself is valid - I don't disagree - but when we find loopholes around it, I think that's unsafe for everyone involved.

I disagree with the assertion that there is any loophole involved -- the law is the law; if enough of us wanted it to cover what you want it to cover, then it would have covered that.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree about this.

 

[bicker]

duplicate post

 

[donaldsgal]

I disagree with the assertion that there is any loophole involved -- the law is the law; if enough of us wanted it to cover what you want it to cover, then it would have covered that.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree about this.

Fair enough.

 

[disneysteve]

Steve, I thought of you today when my DD and I stopped at the vegetarian Chinese restaurant in Rockville, MD that I had mentioned in another thread to you (when you mentioned a restaurant closing near you). I couldn't stop thinking about it after that other thread and it was good as usual.

Actually, Saturday nite I treated us and went over to Chinatown in Philly. The vegetarian Chinese place that recently closed near our house has another location in the city. We had a wonderful dinner. Glad you did too.

 

[disneysteve]

Without using any processed food, the difference is even greater! Fat, sugar and empty carbohydrates are remarkably inexpensive. Whole grains with the bran go rancid very quickly, as compared to white flour, so are commensurately more expensive.
All Purpose Flour is $1.29 for 2 lb. Whole Wheat Flour is $2.79 for 2 lb. Again, I think that pretty-much says it all.
As Jenn pointed out, fruits and vegetables are expensive, especially when compared against things like pasta and pasta sauce.

I think there is something important missing from these comparisons (and those others posted). When we eat healthier "more whole" foods, we get filled up on less food and stay full longer, so over the course of the day, we eat less. A 1/4 cup of barley in a bowl of homemade soup is a filling lunch and will keep me satisfied until dinner. I'd have to eat a whole cup of white rice to be equally full. A bowl of high fiber whole grain cereal with skim milk and I'm good to go until noon. If I eat Cap'n Crunch instead, I'm hungry by 10:30 and looking for a snack.

So yes, the healthier food is more expensive per unit volume (1 lb of brown rice costs more than 1 lb of white rice), but I don't eat as much of it at a time so the cost difference isn't as great as it seems. In many cases, it may even balance out.

 

[bicker]

I think there is something important missing from these comparisons (and those others posted). When we eat healthier "more whole" foods, we get filled up on less food and stay full longer, so over the course of the day, we eat less.

That's true to a small extent, but no where near enough to make up for the higher cost of the healthier food, AFAIC.

 

[nocnurse]

In America making lousy dietary choices is super easy, in fact it is heavily promoted. Exercise is something you have to make a special effort to do. Our whole infrastructure is set up to make you drive a car everywhere and walk only very short distances. Is it any wonder so many people are overweight?

As far as people being unaware of how their choices affect their health........ What about smokers, alcohol abusers, people who drive their cars into stationary objects while not wearing a seatbelt, people who punch brick walls, people who think they can cut down a 100 ft tree without ever having wielded a chainsaw before in their lives, people who think they can shovel snow off a roof with a snowblower, diabetics who think any blood sugar under 300 is OK........

Being an ICU nurse for 10 years opened my eyes to all these and many more ways people can be completely obtuse when it comes to realizing the choices they make now really do have an impact on their lives. The sad part is some people truly never learn until it is too late; if then. But on the other hand, if it weren't for stupid, I probably wouldn't have a job.

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

I'm obese...227 lbs, 5'6", 46 and female. I'm also quite active because if I wasn't I'd be over 300.

My siblings and I are drawn towards fat...with one exception (but I think he was left by fairies anyway). Fat tastes good...real good. My mother was originally a nutrition major so we ate healthy foods growing up and we all deep down know what we are supposed to be eating. Plus niether she nor my dad were fat addicts. But fat tastes good.

Foods that taste good to the degree one is drawn towards them become comfort foods. Compound that notion with people who DONT know what they are eating and voila...an explanation for the problem. And yes I believe a very large percentage of the population doesn't know what they are eating...especially if they are younger. Public schools don't do a good job filling in the nutritional education gap...this sort of thing would be best taught in combination with a home economics course rather than as a chapter in health or PE class.

The other part of the problem is that food isn't the problem at all. You have to burn what you take in...so if you eat a 2000 calorie fast food meal you probably need to go out and plow the south forty with a mule.

