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Why do people overeat and/or become obese? Is it harder than average for some to lose weight?
Replies
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AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »I really don't find it particularly surprising that people overeat and gain weight, and I certainly don't think it's contrary to CICO in any way. Nor do I think it makes "put down the fork" bad advice, although I know it can be challenging for lots of reasons.
We evolved in circumstances in which not having enough food was an issue and surplus food was not, and where we were required to be active. Throughout human history (until quite recently) activity was necessary and scarcity was the main concern, and on top of that all cultures had customs and rituals that regulated eating in some way (similar to how other basic urges, like sex, are regulated by culture). It was beneficial for humans, also, to be able to eat when food was available and go without when not, such that we can adapt to not eating/eating little for a period of time (periods of scarcity) and eat more than we need immediately when food is available. As a result, the assumption by some that a healthy human won't eat more than maintenance naturally is questionable -- why would we have evolved to prevent something that was not an issue? It's amazing how out bodies adapt to keep an equilibrium as is.
So given all that, put us in a situation of abundance, with food around at all times that we don't even have to prepare ourselves if we don't want to, a culture that says "eat whenever you feel like it, and for pure pleasure, not for hunger or according to overarching culture," I think it's completely unsurprising that many people overeat and gain weight. It's normal for humans to feel desire to eat tasty and available food when it is present and therefore in the mind. Not everyone feels that way, but that it's common, not surprising.
Add to this that many humans are bad with short term vs. long term tradeoffs -- yeah, overeating will keep you fat and eating less will allow for lost weight, but that will take a long time and it's easy to think one day or one meal won't matter and keep repeating that. And that's even before taking into account how easy it is to use any form of pleasure in a distorted or misplaced way, the power of habit, cultural associations with food (reminds me of a happy occasion or some such), and before worrying about actual messed up relationships with food and weight (which I think often feed into a cycle).
A human with a healthy appetite won't eat more than the body needs though even with abundant, delicious food available.
I'm not sure I am following your argument, but reality disproves this -- a majority of people do when food is abundant and cheap, as currently.
Overfeeding studies involve people who are not overweight, but you can't claim only those people are "healthy."I believe our mores around food evolved to protect the appetite - not to prevent overeating per se. Feasting, eating until full, "making room" for dessert are the exact opposite of not overeating and they were all part of a healthy eating pattern.
I don't think they evolved to avoid overeating (as that was not much of a problem until recently except among a small subset), but they operated to do so. One reason I didn't gain weight or think much about food between meals when growing up -- no matter what I ate -- was that you ate at mealtime. Even after I gained weight I took a trip to Nicaragua where we were doing lots of physical activity and busy all day and had no opportunities to eat except at regular meals (which were high carb/low protein compared to how I ate back home). I never thought about food, again, except at meals and ate smaller portions than at home (eating with other people when fat does this sometimes), and wasn't hungry at all. I think it was that food just wasn't available otherwise.If you truly overeat at one meal you naturally eat less at another and it all balances out. Providing you have a normal appetite.
Again, this is contrary to reality, as a majority of people seem to eat above maintenance sufficiently to become overweight.
My argument is simply that eating to the point of obesity is not normal or natural in those with a healthy, normal appetite regardless of the food environment.
How are you defining "normal and natural"? If a majority of people do it, it seems to be normal and natural, IMO.
That would be common to my mind, not normal. In other words, working as intended.
But there is no "intended" here. In many ways, eating food when it's available is a product of evolution, in all likelihood, and either useful or neutral in the conditions that prevailed for most of human history, so that a majority seem to do it easily if they don't take precautions against it is hardly surprising.
If a majority of people do it and they are generally otherwise healthy, how is that not normal?2 -
7 flags on this page alone. Someone needs to reread the ToS.5
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MissusMoon wrote: »7 flags on this page alone. Someone needs to reread the ToS.
wait for it I posted a couple more times...that number should go up.1 -
MissusMoon wrote: »7 flags on this page alone. Someone needs to reread the ToS.
You are too kind!0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »I really don't find it particularly surprising that people overeat and gain weight, and I certainly don't think it's contrary to CICO in any way. Nor do I think it makes "put down the fork" bad advice, although I know it can be challenging for lots of reasons.
