BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat

Subject: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: SueB
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 07:15 PM

I invite any and everyone who has a weight issue, or loves some one with a weight issue, to go to the UK Guardian online or

click here to read this article.

And tell me what you think?

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 07:26 PM

The human organism has evolved to accumlate fatty tissue as a store against hard times. Unfortunately, we don't much experience such hardships these days, so we never draw on our accumulated stores.

Robin

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,freda
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 07:41 PM

Weight is such a cultural thing. Yes, in my experience, men from certain cultures go bug eyed when they see a big woman, and know how to appreciate her.

I eat a healthy vegetarian diet and have for 30 years, my weight is just who I am. My kids who were all brought up on the same diet are fit and healthy, each in their own shape. All tall and gorgeous.

I am a big woman. my closest neighbour at work is a tall, skinny, very beautiful woman. when i arrived in the workplace she expressed shock and outrage at my weight, and often comments on the fact that I eat (if I bring fruit, yoghurt & coffee to work for breakfast).

She has steamed broccoli or beef soup for lunch, goes for vigorous walks in her expensive walking shoes, and is wound up and uptight all week, railing against colleagues, her son, his coach (who is never good enough) and a continual battle with the world.

I also go for walks (with friends, at a more relaxed pace) and people often drop by my desk for a chat and a laugh.
Who is working their way to a heart attack?


freda

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Helen
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 07:42 PM

Brilliant! Says it all. Thanks for sharing that.

Reminds me of the Four Motorcyclists of the Apocalypse in Terry Pratchett's book called Good Omens. The one called Famine is a yuppie type who has made squillions of dollars selling diet fads. One product range is totally empty of nutritional food value so people are starving to death but still eating and losing weight, and then he hits on the idea to help the people who want to gain weight. These people are still totally malnourished but they are gaining weight.

The article appears to say, at one point, that it is all about money for the pharmaceutical companies, the diet-fad creators, the medical gurus, etc.

Helen

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Little Hawk
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 10:22 PM

Well, of course it's okay. William Shatner is fat. How could it not be okay?

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 10:31 PM

Fat isn't bad. Thin isn't just yuppies in expensive jogging suits, either.

Folks iz folks.

Jerry (wavering between fat and thin, but still jerry after all these years.)

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: JennieG
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 10:42 PM

I am in shape. Round is a shape.

Cheers
JennieG

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Joybell
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 11:26 PM

Thank you Sue. A welcome study. Joy

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Once Famous
Date: 24 Apr 04 - 11:37 PM

This article is dangerous and if you believe it you are stroking yourself. I wouldn't be surprised if the fast food merchants aren't somewhere behind it.

I have lost 20 pounds in the last 3-4 months by changing my ways and eating healthier. I have rid myself of hearburn, lowered my blood pressure, no longer have IBS, and............my clothes fit me better.

I can understand that those who are fat and obese would cling to something like this article to make them feel better about themselves.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: dianavan
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 12:12 AM

Its not just about fat and obese. The article linked in the first post also included eating disorders.

I don't think its dangerous, Martin. If losing a few pounds has relieved you of physical problems, great! Maybe you'd lose even more if you considered the conclusion.

"For upper-class Americans in particular, it's easier to deal with
                                  anxiety about excessive consumption by obsessing about
                                  weight, rather than by actually confronting far more serious
                                  threats to our social and political health. We may drive
                                  environmentally insane SUVs that dump untold tonnes of
                                  hydrocarbons into the atmosphere; we may consume a vastly
                                  disproportionate share of the world's diminishing natural
                                  resources; we may support a foreign policy that consists of
                                  throwing America's military weight around without regard to
                                  objections from our allies - but at least we don't eat that extra
                                  cookie when it's offered to us"

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Once Famous
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 12:25 AM

I go by the philosophy that you have nothing if you don't have your health. What good is all of that social action mumbo jumbo without it.