As far as doctors telling patients what to do. Personally I found that annoying. All the regular md's did was irritate me because they knew nothing about me. They automatically assumed I did not exercise or in another case threatened to cease being my doctor if I didn't act on his advice and lose weight. A better course of action would be to give the patient a reference to a supportive environment. Weight watchers is good but the patient might also have bigger issues that would be best addressed by one on one counseling...not necessarily nutritional counseling. Jenny Craig is not so bad for that sort of thing but a social worker, psychologist or psychiatrist would be even better.

For myself I think I've worked out something that might finally work for me...albiet slowly. Happily I have minimal compulsion to eat improperly.

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

There was a thread on the budget board on how a family of four was able to eat at Disney for $75 a day on average without saying no to the kids. The thing that was most remarkable to me about the thread was the fact that the family in question ate what I would consider to be mostly junk food. Not necessarily hamburgers and hotdogs but an incredible amount of fried foods.

I think bicker is right. The cheapest foods in the stores are the ones that are most likely to help you pack on the pounds.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

A bowl of high fiber whole grain cereal with skim milk and I'm good to go until noon. If I eat Cap'n Crunch instead, I'm hungry by 10:30 and looking for a snack.

OK, Steve, you had me until you brought my favorite cereal into the discussion. One time I bought 2 boxes so I could have one to myself because my darn children kept eating my Cap'n Crunch! Yeah, I might get hungry quickly, but you should see the smile on my face as I'm eating that stuff. And no, I don't buy it often, for good reason! LOL

Glad you made it to your vegie Chinese restaurant!

T&B

 

[bicker]

I agree about the cereal, though more directly. I switched, recently, from my regular breakfast of three years (Myoplex Lite) to a whole grain cereal and non-fat milk. Calorie for calorie, it held me from hunger about 1/3 as long as my previous breakfast. It also didn't have all the vitamins and minerals, or anywhere near the protein. Here again is a contest between "whole and natural" and "processed" where processed wins, hands down.

 

[Christine]

There was a thread on the budget board on how a family of four was able to eat at Disney for $75 a day on average without saying no to the kids. The thing that was most remarkable to me about the thread was the fact that the family in question ate what I would consider to be mostly junk food. Not necessarily hamburgers and hotdogs but an incredible amount of fried foods.

OMG, I know what you mean. I read that thread and felt sick afterward. There is no way I could eat like that. Although they seemed quite proud of it and unfazed by the amount of junk food.

 

[disneysteve]

There was a thread on the budget board on how a family of four was able to eat at Disney for $75 a day on average without saying no to the kids. The thing that was most remarkable to me about the thread was the fact that the family in question ate what I would consider to be mostly junk food.

Despite the fact that I'm the one that started this thread, I actually have mixed feelings about this (and yes, I posted to that thread).

We definitely eat less healthy food when we are on vacation at Disney. It is partly a cost issue but is mainly a time-management issue. We don't want to spend half the day waiting to be seated, waiting for a waiter to take our order, waiting for our food to come, etc. We would much rather grab something quick and get back to enjoying ourselves. Since we keep to a pretty healthy diet at home, I'm not terribly concerned about some extra fat and calories for the week we're at Disney. How we eat on vacation in no way reflects how we eat the rest of the year.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

Despite the fact that I'm the one that started this thread, I actually have mixed feelings about this (and yes, I posted to that thread).

We definitely eat less healthy food when we are on vacation at Disney. It is partly a cost issue but is mainly a time-management issue. We don't want to spend half the day waiting to be seated, waiting for a waiter to take our order, waiting for our food to come, etc. We would much rather grab something quick and get back to enjoying ourselves. Since we keep to a pretty healthy diet at home, I'm not terribly concerned about some extra fat and calories for the week we're at Disney. How we eat on vacation in no way reflects how we eat the rest of the year.

Actually there are some healthier counter food options now available in WDW. DH and I always have done sit down because we don't want the burger and fries, however we recently have started eating at some counter services getting such items as vegetable sandwiches, hummus sandwiches, rotissiere chicken, etc. Yes these items may cost a little more, but besides tasting so much better (in my opinion) than burger and fries, it is worth it for health reasons. I'm not saying that we never eat anything "bad" (we do), but we try to balance it out.