We evolved in circumstances in which not having enough food was an issue and surplus food was not, and where we were required to be active. Throughout human history (until quite recently) activity was necessary and scarcity was the main concern, and on top of that all cultures had customs and rituals that regulated eating in some way (similar to how other basic urges, like sex, are regulated by culture). It was beneficial for humans, also, to be able to eat when food was available and go without when not, such that we can adapt to not eating/eating little for a period of time (periods of scarcity) and eat more than we need immediately when food is available. As a result, the assumption by some that a healthy human won't eat more than maintenance naturally is questionable -- why would we have evolved to prevent something that was not an issue? It's amazing how out bodies adapt to keep an equilibrium as is.
So given all that, put us in a situation of abundance, with food around at all times that we don't even have to prepare ourselves if we don't want to, a culture that says "eat whenever you feel like it, and for pure pleasure, not for hunger or according to overarching culture," I think it's completely unsurprising that many people overeat and gain weight. It's normal for humans to feel desire to eat tasty and available food when it is present and therefore in the mind. Not everyone feels that way, but that it's common, not surprising.
Add to this that many humans are bad with short term vs. long term tradeoffs -- yeah, overeating will keep you fat and eating less will allow for lost weight, but that will take a long time and it's easy to think one day or one meal won't matter and keep repeating that. And that's even before taking into account how easy it is to use any form of pleasure in a distorted or misplaced way, the power of habit, cultural associations with food (reminds me of a happy occasion or some such), and before worrying about actual messed up relationships with food and weight (which I think often feed into a cycle).
A human with a healthy appetite won't eat more than the body needs though even with abundant, delicious food available.
I'm not sure I am following your argument, but reality disproves this -- a majority of people do when food is abundant and cheap, as currently.
Overfeeding studies involve people who are not overweight, but you can't claim only those people are "healthy."I believe our mores around food evolved to protect the appetite - not to prevent overeating per se. Feasting, eating until full, "making room" for dessert are the exact opposite of not overeating and they were all part of a healthy eating pattern.
I don't think they evolved to avoid overeating (as that was not much of a problem until recently except among a small subset), but they operated to do so. One reason I didn't gain weight or think much about food between meals when growing up -- no matter what I ate -- was that you ate at mealtime. Even after I gained weight I took a trip to Nicaragua where we were doing lots of physical activity and busy all day and had no opportunities to eat except at regular meals (which were high carb/low protein compared to how I ate back home). I never thought about food, again, except at meals and ate smaller portions than at home (eating with other people when fat does this sometimes), and wasn't hungry at all. I think it was that food just wasn't available otherwise.If you truly overeat at one meal you naturally eat less at another and it all balances out. Providing you have a normal appetite.
Again, this is contrary to reality, as a majority of people seem to eat above maintenance sufficiently to become overweight.
My argument is simply that eating to the point of obesity is not normal or natural in those with a healthy, normal appetite regardless of the food environment.
How are you defining "normal and natural"? If a majority of people do it, it seems to be normal and natural, IMO.
That would be common to my mind, not normal. In other words, working as intended.
But there is no "intended" here. In many ways, eating food when it's available is a product of evolution, in all likelihood, and either useful or neutral in the conditions that prevailed for most of human history, so that a majority seem to do it easily if they don't take precautions against it is hardly surprising.
If a majority of people do it and they are generally otherwise healthy, how is that not normal?
I don't believe that. I know you do, but I don't. Like I said earlier, I believe our old norms surrounding food are intended to maintain a normal, working appetite. An appetite that if working correctly does not allow for obesity/dangerous level of fatness.0 -
On different threads I've seen people saying that weight loss is more complex than CICO. I don't think they all mean that CICO doesn't work (though a few do); I suspect they're trying to say that, for them, either Calories In is harder to limit or that Calories Out is harder to achieve than for the average person.
Addressing this in particular: there are two "CICO doesn't work for me" groups. One group treats "CICO" as a name for counting calories, and what they really mean is "I had to find another strategy because counting calories alone didn't work." Then there's the group that truly believes they're somehow defying thermodynamics.
