Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

http://www.abc2news.com/newsy/7-in-10-a ... realize-it

Yep. Overweight is the current norm, so that if you are actually slim...people tell you that you look anorexic. Try online dating and see how many people list themselves as fit/average who are 80 lbs. heavier than they should be.

Sigh,
Atheria

Yep. When I was losing my extra weight, quite a number of people said that I didn't need to lose any more when I was still 15-20 pounds over the limit of 'normal' BMI of 25, which itself is pretty high for me since I don't have a ton of muscle. Some said that they'd never thought of me as being fat, even though I was 45 pounds overweight at my worst (I'm 6'1'' tall).

This is something I've had on my mind over the past year. I've thought about starting a thread on this, but I'll just use this one to express my opinion.

I've recently become a fan of women's college softball, and I've watched a few games again on youtube. I enjoy the youthful, feminine energy, the enthusiasm of the crowds and most of all, the sing-song chanting from the dugouts. But, something that captures my attention is how heavy some of these young women are.

I would expect a college age athlete to look like this:




But what I often see is someone who looks like this:



Which one do you think is going to beat the throw out at first base?

And it's not an isolated thing. Almost every team I've seen has "heavy" athletes.

I don't mean to be disrespectful, I'm not trying to "fat shame," but it has made me curious... is this now the norm for our society?

And I certainly don't mean to take away from any of these young lady's accomplishments. I have nothing but respect for someone like Cheridan Hawkins:

http://pac-12.com/article/2016/06/08/or ... hlete-year

She's awesome, but, my goodness... that is one big girl!

Rick,

You are right. I went off on an ex coworker a year or two ago who insulted actor Claire Danes after an award show saying that she had no breasts because she was anorexic and looked awful. Claire looked BEAUTIFUL that night and is clearly slim and healthy, and not at all emaciated. The ex coworker is at least 300 lbs.

Because where I work now has a famous history to it from the 1940s, there are lots of old photos displayed of workers from back then. While looking at them this past week, what caught my eye was how slim they all were. I didn't see one obese person in the old photos from WWII.

I'm not looking for perfection in human beings, but this thing about Americans getting bigger and bigger and seeing that as what's supposed to occur is not okay. When the military has problems recruiting because so many young people can't pass the physical requirements, that's an issue.

And like you, Rick, I'm not trying to insult people. This is about the health of our species...and survival of it.

Atheria

Rick, the amount of denial re weight is staggering. As teachers we cannot even mention it. I am in a high school with a high population of recent emigres, many from Central America. Within months of arrival, their weight skyrockets and before you know it many are obese and some morbidly obese. It's heartbreaking. Their favorite food is now pizza and favorite drink is Cola. We need to drop all this politically correct lingo and get with the program to help these young people. Because guess who is footing the medical bills?

Viv

I think the phrase, "It's the food" is the right one here.

It's not bodies that we are (primarily) in denial about -- it's the food.

Today a guy was coming out of the grocery store as I was going in, and he had two kids and a large box of donuts. It was, quite obviously, their breakfast.

If we are in denial about eating fat, sugar and flour as a meal, then it really doesn't matter whether our outsides look pretty or not -- we are going to be a sickly nation that's always having heart problems, kidney problems, endocrine problems, fatigue problems hyperactivity problems, depression problems.

Our worst lie about our food is it's "not that bad". People eat hamburger and think, "It's not that bad". They eat cake and think, "It's not that bad". They eat pizza and think, "It's not that bad."

The weird thing is that it would be wildly hypocritical for us to crticize people if they are eating more or less the same foods everyone else is eating, or encouraging, or preparing for them. So, there are lots of families whose daughters weigh 170 or so (ike the girls on the softball team) and it would be weird and rude to criticize the girls for gaining weight when A -- the parents ordered pizzas and stuff growing up; raised them to eat that way; and B -- their sons also weigh 200 and over, and no one finds THAT socially inappropriate.

So we kinda keep our mouths shut about their bodies (which I think is polite and appropriate), until we can be open and honest about the food.

