# I unhappily report that I am right about obesity and diet (Very long) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 16, 2011, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543 "2011-02-16T04:25:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 46
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/901 "2011-03-23T20:29:50Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > I agree. When a person goes on a diet, there is very little chance they will lose weight and (most importantly) \*permanently \*keep it off. Only those who possess a hardcore, almost militaristic mindset will be able to \*permanently \*keep it off. Like the vast majority of fat people, \*\*Stoid \*\*does not have this level of dedication and discipline (not even close), which is why her diet will fail. > I am not critical of \*\*Stoid \*\*because she’s fat. I am not critical of her because her diet will fail; as you mentioned, that’s the norm. I am critical of her because she does not acknowledge it. She believes she can lose permanently lose the weight while not being disciplined about it, which is patently false. > I’ve done it, and I would not consider myself having a “fucked up” mind. Admittedly, however, my eating habits are \*very \*much outside the norm. Just to name a few, I don’t eat fast food, fried foods, ice cream, cheese, pizza, bread, sour cream, butter, anything that is oil-based, cake, French fries, hamburgers, bacon, pancakes, meatballs, cookies, candy bars, cornbread, mayonnaise, onion rings, fat-laden snacks, milkshakes, or sugary drinks. I am fairly militant about it. It’s what I must do in order to not be fat. Been doing it for 20 years. Will do it unitl I’m dead. I have questions for you: 1. At what age did you change your eating habits? 2. Do you find eating pleasurable? Did you before you changed your eating habits? 3. Do you eat and enjoy vegetables? 4. Do you find your job stressful? 5. What do you do to relieve stress? 6. Do you drink coffee or consume caffeine in any form? 7. How much do you exercise? 8. What other activities do you enjoy outside of work? 9. Do you drink alcoholic drinks? 10. Do you smoke? (I’m guessing not) Those are honest questions, I am not trying to trip you up somehow, I just want to get a picture of where you are coming from. My final question you don’t have to answer, as it is more of a mental exercise: If an evil fairy waved her magic wand and said - “You can eat all of anything that you want and will remain healthy and your current weight, but - every time you have sex (with another or solo), you will gain weight” What do you think would happen to you? ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/902 "2011-03-23T20:30:34Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > As for kids: I’m sure you’ve heard that if you leave kids alone to eat what they like, it seems ocrazy at first, but eventually they end up eating a balanced diet. > [@Sarahfeena](#): > > I have never heard that, and I guarantee that it’s not true. Guaranteed, 100%. It was an experiment run with older babies. They were offered a range of healthy, age-appropriate foods at every meal and allowed to eat whatever they wanted. Although they did not eat balanced meals every day, if you added up everything they ate over a week or more, they were meeting all their nutritional requirements. The catch is, for this discussion, there was no junk food on offer. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/903 "2011-03-23T20:33:05Z")
> [@Weedy](#): > > It was an experiment run with older babies. They were offered a range of healthy, age-appropriate foods at every meal and allowed to eat whatever they wanted. Although they did not eat balanced meals every day, if you added up everything they ate over a week or more, they were meeting all their nutritional requirements. The catch is, for this discussion, there was no junk food on offer. OK, that I believe. But give a 4-year-old free choice and include junk food, and all bets are off! (Ask me how I know. :)) ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/904 "2011-03-23T20:39:33Z")
I just lost a long, diatribe. Here is the short version: I made an analogy of obesity to Parkinsons shaking, and demanding the person shaking somehow use willpower to knock it off. Could you imagine castigating a Parkisons sufferer like that, when we know the problem lies in the coding/programming/signalling/etc in the brain? Obesity recodes people… such that it is --essentially-- something that goes beyond willpower. The problem must be addressed physiologically… and address the reality that something prevents people from using willpower, as they are over-ridden by the coding now embedded in them. So, make it akin to fighting Parkinsons… just to drive home the point. Obese and/or once-obese people eat almost involuntarily. Since pleasure is derived, though, we ‘blame’ them. . ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/905 "2011-03-23T20:48:39Z")
I crave fatty, greasy things. I also crave sweet things and starchy things, although those cravings are much less severe than they were when I cut them out completely. What I don’t understand is why someone would cut out everything when they only really have to cut out half. To anyone reading this, I offer a challenge–one that is nowhere near as crazy as the 3000 calories of meat challenge that was bandied about before. For 30 days, [eat like this](http://www.marksdailyapple.com/definitive-guide-to-the-primal-eating-plan/). Make no other changes to your exercise, just eat like that. For 30 days. If you want to maintain your weight, eat 100 to 150 grams of carbs a day, and none of them from grains, legumes, or refined sugar. If you want to lose weight, keep your carbs between 50 and 100. [Calculate your lean body mass](http://www.livestrong.com/article/78946-estimate-lean-body-mass/) and eat .7 to 1 grams of protein per pound of lean mass. Pay attention to what oils you cook with–use olive oil, lard, butter, or coconut oil–don’t use corn, soy, or canola, but don’t be afraid to use oil. Put a bit of butter on your vegetables. For snacks, eat nuts (except peanuts, which are a legume). Have the occasional glass of red wine if you want a drink. Report back to me in 30 days and tell me how you feel. ---
