Is America really as fat as I think?

[highland145]

Nope, like I said, it just makes it less depressing to me. Try it for a few weeks and I bet it works for you too.

Doubtful. I've put on 5lbs in the last 3 months which is 10lbs more than I like. Fluffy just sounds like I should be in a tutu at the same time.

 

[Herr Kutz]

Fat acceptance needs to be rejected and fat shaming needs to make a massive comeback.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Sounds pretty bad. I guess it's a combination of so much fast food availability (and much bigger sizes by default) and lack of physical activity. Supposedly everything in the states is bigger too, like you get sometime at Tim Horton's and a standard size here is actually a smaller size there. That alone probably does not help. We don't exactly eat the greatest here in Canada but portions are generally smaller. A lot of fast food places have actually cut out their "super size" options as well.

What I find crazy is you have to eat A LOT to get actual fat. I'm not the healthiest eater but I still managed to drop down to 135 lbs by simply cutting out lot of sugar, and it's not like I cut it out completely, I just basically drink less pop now and don't eat stuff like chips and cookies as often. I still have it just not every day. You don't even need to eliminate stuff you just need to reduce it. I think a lot of people don't realize this, so they try to quit cold turkey on say, pop, and then give up.

At one point I was like 155 lbs but i was eating donuts every day and drinking at least 2-3 hot chocolates. There was a Tim Horton's in the basement of the place I worked and I didn't drink coffee back then so it was sugary hot drinks instead. Even at 155 I was not really that fat, just a little above what I should be.

Basically it seems to me, you need to eat a massive amount to actually get to the point of being fat. Do people not see themselves get fatter and realize they need to slow down?

 

[SKORPI0]

At the risk of geting this thread moved over to P&N, maybe we should start putting a tax on drinks and foods with high amounts of added sugar?

They had that in Cook (Crook) county, Chicago, IL. People complained, it didn't last long.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugary_drink_tax

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Yes. It is.

 

[whm1974]

They had that in Cook (Crook) county, Chicago, IL. People complained, it didn't last long.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugary_drink_tax

Yeah but I think Mexico had far more succuss.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

20 years ago, I do not remember so many damned fat people.

I'm no saint, I'm 6'0" and just over 200 pounds. Thing is, I was 200 pounds and 6' about 5 years ago with maybe 15% body fat. I need to start running and exercising again but I think my muscle building days are over. I just want to lose some weight at this point.

Most people don't think I'm 200+ pounds. I definitely don't look thin but my gut is not bigger than my chest.

 

[ponyo]

It's sign of wealthy or lazy nation or both. Eating large quantity of food coupled with inactivity will lead to large weight gain. I would place equal blame on the widespread internet adoption, Youtube and Netflix, and availability of cheap processed food.

 

[ponyo]

20 years ago, I do not remember so many damned fat people.

I'm no saint, I'm 6'0" and just over 200 pounds. Thing is, I was 200 pounds and 6' about 5 years ago with maybe 15% body fat. I need to start running and exercising again but I think my muscle building days are over. I just want to lose some weight at this point.

Most people don't think I'm 200+ pounds. I definitely don't look thin but my gut is not bigger than my chest.

If you're 6 ft and over 200 pounds, you're likely fat unless you're built like NFL linebacker. I don't think you have any room to criticize.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

If you're 6 ft and over 200 pounds, you're likely fat unless you're built like NFL linebacker. I don't think you have any room to criticize.

At 6' / 200#, he's well below the definition of "obese" used when determining adult obesity rates.

Also likely sedentary, as are most Americans, but at least he probably eats sensibly most of the time, which somebody half again his mass is definitely not doing.

 

[ponyo]

At 6' / 200#, he's well below the definition of "obese" used when determining adult obesity rates.

Also likely sedentary, as are most Americans, but at least he probably eats sensibly most of the time, which somebody half again his mass is definitely not doing.

He might not be obese but he's fat. I'm his height and when I hit 200 couple years ago, I was fat. It was a wake up call. I've been blessed with fast metabolism most of my life so I could eat pretty much anything and consume large quantity of food without gaining much weight. But my metabolism started slowing down with age so now I can't just gorge on food like I used to. But I still have most of my fast metabolism so I can still eat more than most people and get away with it.

 

[Midwayman]

The main problem is manufactured starch and sugar is SO much cheaper than fiber, protein, and fat.

Next time you go to the grocery store really take a close look at all the aisles filled with starch/sugar and how they outnumber the fiber/protein/fat items.

Its almost hilarious when you're on keto. Almost everything is packed with unnecessary sugar and carbs. Or course that all becomes glucose in your body. Not even trying to goto the extreme of keto there is just way too much garbage in the vast majority of food.

 

[ImpulsE69]

This topic seems to pop up here way more than it should given that most are basement dwellers. 😉

As far back as I can remember people were fat (but I grew up in the midwest so..) Sure there are probably more now, but the world is WAY more sedentary than it used to be even 30 years ago. While I would blame corn syrup as a huge contributor, technology is what has led to this the most.

That being said, I look at it this way - and 'you' is all encompassing: No matter how awesome you think you are, you have some problem that other people don't like. Everyone does, even the Pope. Just because you may not be overweight, doesn't make you a great person or better than anyone else, guaranteed. Best to just not be concerned about other people and worry about yourself being the best you can be. You'll be happier as will everyone else.