For the first group, there's a lot of reasons. They didn't adjust their macros for satiety, so they were hungry all the time and ended up overeating. They're emotional eaters and kept blowing out their calorie goal because they didn't address the root of their issue. They have trigger foods but didn't alter their environment or diet to make avoiding triggers easier. They tried to eat too "clean" and ended up binging on foods they missed. They tried to cut too many calories and binged because they were so hungry.
For the second group, there's always one side of the equation that's not being tallied correctly. They swear they're only eating 1200 calories, but their estimation of CI is terrible. They overestimate their exercise burn or activity level. A medical condition is making TDEE much lower than a calculator spits out. They try a fad like South Beach, paleo, etc. without really understanding it's the calories, not the food type.
What both groups, and anyone who's tried to lose weight and failed, can have in common is the feeling that you're doing everything right, or trying so hard to do everything right, and it's just not working. Since it's not working, you must have a harder time than everyone else when it comes to losing weight. You're an outlier. There must be a reason you're staying fat. It's really, really difficult to put so much effort into something and fail, so people rationalize it to make themselves feel better. "Put down the fork" can seem insensitive or hollow - they tried putting down the fork and still didn't lose (because their strategy was wrong or knowledge was lacking).18 -
AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »AlabasterVerve wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »I really don't find it particularly surprising that people overeat and gain weight, and I certainly don't think it's contrary to CICO in any way. Nor do I think it makes "put down the fork" bad advice, although I know it can be challenging for lots of reasons.
We evolved in circumstances in which not having enough food was an issue and surplus food was not, and where we were required to be active. Throughout human history (until quite recently) activity was necessary and scarcity was the main concern, and on top of that all cultures had customs and rituals that regulated eating in some way (similar to how other basic urges, like sex, are regulated by culture). It was beneficial for humans, also, to be able to eat when food was available and go without when not, such that we can adapt to not eating/eating little for a period of time (periods of scarcity) and eat more than we need immediately when food is available. As a result, the assumption by some that a healthy human won't eat more than maintenance naturally is questionable -- why would we have evolved to prevent something that was not an issue? It's amazing how out bodies adapt to keep an equilibrium as is.
So given all that, put us in a situation of abundance, with food around at all times that we don't even have to prepare ourselves if we don't want to, a culture that says "eat whenever you feel like it, and for pure pleasure, not for hunger or according to overarching culture," I think it's completely unsurprising that many people overeat and gain weight. It's normal for humans to feel desire to eat tasty and available food when it is present and therefore in the mind. Not everyone feels that way, but that it's common, not surprising.
Add to this that many humans are bad with short term vs. long term tradeoffs -- yeah, overeating will keep you fat and eating less will allow for lost weight, but that will take a long time and it's easy to think one day or one meal won't matter and keep repeating that. And that's even before taking into account how easy it is to use any form of pleasure in a distorted or misplaced way, the power of habit, cultural associations with food (reminds me of a happy occasion or some such), and before worrying about actual messed up relationships with food and weight (which I think often feed into a cycle).
A human with a healthy appetite won't eat more than the body needs though even with abundant, delicious food available.
I'm not sure I am following your argument, but reality disproves this -- a majority of people do when food is abundant and cheap, as currently.
Overfeeding studies involve people who are not overweight, but you can't claim only those people are "healthy."I believe our mores around food evolved to protect the appetite - not to prevent overeating per se. Feasting, eating until full, "making room" for dessert are the exact opposite of not overeating and they were all part of a healthy eating pattern.
I don't think they evolved to avoid overeating (as that was not much of a problem until recently except among a small subset), but they operated to do so. One reason I didn't gain weight or think much about food between meals when growing up -- no matter what I ate -- was that you ate at mealtime. Even after I gained weight I took a trip to Nicaragua where we were doing lots of physical activity and busy all day and had no opportunities to eat except at regular meals (which were high carb/low protein compared to how I ate back home). I never thought about food, again, except at meals and ate smaller portions than at home (eating with other people when fat does this sometimes), and wasn't hungry at all. I think it was that food just wasn't available otherwise.If you truly overeat at one meal you naturally eat less at another and it all balances out. Providing you have a normal appetite.
Again, this is contrary to reality, as a majority of people seem to eat above maintenance sufficiently to become overweight.
My argument is simply that eating to the point of obesity is not normal or natural in those with a healthy, normal appetite regardless of the food environment.
