'50S WOMEN WERE FITTER

NY Post ^ | August 11, 2003 | Bill Hoffmann

[presidio9]

Women have come a long way in 50 years - but not when it comes to being leaner and fitter. A new report claims women were in much better shape 50 years ago than their descendants today, despite the modern obsession with dieting and working out.

[The Old Hoosier]

Nature takes its revenge.

[Joe Brower]

[July 4th]

Hey, check out that waist!

[shiva]

...they ate less

[A_perfect_lady]

I suspect it has more to do with diet than with the calorie-burning nature of ironing and cooking. I've ironed before; it's not very taxing.

[reagan_fanatic]

Of course they were leaner and more trim...just look at Mrs. Cleaver.

Geez.

[jlogajan]

Men were trimmer too. It is diet more than exercise that is fattening up America.

[presidio9]

[Squantos]

Yep used to be they were covered in flour because they were cooking....now ..........never mind !

Stay Safe !

[b9]

Blame it on the microwave oven ...
Too fast ... too easy ... too much melty cheese ;o)

[been called a cynic]

...they ate less


not according to my grandmother. she grew up on a farm in the 30s and 40s and has told me many times that they ate huge meals full of fat and carbs that would be a no-no today, and all the photos of her family i've ever seen were of slender, well-built people. of course, they were out on the farm doing actual physical labor.

housekeeping may have been a little different then.

i actually watched my grandmother use a wringer washer as a child, and it was a little different than loading six pairs of jeans and three t-shirts into my energy-efficient maytag front loader.

[Steely Glint]

They ate less, worked harder, and were better looking.

[mountaineer]

Mmm, salmon loaf!

[Lazamataz]

Plus, they were more docile and knew their friggin' place. ;^)

[Recourse]

If you want something that's docile, go get a dog.

[Lazamataz]

If you want something that's docile, go get a dog.

Why, yes, I plan to.

[Scenic Sounds]

The women of yesteryear kept trim by washing, cooking, ironing and cleaning without the help of state-of-the-art appliances, Prima says.

Every woman should live within walking distance (5 miles) of a river or creek so that we could get rid of washing machines. ;-)

[StolarStorm]

No kidding. I can go all day and not see one woman that isn't huge.

[basil]

Being a "50's woman", I can tell you the biggest difference. In the 50's and at least early 60's, everyone ate at home. Women were conscious of nutrition, and planned meals that were both nutritious and tasty. (My mother was an expert at this, and she did it on a very tight budget.)

Today, you can pass any restaurant or fast food place in the country, and all of them seem to be doing a big business. Most of these restaurants have a "bottom line", so they use prepared food with lots of fats, sugars, and salt. Their food may taste okay, but it's certainly not good for humans!

In the 50's, going to a restaurant was a big occassion, requiring "dressing up", even. I think the advent of McDonald's and all the would be clones that followed contributed greatly to the demise of the family sitting down together in their own home for meals.

Now we have a couple of generations of kids who have been raised on restaurant food--Mom's too busy to cook--and we are reaping what we sowed.