 

[Midwayman]

They had that in Cook (Crook) county, Chicago, IL. People complained, it didn't last long.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugary_drink_tax

Well it taxed way more than sugary drinks. Diet sodas were hit too. It didn't help the effective tax rate was insane. I remember after it hit picking up a flat of vita-water at costco. $9.99 for the product. $4.80 for the tax. That's just the 'special' tax, not including the already insane almost 11% sales tax here. Plus the way it was pitched was complete BS. Cried broke and as soon as it passes they throw a huge pay package to teamsters. All around it was a giant waste of time and reeked of corruption, but what's new for Chicago?

 

[paperfist]

You sure they're not just big boned?

 

[madoka]

Every time I come back from a foreign country, the thing that hits me is how fat every one is. I talking circus sideshow freak-like fat. I once saw a woman down the street and I swore her breasts popped out of her tube top, only to realize that he had so much fat around her shoulders that they looked like large boobies.

You used to have to pay to see ladies this fat:

 

[darkswordsman17]

OP, I feel like a fat bastard (and I'm definitely overweight, but I still workout so its not like I'm just all gut and can't go for a walk without falling over from exhaustion) but holy hell going out to eat with family (who are even more overweight than I am, but still not that damn bad), and I don't feel as bad, because there are a lot of ridiculously obese people out there. Like, I try not to fat shame, but these are people that make me worry for their health (and even their general quality of life).

But then you also see plenty of people where you're like "do you eat food or just snort protein powder constantly all day?" Much like with everything else, people are pushing themselves to extremes.

 

[Mai72]

I was thinking the exact same thing yesterday. In fact, I asked an 18 year old who was pumping my gas (NJ) if it was this normal to see so many overweight young girls. He said YES!

I then walked into WaWa (convenience store) and it just seemed like most of the young people there were at least 20lbs overweight. Not so much w/ the guys, but the girls. Holy crap. When I got back from Asia I was shellshocked. I don't remember seeing so many overweight people. Young and old.

Diabetes is going to be the number 2 killer in 10-15 years. It's estimated to effect over 150m Americans. Many not knowing that they even have it. Most of it will be due to lifestlye choices. That cute chubby 21 year old is going to be 40 with a ton of health issues. It's a perfect opportunity to invest in companies that treat type 2 diabities.

https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/05/25/how-to-invest-in-diabetes-stocks.aspx

 

[brandonbull]

At the risk of geting this thread moved over to P&N, maybe we should start putting a tax on drinks and foods with high amounts of added sugar?

Or maybe we should start demanding that we have food without tons of sugar? Enough of the "sugar" credits. Paying a tax doesn't benefit society or our expensive health coverage system.

 

[highland145]

I was thinking the exact same thing yesterday. In fact, I asked an 18 year old who was pumping my gas (NJ) if it was this normal to see so many overweight young girls. He said YES!

Asked my 17 y.o. if they realized their size and didn't care or did they think they looked good. He said, "Yes."

😛

Diabetes is going to be the number 2 killer in 10-15 years. It's estimated to effect over 150m Americans. Many not knowing that they even have it. Most of it will be due to lifestlye choices. That cute chubby 21 year old is going to be 40 with a ton of health issues. It's a perfect opportunity to invest in companies that treat type 2 diabities.

Where do I invest?

 

[Mai72]

I noticed a lot more heavier people on TV as well. BUT everyone knows this so how we going to fix it? Or just sit here get fatter and bitch about it.

Its not going to be fixed.

We've become a nation fixated on comfort. So, to fix this that would mean that people will have to exercise and eat right. Most people are unwilling to do it, so they'll eat themselved to death. I've met people who refuse to do anything about their condition because it's too hard. I worked with a lady. Her father has type 2. They were going to cut off his foot last week, but he refused the treatment. Anyway, he has a side windwow where he gets pizza and cake delivered. All in his bedroom. He refuses to eat salad, fruit. Nothing but junk food.

 

[Mai72]

Asked my 17 y.o. if they realized their size and didn't care or did they think they looked good. He said, "Yes."

😛

Where do I invest?

Check ou the MontyFool link. They name a few companies.

 

[highland145]

Check ou the MontyFool link. They name a few companies.

https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/05/25/how-to-invest-in-diabetes-stocks.aspx

 

[whm1974]

Or maybe we should start demanding that we have food without tons of sugar? Enough of the "sugar" credits. Paying a tax doesn't benefit society or our expensive health coverage system.

I wouldn't do it the way Chicago tried to do it. For the tax would only be applied to drinks and foods that have added sugar to them. And here is a thought, how about extra taxes on folks are obese? Some overweightness will be allow but being grossly fat or obese shouldn't be tolerated.

 

[mikeymikec]

Fat acceptance needs to be rejected and fat shaming needs to make a massive comeback.

I don't think there's any need to be an arsehole about it. Inevitably people end up getting fat-shamed when their problem isn't just a case of cutting back on junk food and exercising. It also encourages people to be fucktards to disabled people, like taking pictures of a "faker" getting up from a wheelchair to pick something off of a shelf... yes, because you as some opinionated random person know best about these things. Also, people get fat-shamed when they go to a gym. How does any of this help anyone?

IMO fat-shaming is mostly about conformity and notions of superiority, though having said all of this I think that most people would be doing themselves a big favour by watching what they eat and getting into shape.