How are you defining "normal and natural"? If a majority of people do it, it seems to be normal and natural, IMO.
That would be common to my mind, not normal. In other words, working as intended.
But there is no "intended" here. In many ways, eating food when it's available is a product of evolution, in all likelihood, and either useful or neutral in the conditions that prevailed for most of human history, so that a majority seem to do it easily if they don't take precautions against it is hardly surprising.
If a majority of people do it and they are generally otherwise healthy, how is that not normal?
I don't believe that. I know you do, but I don't. Like I said earlier, I believe our old norms surrounding food are intended to maintain a normal, working appetite. An appetite that if working correctly does not allow for obesity/dangerous level of fatness.
What don't you believe? That a majority of people do it? (That part seems unavoidable given the percentage of people who are overweight.) That those people are, for the most part, healthy? That there would have been no drawbacks and possible benefits from being able to eat over maintenance in times of surplus throughout most of human history?
I don't think it's so easy to lose one's appetite, either, especially in a situation of high activity and less available food. IMO, food rituals are more about community+nutrition, probably, but operated for years after food was more available also to control eating (and still would if we followed them), as well as for nutrition (don't spoil your appetite before dinner, no dessert without eating your veg first).3 -
I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
^^ simply saying it's a lack of education is also grossly incorrect. IMO. Trust me, I'm educated. Very much so in nutritional, exercise etc. But doesn't make it any easier to control that "excessive eating." Not in the slightest. I think unless you've REALLY had an issue with food? It's perhaps easier to say "that person is simply not educated" when in fact, that might only be a sliver of the issue.
knowing how to lose weight (which I don't think a lot know really how to do it) and applying it are two different things.
and my question is this how many people "REALLY" have an issue with food? or is it other issues like self esteem or mental disorder?
I have lost 118 pounds and kept it off for over 2 years. Even now, I know all about CICO, and I still believe I REALLY have an issue with food.
And what is your issue with food? and did it stop you from losing the weight and maintaining?....no so is it really an issue?
I should rephrase this, my issues are not directly with food, but my own continual struggle with binge eating. I guess it could be said that the issue is my mental state after all. I still sometimes get over whelming urges to eat massive amounts of food. Were talking huge calories in brief periods of time, and not because I am hungry. Sometimes, I am happy, sometimes sad, sometimes, worried, whatever, it just hits me. Fortunately I balance it out when it happens through the rest of the week. I still struggle with why I do this4 -
I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
^^ simply saying it's a lack of education is also grossly incorrect. IMO. Trust me, I'm educated. Very much so in nutritional, exercise etc. But doesn't make it any easier to control that "excessive eating." Not in the slightest. I think unless you've REALLY had an issue with food? It's perhaps easier to say "that person is simply not educated" when in fact, that might only be a sliver of the issue.
knowing how to lose weight (which I don't think a lot know really how to do it) and applying it are two different things.
and my question is this how many people "REALLY" have an issue with food? or is it other issues like self esteem or mental disorder?
I have lost 118 pounds and kept it off for over 2 years. Even now, I know all about CICO, and I still believe I REALLY have an issue with food.
And what is your issue with food? and did it stop you from losing the weight and maintaining?....no so is it really an issue?
I should rephrase this, my issues are not directly with food, but my own continual struggle with binge eating. I guess it could be said that the issue is my mental state after all. I still sometimes get over whelming urges to eat massive amounts of food. Were talking huge calories in brief periods of time, and not because I am hungry. Sometimes, I am happy, sometimes sad, sometimes, worried, whatever, it just hits me. Fortunately I balance it out when it happens through the rest of the week. I still struggle with why I do this
Thank you for sharing...food for thought.
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I should rephrase this, my issues are not directly with food, but my own continual struggle with binge eating. I guess it could be said that the issue is my mental state after all. I still sometimes get over whelming urges to eat massive amounts of food. Were talking huge calories in brief periods of time, and not because I am hungry. Sometimes, I am happy, sometimes sad, sometimes, worried, whatever, it just hits me. Fortunately I balance it out when it happens through the rest of the week. I still struggle with why I do this
In this instance, how we grew up with food and our relationship with food can have an impact too. When you're sad I'm sure you're not chowing down a whole bunch of celery, your mind goes straight to the thought of junk-type food. It might stem from when you were a kid, if you got hurt you were given junk to make you happy again rather than trying to mentally sort out the issue naturally. And it's not like it's your parents fault either, it's embedded in our culture. Oh a bully pushed you over, I'm so sorry, do you want an ice cream cone? This repeated over and over is what could be causing the embedded switch in your brain - sadness, pain, ice cream.4 -
It is no different on a physiological level
Psychological is a different story entirety.