It's the food, its the food, it's the food. The internal and external damage to the bodies are just byproducts -- no sense in even paying much attention to HOW the damage and burdens to the body are manifesting! Just that we know they ARE manifesting, in obvious ways and less obvious ways.

Portion control and lack of exercise DO factor in though. People in 2016 are much more sedentary than 100 years ago. Now we have machines to do everything for us. And don't get me started on the MASSIVE portions of food served in restaurants. When I was in Europe years ago people there mentioned it.

I've actually considered getting an old fashioned washboard and doing my laundry that way to save trips to a laundromat AND get a work out. LOL

Atheria

rickfm wrote:Which one do you think is going to beat the throw out at first base?

Which one is more apt to hit a home run and not have to worry about being thrown out at first base?

You can't judge a book by it's cover. The girl that is heavier may be healthier than the slimmer girl. She may also be a lot more powerful and her percent body fat to muscle ratio may be lower. After all, you have no idea of how either girl eats, sleeps, gets her exercise, and so on....you are making a cosmetic judgement which may or may not be valid.

I actually don't think it's unfair to look at the biggest girls on the team and yes, they may well be the best power hitters, but I would be willing to bet on them being slow.

Extra weight means you're carrying sacks of potatoes around, unnecessarily. No one's fast carrying a few sacks of potatoes.

Weight vis a vis speed, is not PURELY cosmetic. People get faster as they drop those sacks of potaotes.

(Sorry I am calling extra fat "sacks of potatoes", but that's what comes to mind. Eat your potatoes and be happy!)

roundcoconut wrote:I actually don't think it's unfair to look at the biggest girls on the team and yes, they may well be the best power hitters, but I would be willing to bet on them being slow.

Extra weight means you're carrying sacks of potatoes around, unnecessarily. No one's fast carrying a few sacks of potatoes.

Weight vis a vis speed, is not PURELY cosmetic. People get faster as they drop those sacks of potaotes.

(Sorry I am calling extra fat "sacks of potatoes", but that's what comes to mind. Eat your potatoes and be happy!)

There are some very fast and heavy football players playing in the National Football League. They aren't fast if it comes to running a marathon, but they would beat many thinner people in a 40 yard dash.

The fastest man on the planet, Usain Bolt, has a BMI of 25 which is on the overweight/normal borderline........

I saw part of a amazing clip on PBS. The guy was talking about football as a game where a line of mine and yours is drawn. Then in the game, it is to steel someone else's property. The guy then asked the question "How would a six year old internalize it?"

Our whole culture is asleep we live in a culture that makes it money from guns, drugs and alcohol. Then we wonder why everyone is trying to escape vs Being not two.

Aloha, patty

Go to any drug store and look around at the people, it does not have to be that way.

My last physical exam the doctor told me my weight was, "too low for my age?" What the hell does that mean!? I'm not even middle-aged and my weight is in the normal category. The doctor himself was obese but I didn't point that out. Being fat is normal now. Normal weight is now abnormal.

viv wrote:I am in a high school with a high population of recent emigres, many from Central America.

Their favorite food is now pizza and favorite drink is Cola. We need to drop all this politically correct lingo and get with the program to help these young people. Because guess who is footing the medical bills?

Viv

Coke and pizza is very expensive for the average person in Latin America. And the pizza in most places in Latin America is not the same as pizza in U.S.A. Many fewer rich toppings so many fewer calories. Kids will go crazy when they can have all the food like this they want. Parents. Parents. Parents.

Are you all sitting down?........

My mom is overweight and needs to lose 30-50 lbs. Her MD told her not to lose weight (despite the fact she's very diabetic, has high blood pressure, high cholesterol, bad knees, fibromyalgia, has had 2 heart attacks with stents, etc.) because......wait for it.....wait for it......

"If you get cancer you'll lose 50 lbs. so you need to be overweight in order to withstand the weight loss."

WTF?!?!

And yes, her doctor is overweight and unhealthy herself besides being a moron.

Atheria