 

[Christine]

Oh, I certainly eat "bad" on vacation. In fact, after my last trip my stomach was upset for a week. I will tell you, though, I was REAL happy to see the oatmeal at the Cape May Breakfast Buffet when I was on Day 6 of my trip!!!

I overeat at Disney, eat lots of desserts and stuff but a steady meal of chicken strips and fries would have me down and out by the end of the week. I still try to get in a little bit a fiber on the trip!

 

[minniepumpernickel]

I think that a lot of it is cultural, or has to do with how someone was raised. My mother's Asain background seems to emphasize a healthier diet. She made meat the smaller portion and always added lots of rice and veggies to the food. My dad was always very active and we always did outdoorsy stuff, not like kids today that sit on the computer or in front of the TV. I really do think that obesity is an epidemic here!

 

[Miss Jasmine]

I'm obese...227 lbs, 5'6", 46 and female. I'm also quite active because if I wasn't I'd be over 300.

My siblings and I are drawn towards fat...with one exception (but I think he was left by fairies anyway). Fat tastes good...real good. My mother was originally a nutrition major so we ate healthy foods growing up and we all deep down know what we are supposed to be eating. Plus niether she nor my dad were fat addicts. But fat tastes good.

Foods that taste good to the degree one is drawn towards them become comfort foods. Compound that notion with people who DONT know what they are eating and voila...an explanation for the problem. And yes I believe a very large percentage of the population doesn't know what they are eating...especially if they are younger. Public schools don't do a good job filling in the nutritional education gap...this sort of thing would be best taught in combination with a home economics course rather than as a chapter in health or PE class.


For myself I think I've worked out something that might finally work for me...albiet slowly. Happily I have minimal compulsion to eat improperly.

I used to be quite overweight. I have kept the weight off for almost ten years now through diet modification and exercise. I used to love, love, love fatty foods. But as I changed my diet, my cravings changed as well. Fatty foods do not taste so good to me now. I actually prefer "healthier" items as far as taste goes. I do eat fatty foods from time-to-time (I love chicken wings as one example), but I don't really crave them. I no longer see "bad" foods as a comfort item. I am just as happy with hummus and carrots now, as I used to be with Potato Chips. I believe you can "retrain" your body once you make a commitment to a healthy lifestyle.

Good luck, I hope you have found something that works for you!!!

 

[disneysteve]

Actually there are some healthier counter food options now available in WDW. DH and I always have done sit down because we don't want the burger and fries, however we recently have started eating at some counter services getting such items as vegetable sandwiches, hummus sandwiches, rotissiere chicken, etc.

Definitely - same here. I certainly don't mean we eat all junk food. I always get a veggie burger at Cosmic Ray's in MK and one at Rosie's in MGM. We eat at Wolfgang Puck's Express in DTD and do a couple of buffets like Crystal Palace and Boma where you can get some good stuff. But I will also say that I eat more french fries in a week at Disney than I eat in 6 months at home.

 

[reeddi]

One thing I know is keeping some children fat is the lack of outside play. I speak from experience. I am a paranoid Mom. My kids don't typically play outside unless I am there. I know some of you will think I am nuts but with all the reports of missing kids and stuff ... well, I just do the best I can to keep mine safe. I am not alone on this either.

There are also the afterschool daycares that don't do a lot of outside play either due to lack of supervision or area to do such.

I am not "overweight" according to the BMI scale but I feel I am a little fat for myself. My DH and I have tried WW, Atkins, and the Cabbage soup diet. While we have lost some it is not lasting. I know all about it being a lifestyle change but that is easier said than done.

I have to agree with bicker about the processed foods and price though. As for the whole foods, I don't find that they "fill" me up any differently than the processed stuff. And I don't like the taste or texture of half of the healthy stuff anyway. When I was on WW I found myself being HUNGIER earlier in the day.

The last thing I want to say is about Supersize me. The guy was a Vegeatarian. There is no one who could go from a veggie diet to one with meat and fat, and not cause issues. Now take a person who eats meat and fast food occassionally and monitor them for 30 days. You won't see near as much of a change since the body is used to processing that type of food.