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I have said all along that overeating has nothing to do with hunger. I think it is all in the mind. So many dieticians are saying 'drink water' to help you feel full. If you are going to a party, eat before you go. Feeling full has nothing to do with how much some people eat either on a normal day or when they go out. I could have had a meal and if someone then asked me out for another meal, I would go. Or if someone brought me a bar of chocolate, I would eat it. Nothing at all to do with being hungry or feeling full. It has nothing to do with being hungry, greedy or anything else. Until I, or someone else sorts out my brain, I will not lose weight and keep it off.
My husband is tall and slim, but if I bought him chocolate after eating a meal, he wouldn't want it. Me, on the other hand cannot reax until I have eaten it. Full or not. So, I have come to the conclusion that my brain is wired differently to my husbands. So many times he says 'No I don't want it. I'm not hungry'. That never happens to me. I crave it until I get it.
I have, by the way, lost over 30lbs but it has been very hard work and if my guard is down I slip back occasionally.
Yea, I've found that eating before an event just means I'm going to overeat that much more (the food at the event + the food I ate before) haha. I personally have found that for me, the best way is to plan ahead by banking those calories earlier in the week and not going overboard with the Amt of eat / food choices while there.5 -
mskessler89 wrote: »On different threads I've seen people saying that weight loss is more complex than CICO. I don't think they all mean that CICO doesn't work (though a few do); I suspect they're trying to say that, for them, either Calories In is harder to limit or that Calories Out is harder to achieve than for the average person.
Addressing this in particular: there are two "CICO doesn't work for me" groups. One group treats "CICO" as a name for counting calories, and what they really mean is "I had to find another strategy because counting calories alone didn't work." Then there's the group that truly believes they're somehow defying thermodynamics.
For the first group, there's a lot of reasons. They didn't adjust their macros for satiety, so they were hungry all the time and ended up overeating. They're emotional eaters and kept blowing out their calorie goal because they didn't address the root of their issue. They have trigger foods but didn't alter their environment or diet to make avoiding triggers easier. They tried to eat too "clean" and ended up binging on foods they missed. They tried to cut too many calories and binged because they were so hungry.
For the second group, there's always one side of the equation that's not being tallied correctly. They swear they're only eating 1200 calories, but their estimation of CI is terrible. They overestimate their exercise burn or activity level. A medical condition is making TDEE much lower than a calculator spits out. They try a fad like South Beach, paleo, etc. without really understanding it's the calories, not the food type.
What both groups, and anyone who's tried to lose weight and failed, can have in common is the feeling that you're doing everything right, or trying so hard to do everything right, and it's just not working. Since it's not working, you must have a harder time than everyone else when it comes to losing weight. You're an outlier. There must be a reason you're staying fat. It's really, really difficult to put so much effort into something and fail, so people rationalize it to make themselves feel better. "Put down the fork" can seem insensitive or hollow - they tried putting down the fork and still didn't lose (because their strategy was wrong or knowledge was lacking).
This is an excellent post!2 -
alyssa_rest wrote: »sashayoung72 wrote: »alyssa_rest wrote: »I don't know if there is a right answer. One thing I've learned through my own struggle and research is that your body craves nutrients. When it feels as though it is lacking one, it demands more. When you have had what is required, you become full. That is why eating one chicken breast and steamed veggies will fill you up quicker and for a longer time period than indulging in an entire bag of chips. Doesn't mean it tastes better though, haha! CICO does work. It's scientifically proven and no one can argue that. I think that many people are totally unaware of how effective it is. And yes, you can eat "healthy foods" all you want. It is easy to even over-eat what's deemed as "healthy" as well. Those uneducated on CICO don't understand that. Or maybe they even don't WANT to understand.
see I beg to differ because I eat the healthier foods, I love veggies etc, WHAT I CRAVE is the complete opposite, i CRAVE the ice cream, the salty chips and other so called non-healthy food.