No, I don't own an SUV.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,Clint Keller
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 01:39 AM

My Robinson grandparents were both overweight; my Keller grandparents were small & skinny, and all four lived into their 80's. I don't know which were the healthy ones.

A couple years ago, like Martin, I lost 30 pounds or so and they're still off and I feel lots better, but there's folks that diet and are miserable and gain it back and then feel bad about that and repeat it all and it doesn't seem to be real good for them.

Different strokes, like they say.

clint

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: JennieG
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 02:28 AM

I'm with you Clint - the important thing is to be happy with the shape you're in, no matter what it is. I have put on weight over the last few years because I have become lazy about exercise, and because the biscuits at work don't cost us any money. Because I'm not happy about this I have taken up walking, and I have stopped eating the free biscuits. I just want my clothes to feel comfortable again....not tight.

Cheers
JennieG - off for the daily walk soon

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 03:24 AM

my great uncle Arthur was 42 stone, and he lived to be 107, so all this diet stuff is a load of rubbish.

PS=he smoked 10 packs of cigs a day, and had lard sandwiches for breakfast every day, them doctors and so called health experts just talk rubbish.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 03:26 AM

he drunk a couple of bottles of rum a day as well,

i think he was 107, might have been 37, not sure really.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: jacqui.c
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 04:04 AM

I've been obese, I'm now not. Being fat left me with arthritic knees and caused other health problems. It also damaged my self image. I don't ever want to be fat again and make sure that I eat healthily and exercise as far as possible to prevent that happening. That's my choice and I'm happy with it.

Overweight can trigger diabetes in some people and heart problems in others. If you're lucky enough to be able to be fat and healthy - fine. I wasn't healthy or happy and I'm glad I lost the weight.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Ellenpoly
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 06:27 AM

If you are fat and healthy mentally and physically , I see no problem. But if either your heath or general well-being are threatened by your weight, it's probably a good idea to not ignore these things...xx..e

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 08:04 AM

Actually, skimming that article, it becomes apparent that what the man is saying is that being overweight is not by any means the most serious kind of excess demonstrated by the American Way of Life, and that losing weight wouldn't go far towards sorting things out.

It all seems pretty simple. If you're comfortable being the weight you are, don't worry about it. If you'd like to weigh less, just don't eat so much and take more exercise. And it's nothing to do with anyone else.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: mack/misophist
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 09:35 AM

Fat is fine. Too much fat will kill you. As in most things, there must be balance. It's not very scientific but a 'body mass index' of 25 to 30 seems to be the best place to be at.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,Mary V.
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 09:47 AM

Hey Jerry...I like what you said ...
folks iz folks ! sums it up !
Size doesn't matter...whats in a persons heart does !

Mary in Green Bay who grew up on side pork, and biscuits and
too many desserts !

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 10:10 AM

I think it is a good article. It is not dandgerous nor does it promote obesity or fast foods. Martin, you say I have lost 20 pounds in the last 3-4 months by changing my ways and eating healthier. Surely that is the point isn't it? You have changed your ways and diet, presumably becoming fitter on the way? Weight loss is a side effect of this NOT a major reason.

The article simply says that fit people live longer. Thin does NOT equate to fit, nor does fat equate to unhealthy. The dangerous assumption, which the article does refute if you study it, is that weight loss will make you healthier. It will not. Only a healthier life style will make you healthier. If you loose weight because of that you win all round but don't make weight loss the target!

Cheers

DtG

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 12:42 PM

I agree with Dave the Gnome, and Martin Gibson, perhaps you didn't read the article closely enough.

The main point the article was making is that the medical establishment is making dangerous assumptions by conclucding that obesity and/or higher BMI is causing catastrophic illnesses, such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer, and premature death in general, when the research doesn't support those conclusions.

I will reserve judgment on this until I get a chance to read the book. I'm disturbed with the conclusion of the article, which is a political rant that has nothing to do with the medical science. If that is how the rest of the book is, I will duly note that there isn't conclusive evidence to show direct links between obesity and high BMI, and catastrophic disease and premature death.

