There are so many variables to why people become overweight.

Diet, Metabolism, Genetics...

Can be any or all of those for some people.

To make black or white type statements is ignorant, its mostly a gray area with this.

Originally posted by jedimiller
I have tried exercise and that's the only way to loose the weight..I know that If I ran everyday I'd loose it all..but due to work, age, genetics and an aching body I can't do that anymore.

Walking works for me. That and cycling. If I have to go anywhere that's under 2km, I walk. If it's more, I'll cycle. If I can go there by a combination of walk + public transport + walk, I'll do so. It's a two for one deal -- I get a good full body workout if I carry a full backpack as well as I have my conscience clear that I'm not adding any more burden to the environment. That last bit give me a personal allowance to continue my heathen meat eating ways -- sorry DeadFlagB, let me enjoy this privilege a little bit longer

And I'm living in a tropical country near the equator where the heat stays close to body temperature, so no excuses for you people in the temperate zone (with better mass transit, presumably )

music makes me lose weight.
i love music. it makes me tap my feet.
clap my hands. bounce around. and next
thing i know, i'm dancing. dancing is the
only exercise i engage in willingly.

(although i hear swimming is like the best, due to
low impact damage, aerobic value and all that medical jargon)

The problem is with the way it is the norm to be workaholics. If I did'nt have to work 10 hours a day in front of a computer, I'd go to the gym more often. I wish I wasn't a corporate slave but it's the only thing I can be to survive in this society.

Originally posted by curiousbeliever
The problem is with the way it is the norm to be workaholics. If I did'nt have to work 10 hours a day in front of a computer, I'd go to the gym more often. I wish I wasn't a corporate slave but it's the only thing I can be to survive in this society.

this made me think of another angle.
never before have i seen people that are so busy.

i will use my son and his mother as an example. he lives with his mom and eats his fair share of fast food, but he is all over sports and is in very good shape despite this...

anyway his mom gets him up at like 7am and he as breakfast. cereal or something. then it is the crap lunch from school.
out of school at 2:30 and if i get him then, we grub out but if not, he is at latch key till about 5. then he has football/basketball/baseball practice(depending on the season) damn near every day of the week.
so mom leaves work, gets him, runs home and they change and get a gatorade and it is off to practice.
then he/she gets home at like 7. she has to work and he has school the next day. they both need showers and he has homework. she has to take care of the dog and other household stuff.

so very often they find themselves getting one of those $5 pizzas.

i do not agree with this hectic schedule on an 11 year old but i am out of that loop. that is for another thread.

people bog themselves down these days and don't leave time to relax at home...cook/eat/unwind......have a little family time.

they are on the go all damn day.,

Before I messed my back up, I was a very fit 160lbs. Afterwards, when I was pretty much immobile for the first 6 months, I really struggled with my weight because my body was used to getting fed every 4 hours or so.
It took a lot of self control not to eat when my body was demanding it, but I managed to resist.
However, I still put on weight, simply through lack of ANY exercise, so I started to really watch what I ate in order to keep the weight gain as low as possible.

I still can't exercise as I used to, but I make sure to walk a couple of miles every day. This combined with a careful diet means I am nearly back to my pre accident weight. However I've also lost some muscle mass, so my real weight loss target now is to be about 154lbs - I'm 5'8".

A careful diet for me is a minimum 5 portions fruit and veg per day, with little meat, and making sure my diet has plenty of colour in it.

It's really not that difficult, but is a bit of an adjustment and my body craved protein and carbs when I was first injured.

I can honestly say I've never had a big mac, as I recognised it for what it was - rubbish with very little nutritional value - mostly fats and sugars.

As a couple of people have said, it's not all about laziness - there are many other factors. But there is and should always be, an element of personal responsibility.

Unfortunately, the PC world we live in tries to blame everybody and everything except the individual - and this is simply not true. You have to take responsibility for your actions, unless there are factors outside your control.