And to that, I would say your brain and tastebuds crave the ice cream, chips and non-healthy food. Your body wants what it needs. My brain, and ESPECIALLY my tastebuds, tells me I want to eat chocolate every day and luckily, due to CICO and leaving room in my calorie deficit, I can. But I also need to make sure I get other nutrients to keep my body functioning correctly.
The brain is a complex son of a *kitten* :P
Oh yes I "understand" that, but my *kitten* of a brain is just not on the same page!!! maybe the technical term is OBESE BRAIN????2 -
Packerjohn wrote: »I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
That's fine.
Are you saying I lack education or the people I am talking about lack education. What education is lacking?
I think the majority of people who are overweight/obese lack education in anything food related.
I watched an episode of my 600lb life...the guy gained weight and the doctor was asking why? the patient said "I don't know I should be losing I switched out my white bread for whole wheat"....seriously.
And based on my own experience I knew about calories from being a teenager and having my mother diet all the time...but had no clue on how to lose weight and maintain...
I could lose like a demon...but gain it back.
diet books, diet websites, diet pills, diet programs aka WW etc...all teach people how to lose but not how to maintain...
and as adults if we weren't taught about nutrition and calories how do we teach our kids??????
It's actually pretty simple. Your pants get too tight, you are getting fatter. Oh, better back off on the eating and/or exercise more
That's what stretch pants are for!!! Those suckers can go up and down 3 or 4 sizes either way.6 -
MissusMoon wrote: »7 flags on this page alone. Someone needs to reread the ToS.
wait for it I posted a couple more times...that number should go up.
Just in case anybody suspects it, it wasn't me.
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MissusMoon wrote: »7 flags on this page alone. Someone needs to reread the ToS.
You are too kind!
My filter is working today.2 -
MissusMoon wrote: »7 flags on this page alone. Someone needs to reread the ToS.
wait for it I posted a couple more times...that number should go up.
Indeed.0 -
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mommarnurse wrote: »I have said all along that overeating has nothing to do with hunger. I think it is all in the mind. So many dieticians are saying 'drink water' to help you feel full. If you are going to a party, eat before you go. Feeling full has nothing to do with how much some people eat either on a normal day or when they go out. I could have had a meal and if someone then asked me out for another meal, I would go. Or if someone brought me a bar of chocolate, I would eat it. Nothing at all to do with being hungry or feeling full. It has nothing to do with being hungry, greedy or anything else. Until I, or someone else sorts out my brain, I will not lose weight and keep it off.
My husband is tall and slim, but if I bought him chocolate after eating a meal, he wouldn't want it. Me, on the other hand cannot reax until I have eaten it. Full or not. So, I have come to the conclusion that my brain is wired differently to my husbands. So many times he says 'No I don't want it. I'm not hungry'. That never happens to me. I crave it until I get it.
I have, by the way, lost over 30lbs but it has been very hard work and if my guard is down I slip back occasionally.
Yea, I've found that eating before an event just means I'm going to overeat that much more (the food at the event + the food I ate before) haha. I personally have found that for me, the best way is to plan ahead by banking those calories earlier in the week and not going overboard with the Amt of eat / food choices while there.
Yasss This! Worst advice ever is eat before you go! Why waste calories? I want to enjoy the food that I don't have at home, not eat at home THEN go eat at the party!!!!9 -
MissusMoon wrote: »MissusMoon wrote: »7 flags on this page alone. Someone needs to reread the ToS.
wait for it I posted a couple more times...that number should go up.
Indeed.
WHy are people flagging?? What the *hairy kitten*????0 -
I must have to get new glasses, I only see one flag.0
-
Packerjohn wrote: »I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
That's fine.
Are you saying I lack education or the people I am talking about lack education. What education is lacking?
I think the majority of people who are overweight/obese lack education in anything food related.
I watched an episode of my 600lb life...the guy gained weight and the doctor was asking why? the patient said "I don't know I should be losing I switched out my white bread for whole wheat"....seriously.
And based on my own experience I knew about calories from being a teenager and having my mother diet all the time...but had no clue on how to lose weight and maintain...