I do agree that cultural bias is at the root of the current American obsession with obesity, and that doctors and medical researchers, being part of the European American elite of our nation, have brought their cultural bias into the medical profession in a way that is highly detrimental to the health of all Americans.

That said, I also believe there are serious health consequences for people who are morbidly obese. But I have always believed those problems are rooted in unhealthy lifestyles of eating too many unhealthy foods, and not getting any exercise. I too suffered from GERD and gallstones at one point, but have brought both conditions under control by recognizing that at 40, I couldn't get away with eating the same foods I ate at 30, and not have boomerang effects from it. As we age, most of us need to learn to adapt our lifestyle habits. It's that simple.

I also am sceptical about links between certain dietary fats, and heart disease. The medical establishment bias against the Atkins diet, for instance, is just absurd. With no sound medical studies one way or the other, it has been condemned. Now, with the history of heart disease in my family, I wouldn't go on one of those high protein diets. But I know three people who are diabetic themselves and a family history of it as well, who don't have a family history of heart disease. Two of them went on the Atkins diet, and it resolved their adult onset diabetes. That is pretty damn powerful stuff for anecdotal evidence. So I think it really needs to be studied further.

The whole anti-carb obsession in America is pretty bizarre too. Now, I know that my weight gain after 40 was related to several factors. One, consuming too many empty carb calories from junk foods like pretzels (my personal fave). Two, menopause, which often causes weight gain in women which I think is normal and healthy, especially when you look at the statistics of osteoperosis for elderly women. The ones with extra weight have extra protection against it, and against catastrophic injuries like hip fractures. Third, was my lack of exercise and sedentary lifestyle.

When you combine those factors with one other significant factor--the heredity factor--women in my family all became "overweight" at the time of menopause--you begin to see a rational pattern that makes sense. It also shouldn't be assumed that being overweight is unhealthy. Living an unhealthy lifestyle is unhealthy. Poor eating habits and nutritional intake is unhealthy. Not exercising is unhealthy. Not getting enough rest and relaxation is unhealthy. Not having supportive, nurturing relationships (and that doesn't mean marriage, it just means a supportive, nurturing support network) is unhealthy. Not being able to balance your stress by having a variety of activities you regularly choose to engage in that you enjoy, like music, dancing, bird watching or whatever, is unhealthy.

There is what I call the WASP aesthetic of extreme deprivation that is behind this current US Anglo American dominant cultural view about female bodies in particular, that is behind this anti-obesity thing that I find to be very racist and misogynist. It was when I became aware of this anti-weight bias in so many women, I began to realize how women themselves can be profoundly misogynist. It centers around these sorts of issues for European Americans. For African American women, their internalized misogyny is rooted in their relationships with men, which is too often dysfunctional.

So the cultural biases against healthy and high functioning living doesn't just manifest in the obesity issue. Another example of a related bias can be seen in the dominant Anglo American attitudes towards work. I know so many people who just work. That is all they do. No outside interests, just work. They work 60+ hour weeks, and go home and live borderline or completely obsessive/compulsive lives (and impose them on their families and friends) that will support their tyrannical work schedules, so they fit in with the other people who think and work like they do. Every thing they do, is done to support their work lifestyle, and maintain their status within their workplace hierarchy. Their entire identity is subsumed by their workplace identity.

They won't stay home when they get sick, because the work place "ethic" is you are a bad employee if you take time off work. Hence, they are all in competition with each other to see who will retire with more accumulated sick time. Many of these people also never take personal leave days off, or their vacations. And the vast majority of this type of middle class psycho is fit looking, not overweight. Perfectly groomed, always. Drive new cars, always. Perfectly clean houses, always. Children in the best schools, always.