**Author:** ![Gestalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90ced4/32.png) [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/906 "2011-03-23T20:57:09Z")
Peanuts are a legume??? News to me. Good to know. ---
**Author:** ![Gestalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90ced4/32.png) [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/907 "2011-03-23T20:58:13Z")
**Drain Bead** , how much dairy do you eat, and what kinds? I noticed in the low-carb recipes thread you mentioned whipped cream + fruit . . . what is your stance on fruit? Also, do you have any idea how many cals you consume/day? ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/908 "2011-03-23T21:17:32Z")
Erk. Being an ovo/lacto-vegetarian, grains and legumes are my primary protein sources, with dairy and eggs after that, and some tree nuts. I’m somewhat boggled at the thought of coming up with a menu that would give me 90ish grams of protein a day from tree nuts, eggs, and (maybe) dairy. I think I’d have to be eating a lot of tree nuts, because the thought of that many eggs makes me queasy. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/909 "2011-03-23T21:21:15Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > . > > I think I’d have to be eating a lot of tree nuts, because the thought of that many eggs makes me queasy. Never EVER watch Cool Hand Luke then 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/910 "2011-03-23T21:22:29Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > No, this topic is the one topic on SDMB that flies under the science radar, ignores reality and perpetuates myths. Yes. But not in the ways you think. > [@Stoid](#): > > Ya know, exaggeration and misrepresentation undermine the value of what’s being said no matter who says it. It also undermines complaints about it. Kind of like Taubes exaggerates and misrepresents the studies he cites? > [@](#): > > the devil’s water, aka SODA Interesting (and telling?) choice of words. The devil is a figure who tempts you into sinful actions that you wouldn’t have chosen on your own. Given your general inability to take responsibility for any of your own actions, I’m not surprised that you’d couch an unhealthy food in such terms. > [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > If my steadily-slimming ass could talk to you, it would be saying something like “neener neener.” Who, exactly, do you think you’re arguing with here? > [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > And yet, this is pretty much exactly how the vast majority of the participants are treating Stoid. Everyone acts as if she has to be 100% perfect all the time, and if she’s not, she gets post after post of sneering superiority. \*\*Stoid \*\*gets sneering superiority because she posts contradictory information and cites from someone whose “research” is clearly faulty, and then refuses to ever concede that her understanding may be even slightly less than complete. > [@Stoid](#): > > Obesity doesn’t cause diabetes, either. Type II diabetes and obesity are very frequently observed to exist simultaneously, lending credibility to the idea that the same forces are working to cause both diabetes and obesity. Of course! Magical Diabeetus fairies cause the obesity and the diabetes! [QUOTE=Wikipedia article on Diabetes Mellitus Type 2] A number of lifestyle factors are known to be important to the development of type 2 diabetes. […] Obesity has been found to contribute to approximately 55% of cases of type 2 diabetes, and decreasing consumption of saturated fats and trans fatty acids while replacing them with unsaturated fats may decrease the risk. The increased rate of childhood obesity in between the 1960s and 2000s is believed to have led to the increase in type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents. […] [F]actors which can potentially give rise to or exacerbate type 2 diabetes […] include obesity, […] elevated cholesterol (combined hyperlipidemia), […] high-fat diets and a less active lifestyle. [/quote] > [@Stoid](#): > > I can be convinced of anything, if I’m shown convincing evidence. Please provide evidence of at least two (2) times on this forum where you became convinced you were wrong after a discussion, and admitted it publicly. > [@ladyfoxfyre](#): > > So what we end up with is Stoid’s diet, where calories don’t matter except when they are being used to defend your choice of splurge-meals mere days after starting a new diet. Because dieting is _hard_, and healthy food tastes bad, and working out makes you hot. Being hot is uncomfortable. And when people judge her for her food choices, or judge your grandmother for her choices, well they should just shut the fuck up and respect her right to be fat. Because after all, it’s not her fault. This whole post was made of win. > [@Philster](#): > > I made an analogy of obesity to Parkinsons shaking, and demanding the person shaking somehow use willpower to knock it off. Maybe next you can talk about how persecution of fat people is just like the Holocaust. Ooh, ooh, I have a new catchphrase for you: “Fatty is the nigger of the world.” ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/911 "2011-03-23T21:42:10Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Of course! Magical Diabeetus fairies cause the obesity and the diabetes! This is actually a huge part of the fat acceptance movement, I’ve noticed. I read some of the FA blogs and stuff (less for the activism stuff and more for the fashion aspects), but— Many of them contend that being morbidly obese isn’t unhealthy. Period. End of story. One I read on LiveJournal, you will literally get banned for suggesting to someone complaining about chronic knee pain that they may want to lose some weight, because being 400 lbs is hard on your joints. These places regularly post that diabetes and heart attacks aren’t at all linked to obesity, fat people are healthy (if not healthier) than thin people, etc etc delusional stuff. Now, I like the fashion and I even like a more general Fat Acceptance idea: we should all love ourselves and learn to embrace our bodies- fat, skinny, tall, short, whatever. And if you are fat and want to get HEALTHIER, that’s fabulous- but you shouldn’t think you are some disgusting beast undeserving of love at …well, any weight. So, I like the general “love yourself” message, but goddamn, a lot of it gets way over shadowed by the idiocy I explained in the last paragraph. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/912 "2011-03-23T21:45:25Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Never EVER watch Cool Hand Luke then 🙂 Hah, a classic. I’m OK with other people eating whatever, but for the love of all that’s good, just don’t give me 50 eggs to down in an hour (or ask me to visualize doing it). :p. (green color appropriate here) ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/913 "2011-03-23T21:59:11Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > II’ve done it, and I would not consider myself having a “fucked up” mind. Admittedly, however, my eating habits are \*very \*much outside the norm. Just to name a few, I don’t eat fast food, fried foods, ice cream, cheese, pizza, bread, sour cream, butter, anything that is oil-based, cake, French fries, hamburgers, bacon, pancakes, meatballs, cookies, candy bars, cornbread, mayonnaise, onion rings, fat-laden snacks, milkshakes, or sugary drinks. I am fairly militant about it. It’s what I must do in order to not be fat. Been doing it for 20 years. Will do it unitl I’m dead. I’m very curious **Crafter-Man** , and this is a serious question: How miserable are you? You’ve said that you crave fat and sugar every day, and yet you have denied yourself all of these listed foods for 20 years. How much energy do you have to spend each day fighting the urge to eat, and doesn’t that take energy away from other activities like your job or your relationships? I’m asking because I think this is really the key to maintaining weight loss, that you have to find a way to deny yourself while not being so miserable all the time that you can’t function. From your posts I’m getting that you don’t feel like every day is a struggle against the forces of unhealthy eating that threaten to destroy you. How have you managed to resist the cravings so long without sapping your will to live? ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/914 "2011-03-23T22:08:13Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > Based on my reports of the nutmeg cake, and one planned meal of cornbread, you conclude that I’m just mistaken or forgetting that I’m also eating whole pies every other Saturday and two dozen cookies at least twice a month. If you believe that actually makes sense, ok. > Well, I can’t argue with this, I never had kids. It’s just what I’ve heard. > > Of course. (Well, it doesn’t really matter what it is, which was my point, since it’s only for two days every few months) Are you under the impression that we all have amnesia about your food posts outside this thread? Some of us recall [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=11677787#post11677787), for example, in which you talk about making vats of beans cooked with ham hocks. Are beans low or high in carbs? ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/915 "2011-03-23T22:13:14Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Are you under the impression that we all have amnesia about your food posts outside this thread? Some of us recall [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=11677787#post11677787), for example, in which you talk about making vats of beans cooked with ham hocks. Are beans low or high in carbs? You do realize that she has only been doing low carb a few weeks, and that post is a couple of years old, don’t you? ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/916 "2011-03-23T22:29:26Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Case in point: my aunt weighs 400 pounds. She can barely walk. But according to her, it’s not her fault she’s fat; she “eats like a bird.” Plus she has a “medical condition.” When I opened her refrigerator the last time I was over there, guess what I saw? Cake, tub **s** of ice cream, cheese, butter, and a ton of fried/frozen foods. (None of that crap is in my refrigerator.) Perhaps she’s thinking of a [terror bird](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phorusrhacidae)? > [@Zyada](#): > > ADD doesn’t fix, dude. You manage it, you work with it. Medication may make it better, but it’s not a magic want. Really? Come on. Are there any solid studies that show a co-morbidity between ADD and being obese? I’m ADD too, and somehow have managed into my (weeks away from mid) 30s to keep my waist at no more than 28" even though I’ve got a wicked sweet tooth besides…by exercising to off-set the obscene amount of sweets I eat. > [@Zyada](#): > > You do realize that she has only been doing low carb a few weeks, and that post is a couple of years old, don’t you? Yes, of course. The fact that thread is old is the point. She’s making it sound like people are basing their opinions of her eating habits on this thread alone with just the refs to the cake and cornbread when in reality, she’s talked quite a bit more about her eating habits. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/917 "2011-03-24T00:45:31Z")
