Yes, another fat thread....

Quite a while back, I wrote what I hope wasn’t an overly obnoxious post asking why Americans were so overweight. At the time, I was in about the 15th year of living overseas, and on every trip back to the States I was simply overwhelmed by the Supersized people and Supersized portions. Quite frankly, none of the ‘reasons’ and ‘excuses’ I had heard really made any sense to me.

Well, I am back and am living in the States for the first time in a while (with the LOML - see my earlier thread!). And after spending some time in Minnesota and New York - I am, quite frankly, a bit puzzled.

First, more than ever, people seem absolutely obsessed with fat. Everyone talks about it, everyone complains about it. They talk about going to the gym, they talk about finding a gym. Strangely, not many people talk about actually being at a gym… but anyway. Every lunch hour is spent talking about what they are eating. If its something fattening, they go on about what a low-fat meal they had last night. And so on…

And food - it is damn near impossible to buy normal food. Tried to buy some yogurt yesterday. EVERY brand is low-fat, fat-free, light, lite, whatever. No just plain ol’ ordinary yogurt. Butter, milk, sour cream, bread, cream cheese, bologna, everything. The low-fat/fat-free brands overwhelm to the extent that buying normal food seems to be something to be ashamed of.

Given the US’s massive (pun intended) weight problem, I would normally be inclined to view this in a positive light - hey, Americans are trying to do something about a very big (pun intended) problem.

But it is offset by the fact that a quarter of all aisles in just about any grocery store is taken up with selling cokes, candies, chocolates, and chips.

And sure enough, people shopping are buying low-fat yogurt, and a supersized bag of Doritos with a 2lt bottle of Coke to wash 'em down.

I find this - frustrating. Look, I don’t care how people look. I reserve the right to find people attractive or unattractive from a physical/aesthetic viewpoint, but I try to distinguish that and any judgment on your personal character. I admit, I find it hard sometimes. There are too many people giving overweight people a bad name, I guess. But I admit I find it difficult, and I do honestly try.

But - and I guess this isn’t a very good rant - but I find it frustrating that Americans on the whole can be so obsessed fat, and can still be so fucking stupid about the whole thing.

And don’t even get me started on the whole McD lawsuit thing…

Yeah, it’s pretty obnoxious, isn’t it?

are you american?

I always blamed the whole U.S. overweight thing on fad diets. You dont expect to eat like thatfor the rest of your life, so you diet until you lose 10 pounds , you quit the diet and end up binging to the point of gaining 20 pounds

There seems to be a superstition that my own mom subscribes to, that if you buy a piece of workout eqpt, (like her treadmill) that you will magically lose weight. Right now there are about 50 stuffed animals permanently residing on that treadmill. Having a gym membership, but never using it is much the same problem. GETTING to the gym is so much of the battle. That’s why PROXIMITY is so important to me. A long drive is just another reason to skip your workout. However, full length mirrors are a great incentive.

Thankfully, this was thrown out of court by the judge.

I was looking for some normal “full-fat” yogurt today that I could throw my own fresh fruit in. There was none to be had.

…and which is one side-effect of so many Americans striving to lose weight without eating less: food that’s marketed as being “half the fat” or “98% fat-free” or something like that. In many cases I’ve gone to the only 2 or 3 grocery stores in a given area and not found more than 2 or 3 (incredibly odious) products that aren’t LOUDLY marketed as being low in fat. Meat in particular is almost impossible to find, for me, with a normal amount of fat, or at least not the now-customary 50-98% fat free bit thrown in. Makes it difficult for those of us who ::shudder gasp choke:: need fat in our diets.

Fat, meaning the stuff in your food, is good. Fat on the body is bad.

If people want to be thinner, they will cut back on the sugar and the simple carbs (white bread, white rice, processed foods, etc…) and consume a reasonable amount of calories rather than munching on fat free cookies, chips, dressing, etc…most of those “fat free” or “low fat” food contains enough additives and sugars that you might consume in a year with a real and healthy diet.

I am not sucked into the idea of a “low fat” diet because I am a realist. Food is excellent and the more natural the food, the more likely I am to eat it.

Ice cream or “Healthy Choice” ice cream? I would choose the real thing.

Cookies? I don’t eat them but I prefer home made cookies over boxed shit that is hard as a fucking rock and the only taste is from the sugar.

Chicken or beef? I choose beef. I prefer buffalo/bison because it’s not filled with hormones at this point. But chicken…egads, that’s some nasty shit.

I buy wheat bread, I prefer whole wheat bread but sometimes that’s not in my budget.

Milk, I choose whole milk. The low fat milks just taste gross. Nothing like a glass of whole milk before bed.

Gyms, eh, screw that. I would rather enjoy hiking in the mountains than to be sitting on a sweat ladden (sp) stationary bike inside where some gross person has been before me. I am going to take up hockey soon, YES, I can’t wait. With my own gear and to get out my aggressions. Much better than pulling a machine.

If we lived in 1883, our daily lives would consist of much harder work than a fucking gym. We wouldn’t need to worry about it.

Convenience foods suck. They can be tasty but I prefer food that I have cooked, fat and all.

Oh and a nice, pleasant walk is far more doable than running around in an indoor track. It clears your mind more, it gets you out in the elements and by golly, it’s so much more refreshing than being indoors.

Tell me about it… And then when they finally do get their lazy ass to the gym, they don’t even break a sweat. If I had a nickel for every time I’ve seen this “grueling 45 minute workout”:

-Put water bottle on treadmill to “reserve” it. Go to restroom for 10 mins.
-Return to treadmill. Leave again to find magazine.
-Return with magazine. Spend 10 mins. finding article. Place magazine directly over display that shows treadmill speed.
-Pull out walkman. Spend 5 mins. fiddling with walkman.
-See friend. Spend 10 mins. chatting with friend.
-Start treadmill. Set at lowest possible speed. Walk for 10 minutes at lowest speed while reading magazine, making sure to stop treadmill every time you need to turn a page.
-Do 3 leg presses at lowest possible weight, still reading magazine.
-Go home.