They are really sick mentally and many of them are morally bankrupt, yet they are the shining examples held up to the rest of us, of how a "normal and healthy" lifestyle looks. And there are many of them in middle management. And they view the rest of us not only as less than human, but as their enemy. They are extremely intolerant, controlling people. And they are running our workplaces and our public institutions into the ground with this sick extreme WASP aesthetic that appears to be a reactionary backlash to the US becoming more culturally diverse. And the extreme cultural biases of the medical establishment is often used as their justification for their "one true lifestyle" as the model all people should follow.

So I think this obesity thing is more complex than just the size issue, because of the cultural prejudices against large people, especially large women. It is the only sort of bias joke that seems to still be allowable, if late night comedians are any indication of the cultural norm. It is a rare night that goes by that Leno, Letterman, Conan or Jon Stewart don't make fat jokes. Being "fat" is seen as moral sloth, laziness, etc. so the whole thing is deeply entwined with what we historically referred to in the US as the WASP ethic, the Yankee puritan thing.

Good to see this article. I too have much better knees and no GERD since losing weight, along with much higher energy levels overall. I'm also just happier because doing simple tasks like carrying groceries up stairs doesn't make me so winded and exhausted like it did when I was overweight and not exercising regularly. I have always lived my life according to the wisdom of common sense. When the medical establishment said butter was bad for you, I refused to switch to margarine. Now the medical establishment says margarine is bad for you. But they also say margarine is bad for you. They say fats aren't all bad for you, but you should just eat a few types of fat, which don't include dairy products, meat products, or most naturally occurring fats. Now to me, that is just plain stupid, especially when there is no good medical proof of dietary fats being unealthy for human consumption.

But rather than making a wholly irrelevant to the subject rant about the US going to war in Iraq, I'd much prefer the author talk about a much more serious health and nutrition problem--environmental pollution in our food, water, and air.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 04:20 PM

It always strikes me that fat people who lead relatively active lives must be incredibly strong, carting all that extra weigt around. Like carrying a heavy suitcase everywhere they go. I couldn't do it - I'd just end up sitting exhausted in one place and I'd get really fat.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,Shlio
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 04:43 PM

Obesity is dangerous to your long-term health - but I think people need to be careful with how they define it.

The article said that women were advised to weigh between seven 1/2 and nine stone! I'm well aware that I'm very underweight for a small teenager, but I weigh eight stone. I would hate to see an "average sized" women try to weigh that little.

(It's a cultural thing too, of course. My male friends tend to define any normal sized girl as "fat" if she shows a hint of a stomach.)

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,pdc
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 04:58 PM

Sometimes it's COOL to be fat, or ...and now for something completely different:

TysonSkating

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Little Hawk
Date: 25 Apr 04 - 06:37 PM

Oh, that is neat!

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 08:58 AM

As has been said smaller sizes do not necessarily equate with good health (ask anyone who knows a bulemic or anorexic person) & larger people are not always unhealthy. Years ago a very overweight singer was asked to participate in a health measurement program. Surprisingly she was not the "bad" example they thought she would be, her readings were in the healthy range.

Who decided that women should weight between 7 & a half & 9 stone - what about my sister-in-law & others like her who are over 6' tall?

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 09:57 AM

Are there really any healthy women of average height who only weigh nine stone? (That's 126 pounds, for Americans)

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 10:27 AM

I'm 5 ft 5 1/2 (which is averageish I think) and at the moment I weight probably about 9 stone. Generally when I'm healthy I weight between 8 and 9 1/2 stone, and if I fall below 8 stone it is one sign that I am ill.

I read the article and much of it makes sense. I remember reading years ago about some research that suggested that most the the ill health thought to be caused by obesity is in reality caused by yo yo dieting (something to do with the fat that had been lost, when it comes back it comes back in different places where it causes more harm?). And in turn dieting causes more obesity, because most people "fall off the wagon" and when they go back to their previous eating and exercise habits, they actually end up weighing more than they would have done if they hadn't dieted. I think if people concentrated more on having a sustainable healthy lifestyle and less of their weight (which should only change as a by product of the lifestyle, not be a goal in itself) then we would all be better off. It goes some way to explaining why the countries with the most obsession about being thin are also the ones with more and more obesity.