I could lose like a demon...but gain it back.
diet books, diet websites, diet pills, diet programs aka WW etc...all teach people how to lose but not how to maintain...
and as adults if we weren't taught about nutrition and calories how do we teach our kids??????
It's actually pretty simple. Your pants get too tight, you are getting fatter. Oh, better back off on the eating and/or exercise more
the average person doesn't think like that and the new normal is fat...at least in north america.
The average person past the age of 7 or 8 knows that eating too much makes you fat. Now given 70% of the population is overweight/obese, they are choosing (ignoring those with medical conditions causing weight gain) not to give a *kitten* about that bit of knowledge.2 -
-
singingflutelady wrote: »
Moving along....what were talking about again?2 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
That's fine.
Are you saying I lack education or the people I am talking about lack education. What education is lacking?
I think the majority of people who are overweight/obese lack education in anything food related.
I watched an episode of my 600lb life...the guy gained weight and the doctor was asking why? the patient said "I don't know I should be losing I switched out my white bread for whole wheat"....seriously.
And based on my own experience I knew about calories from being a teenager and having my mother diet all the time...but had no clue on how to lose weight and maintain...
I could lose like a demon...but gain it back.
diet books, diet websites, diet pills, diet programs aka WW etc...all teach people how to lose but not how to maintain...
and as adults if we weren't taught about nutrition and calories how do we teach our kids??????
So, you're basically saying people with weight problems do not know lack education on how to maintain?
No what I am saying is most people have no idea how calories work.
I'm not sure I believe this is true of most. It doesn't seem to mesh with the number of posts asking "why can't I stop overeating" or "how do I stop binge eating" or "how do I break my addiction to sugar"
To me these sound more like issues with control of cravings than a lack of knowledge that too many calories are being consumed.
This is a very small sample tho...I do firmly believe based on my own life most don't understand calories.
If they did there wouldn't be statements of CICO doesn't work for everyone and there wouldn't be this large diet industry preying on people...
Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...
But I feel like this is going to get into "food addiction" area and I am not into that debate.
What does it truly mean if not; determining the calories of current intake and eating less than that; or determining caloric output and eating less than that?
to lose weight it truly means taking in less calories than you burn
to maintain weight it truly means that you are eating the same as what you are burning.
If your current intake is making you gain 1lb a week...eating 50 calories less a day won't work...but you know that
Ok, I'm still trying to fully understand what you meant by "Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...". So for the sake of clarification, you are saying that they miscalculate their caloric needs or the number of calories they should cut from their diet? In other words, you are saying they know they need to eat fewer calories, but don't know how much fewer?
sort of...
People know that to lose weight they need to eat (for arguments sake) 1200 calories and that means to them 1lb a week. *I know this as a friend is on MFP and this is her life....
They log 1200 calories and really believe they ate 1200 calories.
They exercise and log 500 calories for 45mins of treadmill walking at 3.5 mph because that's what the treadmill says.
In reality they are eating 1600 a day and burning maybe 300..(I am being generous)
They lose 1/2 a week or maybe none because they really ate 1800 for a few days.
They ask "why am I not losing weight"...
They really believe that they are eating 1200 calories and exercising that much and feel they are one of those "that can't lose weight" or "it's the kinds of calories" or "it's because I ate after 7pm" or "because I didn't drink my hot lemon water this morning to rev my metabolism"
No concept of what 1200 calories looks like or how hard it is to exercise off 500 calories walking...
See for me I can tell you what 30gram of marble cheddar looks like and that fact it has 120 calories...or how much 180 grams of mix frozen tropical fruit looks like...I got cha...150 grams of chicken I know but if I am not familiar with the food I would need my food scale to know the weight to get the calories...
Ok, but this is somewhat different than what the thread seemed to be about....I suspect they're trying to say that, for them, either Calories In is harder to limit or that Calories Out is harder to achieve than for the average person...
...Why are they eating so much? What drives the desire and need to consume extra calories than needed?...
