Jello Biafra
Posted on 08/22/2007 12:31:35 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
Being unhappy. Being happy. Friends who eat like a horse and never put on weight. Childhood admonishments to think of the starving in Africa.
These are some of the reasons the overweight give to explain their size because they are too ashamed to admit they simply eat too much, according to a study.
Researchers found there is such a stigma attached to being overweight that over-eaters are desperate to find something - or someone - else to blame.
The findings mirror comments by Hamish Meldrum, the head of the British Medical Association, who said patients were increasingly seeking weight-loss pills and surgery rather than trying to change their diet and do more exercise.
Karen Throsby of Warwick University questioned 35 patients who applied for such surgery on the NHS to discover why they felt it was the only solution.
She found there were three main types of excuses used by the overweight, according to a report published in the journal Social Science and Medicine.
The first was genetic, with many claiming they had a "fat gene" or that being big ran in their family. Others said they knew others who ate more than they did but never put on weight.
The second most common excuse was that the problem stemmed from their childhood. Many claimed relatives gave them food as a reward and others said their parents told them to eat up and think of the starving in Africa.
The third reason was that a stressful lifestyle had led to weight gain. Illness, divorce, bereavement and parenthood were all blamed for over-eating.
Women cited both happy and unhappy events as reasons for eating more and men said stressful occasions gave them a longing for beer, curry and fast food.
Miss Throsby said the excuses were the result of the way overweight people were pilloried by society.
"Those who become fat often find themselves needing to account for their size in order to refute the suggestion of moral failure that attaches itself easily to the fat body."
Colin Waine, chair of the National Obesity Forum, added: "Many patients seek explanations that absolve them, saying it's their genes or their glands. But in fact it's 99 per cent to do with food intake and lack of physical activity.
"Our genes haven't changed since before the Stone Age - yet obesity has escalated in the last 30 years."
30 pounds.
actually, I’d be elated with six. see, I like having breasts. when I was size 3 I was a b cup.
There’s a lot of wisdom and good advice in this thread.
had your cholesterol and BP checked?
You may be in for an unpleasant surprise there.
Interesting article...thanks for posting.
I think if we got rid of the PC crap there would be a few less “fatties” in the world. Person of size. Obese. Overweight. But being fat is accepted now.
It's some recently discovered VIRUS, doncha know?
I seriously think I would rather do ANYTHING than running or jogging. I absolutely ABHOR it.
I saw a picture of myself from 2 years ago. I worked 3 days a week, was poor as dirt, couldn’t afford to go to restaurants and the only booze I could buy was jugs of Evan Williams. I rode my bike around and walked everywhere for the rest of the time that I wasn’t trying to move to New Hampshire.
Now, 2 years later, I made it and have 2 great computer jobs, plenty of money, I eat out 4 or 5 days a week (hey I’m single) and drink pints of Guinness all the time. I don’t make the time to ride my bike around or exercise. I don’t weigh myself, but I’m certainly 20 pounds overweight, and I just feel gross. It’s all on my face and my gut, it’s just awful.
I’ve already started eating at home more and have cut my portions. I am going to get back on my bike and might join a gym so I have access to more exercise gear. I’m also going to quit drinking because besides the obvious weight issues I’m pretty much a high-functioning drunk (being in a band will do this to you!). It’s just bad all around! Hopefully by mid-winter I’ll have shed some of this blubber and will feel healthy again!
You don’t have to give up anything, really...you just have to moderate. And read Sly Stallone’s book if you get a chance...that man has Hagan Daaz (did I spell that right??) and chocolate cake in his frig.
“ever take a dump so big, your pants fit better?”
-Ron White
With one of those hot-fudge sundaes...
And a cookie...
To go..."
I'll have the same; but make mine a DIET coke, as I'm tryin' to maintain my schoolboy figure!
GO for it!!!
I know, the problem is I’m not satisfied eating a cake portion the size of a quarter!
Specifically, Biafra, when I was a kid.
-PJ
You know, now a days, the big guy is closer to a normal person...
The trick to track your weight changes is to do it every day at the same portion in your daily routine. My weigh in is after 2 of the 3 mornings Ses and before brushing my teeth (which usually starts the process of re hydrating after the night’s sleep). Yes on the one hand it’s cheating because that’s probably the lightest I’ll weigh that day (got rid of the bristly face, the #2 and I’m low water), but that’s also where I set my baseline so it doesn’t matter.
And you have figure out your general cycle too, I’ve found on work days is when I lose or maintain, and weekends is when I gain or maintain, which makes perfectly because my life has more structure on work days so I have an easier time controlling what I eat. So subsequently on Monday morning I’ll weigh the most and Saturday morning I’ll weigh the least, so when I say I lost 3 pounds in one week what I really mean is Saturday morning I weighed 3 pounds less than the previous Saturday morning, from Monday morning it was probably 5 or 6 pounds but part of that was undoing the weekend. So honestly at this point I could go to just weighing in on Saturdays because that’s the day of the “good” numbers, but I like to watch the week, see if I actually behaved as well the day before as I thought, see that reminder when I didn’t behave.
But you’re right it is important to not get too overwrought about one day’s results. It’s really all about the trend, one day’s big gain could be from the work out as much as anything else, one day’s big drop could be because you ate more fiber and one of you bathroom trips was more “effective” than usual. Track the trends, and pay attention to your other indicators like watchbands and belts.
How was Colonel Sanders a typical male?
All he cared about were legs, breasts, and thighs.
Jello Biafra
about twelve years (and many children ago, for those paying attention), I once placed a large order my my little family at a fast food establishment. the guy didn’t blink and asked, “And a diet cola?” I didn’t get the joke at the time, so just said, “No.”
Yeah, I know what you are saying but, again, its their choice.
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