The authors rant about BMI doesnt really fit in with the rest of the article, it seems to me, as all it does is establish that BMI isn't always the best measure of obesity, as those who have high muscle content to their body have a high BMI as well as those with a high fat content. I have also read research that showed that probably the best simple measure of overweight/obesity was simply the waist measurement.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,KB
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 11:13 AM

Hah! So that explains why I've never quite believed Mark's professed belief that I would drop dead at the least exertion! I am definitely a porky person, but I cycle and kayak and run - so I must be reasonably healthy. Since taking up more activities (and cutting back on alcohol) I have lost 2 stone without "dieting" - and I do feel better for it, but I would agree with the theory that its the lifestyle changes that have improved my health and energy levels rather than the reduction in weight per se.


Kris

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,noddy
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 11:15 AM

Ear drink and be merry for tomorrow you will die!

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: open mike
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 11:32 AM

that web site is http://toothpastefordinner.com/

the tyson skating site was a video i guess.
but the dog video cic not load for me..
byt he way how much is a stone?
i mean what is a stone?
I mean how much does a stone weigh?
i suppose it is not just any old stone, but a particular one?
where does the term come from?

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Chief Chaos
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 01:52 PM

I just had an over-all physical assessment.
did excellent on the pushups, well in the sit-ups, great in Cholesterol and not so hot on weight/BMI, I posted about 18 minutes on a 1.5 mile run (but then I've never been a runner and I didn't give up. But what really got me on the bad side of things was not my eating or exercise habits but my family history of cancer and diabetes. Seems if I had done excellent in every category these few family facts would put me under the same risk category.

Although I don't like Jim Morrison he did have a point;
"No one gets out of here alive."

By the way, my grandfather on my mother's side is 97 and still going. He is a red meat and potatos kind of guy. Kept working well into his eighties. Has a few problems but they were made worse by medicine rather than better. Never smoked. But growing up in Buffalo New York during the great industrial efforts of the twenties and thirties couldn't be all that healthy for you.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: mack/misophist
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 02:57 PM

Perhaps some one should say a few words in favour of the body mass index. To begin with, it's an actuarial table. It was not written by doctors but by actuaries in the insurance industry. It doesn't pretend to show a causal relationship between obesity and health, only a very strong statistical one. Being a bell curve, of course a lot of people are going to fall at the ends of the curve but the overall numbers will be small.

In the last year my BMI (body mass index) has gone from 43.8 to 28. For the first time in 20 years I can walk down hills without pain. For the first time in 15 years I can sleep lying down. My blood pressure is normal. If you're obese, you probably have conditions that can be helped by losing weight. If not, good for you. Just remember this: medical plans are miserly. The first thing they want you to do is try to lose weight before spending thousands of dollars on high tech diagnostics like sleep function tests or 3 hour long lung function studies.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 03:16 PM

I'm with you on this one, Martin:

I would never let weight influence how I felt about a person, but I've had plenty of first-hand experience how losing just a few pounds and excercising can greatly reduce harmful levels of cholesterol and blood sugar. I also know, as anyone does who has been able to lose weight, that your energy level goes up, and it's just generally easy on your heart (and legs) caqrrying less weight. That doesn't mean that everyone can lose weight. I have no excuse when I get overweight, because all it takes is a little discipline to take off weight. I also realize that there are people who are very overweight who live long healthy lives, just as there are people who drink too much who do the same. My Father lived to be 92 in good health, despite taking poor care of his health for much of his life. For those who can lose weight, the benefits to you health and ergy seem well worth the effort. I say that, not having made the effort for long stretches in my life. Recently, I've gotten some warning signs that made me realize that it was time to take care of myself while my basic health is still very good.

If our bodies are temples of the Spirit, I figured I was long overdue to do some cleaning up around here. My body was more like a trailer park than a temple.