[edit on 17/10/2007 by budski]

Thank God. There for a minute I thought it was my fault that I ate that Arby's® sandwhich for lunch, or that I didn't get out and ride some trails. But, it turns out that society is to blame. Not me.

Whew. That's a relief. I was starting to feel a little guilty.

Look, all the fat in your body has been there since birth. The fat cells dont add up they expand. Fat is just stored energy. Mostly sugar and water. What you dont burn up from eating gets stored away. So the key is to keep moving. Eat less crap that will store in your fat cells. No soda, no junk food, candy, or big meals. Eat only what you can fit in 1 hand. Walk 1 mile a day......And poof the weight will fall off. I lost 90 pounds 12 years ago and kept it off. All I did was see it as a fight between me and COKE, PEPSI, and NESTLE....I won.

Originally posted by DeadFlagBlues


We're talking $1.19 per lemon here or $.89 for a lime. They gouge the prices as they do other staple foods like milk and eggs.

You need to move. A Lemon in Tennessee is .65-.75 and a lime is .40-.50. Milks still 3.50 a gallon but hell you would save a bundle on produce alone.

if you don't mind me asking where do you live? that sounds like west coast pricing...(or New York/New Jersey)




[edit on 17-10-2007 by coven]

I eat lots of food, lots of comfort eating of chocolates and such.
I dont eat healthy food I eat junk, not because its cheaper but because its easier and tastes better to me.
I dont exercise enough, I spend way too much time at the pc rather than taking a walk.
Therefor Im eating way more than I burn off.
Im probably labelled obese I just think im fat and lazy.
It IS my fault, I dont blame anyone, I dont do anything to stop it and I cant say im bothered to stop at the moment.

It doesnt cost much for potatoes and carrots and some fruit, but I tend to go for cake, crisps (US=chips), burgers, microwavable crap, curries and lovely greasy fish and chips with curry sauce and I dont care because im happy.
I used to think it was fat people making excuses but it now seems to be skinny 'doctors' patronising and then theres those fatties that take these silly findings and use them for a sympothy vote.

Put the cake down and grab some salad,vegies and fruit if you want to lose weight, I dont sympathise with anyone with chocolate smeared over their fat face crying into a bag of monster munch that they have no control over their weight.

There are a multitude of reasons that can make a person fat, both inside and outside influences.

I find it kind of prejudice that many of you are saying that fat people are out there eating at a fast food joint everyday. That is ridiculous.

I am clinically obsese. I was skinny until after I had my first child, which has happened to every single woman on my mothers side of the family which tells me it's at least a little bit genetic.

I only eat out once in awhile. I do prepare most of my meals and I do try to buy as much non-processed food as our grocery budget will allow. However, nearly everything at the grocery store is processed in some way.
The organic and proclaimed "healthy" packaged products are quite a bit more expensive, and I have a feeling that even they have a few preservatives and what not in there that make them at least a bit unnatural.

My kids aren't over weight at all and are very healthy and active.

Not everyone has space for a garden (especially those who live in apartments or condiminiums) and not all of us have a green thumb (even my simple house plants die).

I also am addicted to food. Food addiction (like addiction to alcohol) IS a disease, a mental one. Food addiction corrilates to depression and other mental disorders. I don't believe that it's a cop out (however it can be), but I believe it means that those of us who are addicted need a little extra outside sensitive help to help us get over what is making us crave food.

It kinda makes me mad when I hear people calling fat people names and saying insensitive things like "Hey, put down that hamburger" because with an emotional eater, it's those kinds of things that do send them on an eating binge or make them turn to food for comfort. Yeah you can say "That's their problem" or "Stop being such a wuss" but obviously it's hard for someone to understand what its like to be someone else.

Anyways, despite being overweight, I love myself. I still think I am beautiful and I still think I am a wonderful person. One day I know I will overcome the things that make me overweight (personal and things on the outside), but until then there is no reason why I can't be happy with who I am.