> [@Gestalt](#): > > **Drain Bead** , how much dairy do you eat, and what kinds? > I noticed in the low-carb recipes thread you mentioned whipped cream + fruit . . . what is your stance on fruit? > Also, do you have any idea how many cals you consume/day? I eat butter and occasionally I’ll have some cheese, mostly from grassfed sources. I need to start making my own mozzarella this summer (I love me some caprese salad) so that I can trust it’s from a grassfed source…or, I guess, use buffalo mozzarella. I do not drink milk, eat Greek yogurt, or anything like that. I actually didn’t eat the whipped cream (other than a dollop on the tip of my finger to make sure it tasted okay before I served it to my husband and toddler) because I’m not a huge fruit fan. I will eat berries occasionally, but that’s it. I pretty much only eat them if I buy them from the farmer’s market, because I’m really picky about fruit. My toddler, on the other hand, eats fruit for about half of her diet, so she loved the whipped cream on her blueberries. I don’t always track calories, but when I do, I get between 1600-1800. I try to get between 40-80 grams of carbs per day, and I usually end up around 50. Today, I had 3 scrambled eggs and 4 strips of bacon for breakfast, skipped lunch, and then for dinner I had most of an heirloom pork chop and a large plate of leftover cabbage. I’m drinking a glass of red wine right now–I’ll probably have 3 of those a week. I pay close attention to the source of my meats–this one is from a little farm in South Carolina (I believe Zyada is familiar with it–Caw Caw Creek) where the piggies run around in the forest eating acorns for their entire lives. No soy or corn feed at all. A bit more expensive, but worth every penny and then some! ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/918 "2011-03-24T00:59:05Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Who, exactly, do you think you’re arguing with here? Everyone in the thread who claimed that it would be impossible to lose weight through a low-carb, high-fat and protein diet ( **Submerged,** **billfish** , and to a lesser degree, **Crafter Man** were the big ones I recall). Lots of snide comments about bacon soaked in butter. I’m trying to provide information on how to do it correctly and show people that it does, in fact, actually work. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/919 "2011-03-24T01:37:13Z")
> [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > Everyone in the thread who claimed that it would be impossible to lose weight through a low-carb, high-fat and protein diet ( **Submerged,** **billfish** , and to a lesser degree, **Crafter Man** were the big ones I recall). Where did I say it was impossible? ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2011, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543/920 "2011-03-24T01:54:01Z")
> [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > I’m very curious **Crafter-Man** , and this is a serious question: How miserable are you? Not at all. I’m happy, healthy, not fat, and active. 🙂 > [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > You’ve said that you crave fat and sugar every day, and yet you have denied yourself all of these listed foods for 20 years. How much energy do you have to spend each day fighting the urge to eat, and doesn’t that take energy away from other activities like your job or your relationships? I guess I don’t understand why it would it take energy to “fight” the urges. I simply don’t eat them. It doesn’t take any energy to not eat them. > [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > I’m asking because I think this is really the key to maintaining weight loss, that you have to find a way to deny yourself while not being so miserable all the time that you can’t function. While I love “bad” food, the long-term pleasure and satisfaction I get from \*not \*being fat is much greater than the temporary pleasure or satisfaction I would get from eating the bad stuff. > [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > How have you managed to resist the cravings so long without sapping your will to live? A lot of people (most people?) have a strong emotional attachment to food. They would genuinely get depressed if they ate what I ate. A long time ago I also had an emotional attachment to food; eating fatty, greasy food brought me \*\*\*great \*\*\*pleasure. When I decided to get serious about my diet, I severed my emotional attachment with food. Instead of eating to satisfy my primordial urges, I decided to look at food simply as a source of nutrients and energy. For the last 20 years I have had a scientific relationship with food, not an emotional one. I never want to go back to having an emotional relationship with food. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543.md?page=45) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-unhappily-report-that-i-am-right-about-obesity-and-diet-very-long/571543.md?page=47)