Hate to say it, but nobody’s gonna lose weight like that.

I saw a show about this…I believe it was on Oprah :D…wherein Europeans were asked their thoughts about Americans.

This was one of the largest questions in the survey among Europeans. “Why are Americans so fat?”

The “answer” was, of course, a lot of things…but the principal problem seemed to be portions. Nobody serves or eats portions as large as we do. French croissants are half the size of their American cousins…meals in restaurants are half the size…peoples’ perception of a “filling meal” are basically a lot larger here than they are in Europe, according to the show.

They also don’t eat as many processed foods as we do, which helps a great deal…and they don’t have goofy “low fat” or “no fat” alternatives to foods they enjoy, that encourage them to eat far more than they should. And not everyone owns a car (like here in San Antonio, which is one of the fattest cities in the nation) so they actually have to walk to their destinations.

I think, honestly, that America’s obsession with fat and weight is the biggest part of the problem. It seems that the more we worry about it, the larger we become.

Fat on the body is bad? That don’t compute too well to me…an excessive amount of fat on the body, sure. But fat at all on the body?:confused:

IANAD, but to say fat on the body is bad doesn’t sound right. I have fat on my body, despite being slim. My partner is classed as overweight, but this is the view society. Society dictates what is acceptable, and this is what gives people hang ups. I don’t consider her as fat, but compared to the models in magazines she is way overweight.

If you’re not overweight to the point of it affect your health, you shouldn’t feel the need to lose weight.

Everything is ‘low-fat, low-sugar, low-carbs’ etc. I agree. This is a rip-off. Just because something is low-fat doesn’t mean you can eat all of it you want. Eat real food, use common sense, and move. Processed foods, especially sugar, white flour, etc. are horrible for you. Fast foods are posion sold at the cheapest price to an overwhelming number of Americans. We are killing ourselves with the types of food we eat. A child will eat what you prepare for him/her. I grew up in the country and we didn’t have the foods that are available now. We didn’t need them, we had plenty to eat with normal, everyday food. I don’t think I had a fast-food hamburger until I was in my teens. We just fixed our own.
One day America will wake up.

I should also say in defense of my fellow New Yorkers that NYC just may be the second ‘thinnest’ city I have ever been in in the US - and I have been to every state and a LOT of cities. In my memory, the thinnest city was, oddly enough, Seattle. The worst states? Michigan. Although Minnesota, where my family is, isn’t far behind.

The 'obnoxious part isn’t that people are obsessed with fat (although that is quite annoying). The obnoxious part is that it is hindering my ability to buy normal food.

I find that you can often find wonderful things like full-fat plain yogurt and non-homogenized (Mmmmmm…) milk at health-food and natural food stores. More expensive, yeah, but at least it’s actually food.

Hey, it’s not fat, it’s insulation! It’s freaking cold here!!!
Actually, I thought Louisiana was the worst… but I may be misremembering.

After living overseas for several years, going back and seeing just how big the portions in America really were just blew me away. Whenever I visit my family now, I watch my parents eat meals that I can’t even come close to finishing. When I was living in the States, I was eating meals that size regularly and still feeling hungry afterwards. Had I stayed, I’d probably be about 300+ pounds right now.

Btw, Dragon Ash, I want to take this opportunity to apologize for my behavior toward you a few months back. You posted something I disagreed with in The Pit regarding Japanese police, and I snapped at you pretty harshly, after which I didn’t see you post for some time. I’m glad you’re back and I just wanted to say sorry for blowing my top at you like that.

Americans have adopted a rather unhealthy lifestyle. From the types of foods we gravitate towards, to the portions thereof, to the activities we prefer during our leisure time. We aren’t, we can’t be, genetically different to the rest of the world to any significant degree.

I don’t think that clown with the unnatural interest in our children should be legally accountable, but I damn sure encourage everyone to quit giving him business… and while you are at it, switch off the Saturday morning TV your kids are watching; he is and trying to lure them in behind your back.

**Gravity **, yes I know I can buy healthy food (especially milk without growth hormones) at higher prices at special shops. But that’s the point. That should be the norm, not the exception. Why should I pay a premium for what should be normal food and end up subsidizing people who supersize everything else?

And **Sublight **, get a friggen’ clue! This is ** THE PIT **, you moron! You aren’t supposed to do anything decent and civilized like apologize! I am shocked, shocked I tell you!

Seriously - apology accepted and appreciated. Although it must not have been that bad, 'cause I don’t recall the post. No harm, no foul :slight_smile:

Or, as they say on the streets of Chicago - no blood from gaping wound, no foul… :smiley:

the one thing all my friends who got J1 visas to work in the US over the summer said was that they couldn’t buy the food they like to eat because they didn’t have the money.

what, you may ask do they like to eat?

wholewheat bread spread with butter, topped with full-fat cheddar cheese, eaten with home-made tomato soup, accompanied with an apple and washed down with full-fat milk.

stir-fried fresh vegetables with soy sauce, served on a bed of rice.

grilled pork chops, boiled potatos, peas and home-made apple sauce.

pasta, vegetables and bacon with a tomato sauce.

the kind of meals that are healthy, low in fat, easy to make, and in europe they’re all very cheap to make from scratch.

apparently in the US it’s cheaper to buy ramen noodles and a McDonalds than it is to make something like one of the meals above.

there’s your problem.
make your vegetables and staples cheaper and your processed “fast” foods more expensive and you’ll reduce your obesity statistics.