And good for you, losing the weight, Martin. It's a good feeling... keep it up. (or is it down?) My wife and I are doing the same..

Jerry

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 04:29 PM

Since nine stone is the same as 126 pounds, it shouldn't be too hard to work out that means a stone is 14 pounds, open mike.

Sixteen ounces make a pound, and fourteen pounds make a stone, and eight stones make a hundredweight, and twenty hundredweights make a ton. A bit like money in Harry Potter. (That's in the UK and Ireland - it's a bit different in the USA. Here's link about that kind of stuff.)

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 07:11 PM

Does this mean it is now OK to be fat in the head?

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 26 Apr 04 - 07:28 PM

The brain is just about the only part of the body that contains virtually no fat, I read somewhere.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,noddy
Date: 27 Apr 04 - 03:57 AM

Mcgrath there are exceptions to the rule.

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: GUEST,Lilyfestre
Date: 27 Apr 04 - 02:10 PM

126 pounds is what is considered a healthy weight? Dang...I was born at 127 pounds and went from there!!!!!!!   Guess I'm in trouble, eh?

On a more serious note, I think the world's obsession with the size of one's body is all wrong. Just as others have posted here, I think it is more important to be healthy and to feel healthy. I know folks both thin and fat and it's not always the thinner folks who are experiencing the better health.

Live, Love and Laugh. Those are the important things in my book!

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: SueB
Date: 27 Apr 04 - 03:33 PM

I've been sitting by and reading all your responses with interest. I also sent the article to a bunch of friends who don't 'Cat, and their responses have been equally varied - everything from knee-jerk-reactionary-what-a-load-of-bullshit! at one end, to aha!-I'm-vindicated! at the other, with the great majority falling in the middle of the bell curve (new thread coming soon: Venn Diagrams vs Bell Curves). The middle of the curve response seems to encompass views slightly to the right and left of "well, it does make sense/seem reasonable/appear obvious that you can be fat AND healthy,
and that you can be skinny AND unhealthy too."

Articles like this, which seem to contradict known fact, are always good for making you re-examine your own beliefs on a subject. I rather suspect the author of being guilty of a little hyperbole in the interest of selling more books, a case of the pot calling the kettle black, so to speak.

When you're fat, people love to find reasons for it, especially pop psychology reasons. "Your fat is a defense mechanism, your fat is passive-aggressive, your fat is a manifestation of your desire to self destruct, your fat is your way of rebelling against this that or the other, your outer fat is a symptom of your inner self-loathing." I hate that.

I used to train at a women's boxing gym. We were all fit, or got fit. We were all shapes and sizes when we started, and we were all shapes and sizes at the end of the year, when I stopped training there. For 19 out of 20 women who trained there, there was no natural way in the world that they could have, through diet and exercise, significantly altered their size and shape to resemble that of most of the women you see in magazines, in movies, or on the television. Most real women don't look like that, and yet it's hard to shake the idea that we should.

I tend to think of eating as my only remaining vice. Strange, to think of eating as a vice. I've quit smoking, I don't drink, recreational sex and drugs are all in the past. I've never been a compulsive shopper, I don't decorate and redecorate my house, I collect nothing. So I eat too much, so what? Compared to other things people do, it seems pretty fucking benign to me. Sitting around on my ass in front of the computer is probably more hazardous to my health than eating more carbohydrates than I really need.

Maybe I ought to go take a walk...

Subject: RE: BS: This just in: It's OK to be fat
From: dianavan
Date: 27 Apr 04 - 09:34 PM

When I was a sweet, young thing, I was skin and bones. When I got pregnant I was sooooooo happy to be full and round. Now that I am an older woman, my body has changed again! I actually weigh more than when I was pregnant. I'm not obese but I could certainly spend more time doing yoga or working out.

My body has gone through so many changes in this life, I can only say that its a good thing I know who I am.

Seems that no matter how much you weigh, its how you feel about yourself that really matters.