If you have been able to build a skill set which allows you to be able to eyeball what 30g of marble cheddar looks like, what makes you think others who have struggled for years haven't been able to develop the same skills? Surely many of them have and still struggle nonetheless. What drives overeating in people who know better? I'm talking about people who:
- know energy balance (CICO)
- Know a pound of fat is about 3500 calories
- know that exercise estimations are inaccurate
- know that measuring by volume is not always precise
- weigh everything that they eat
- have sustainable food plans
- know that forbidding foods could lead to greater temptation
- know that attempting to moderate could lead to greater temptation
- know that micro nutrients are important for body composition
- know that protein intake is recommended at .8-1g per pound of lean body mass
- know that certain food types are more satisfying for different people
- know that certain diets work because they make it easier for some to manipulate energy balance
- you get my point...
There are many who know all of this yet fail regardless. Why?
8 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
That's fine.
Are you saying I lack education or the people I am talking about lack education. What education is lacking?
I think the majority of people who are overweight/obese lack education in anything food related.
I watched an episode of my 600lb life...the guy gained weight and the doctor was asking why? the patient said "I don't know I should be losing I switched out my white bread for whole wheat"....seriously.
And based on my own experience I knew about calories from being a teenager and having my mother diet all the time...but had no clue on how to lose weight and maintain...
I could lose like a demon...but gain it back.
diet books, diet websites, diet pills, diet programs aka WW etc...all teach people how to lose but not how to maintain...
and as adults if we weren't taught about nutrition and calories how do we teach our kids??????
So, you're basically saying people with weight problems do not know lack education on how to maintain?
No what I am saying is most people have no idea how calories work.
I'm not sure I believe this is true of most. It doesn't seem to mesh with the number of posts asking "why can't I stop overeating" or "how do I stop binge eating" or "how do I break my addiction to sugar"
To me these sound more like issues with control of cravings than a lack of knowledge that too many calories are being consumed.
This is a very small sample tho...I do firmly believe based on my own life most don't understand calories.
If they did there wouldn't be statements of CICO doesn't work for everyone and there wouldn't be this large diet industry preying on people...
Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...
But I feel like this is going to get into "food addiction" area and I am not into that debate.
What does it truly mean if not; determining the calories of current intake and eating less than that; or determining caloric output and eating less than that?
to lose weight it truly means taking in less calories than you burn
to maintain weight it truly means that you are eating the same as what you are burning.
If your current intake is making you gain 1lb a week...eating 50 calories less a day won't work...but you know that
Ok, I'm still trying to fully understand what you meant by "Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...". So for the sake of clarification, you are saying that they miscalculate their caloric needs or the number of calories they should cut from their diet? In other words, you are saying they know they need to eat fewer calories, but don't know how much fewer?
sort of...
People know that to lose weight they need to eat (for arguments sake) 1200 calories and that means to them 1lb a week. *I know this as a friend is on MFP and this is her life....
They log 1200 calories and really believe they ate 1200 calories.
They exercise and log 500 calories for 45mins of treadmill walking at 3.5 mph because that's what the treadmill says.
In reality they are eating 1600 a day and burning maybe 300..(I am being generous)
They lose 1/2 a week or maybe none because they really ate 1800 for a few days.
They ask "why am I not losing weight"...
They really believe that they are eating 1200 calories and exercising that much and feel they are one of those "that can't lose weight" or "it's the kinds of calories" or "it's because I ate after 7pm" or "because I didn't drink my hot lemon water this morning to rev my metabolism"
No concept of what 1200 calories looks like or how hard it is to exercise off 500 calories walking...
See for me I can tell you what 30gram of marble cheddar looks like and that fact it has 120 calories...or how much 180 grams of mix frozen tropical fruit looks like...I got cha...150 grams of chicken I know but if I am not familiar with the food I would need my food scale to know the weight to get the calories...
Ok, but this is somewhat different than what the thread seemed to be about....I suspect they're trying to say that, for them, either Calories In is harder to limit or that Calories Out is harder to achieve than for the average person...
...Why are they eating so much? What drives the desire and need to consume extra calories than needed?...
If you have been able to build a skill set which allows you to be able to eyeball what 30g of marble cheddar looks like, what makes you think others who have struggled for years haven't been able to develop the same skills? Surely many of them have and still struggle nonetheless. What drives overeating in people who know better? I'm talking about people who:
- know energy balance (CICO)
- Know a pound of fat is about 3500 calories
- know that exercise estimations are inaccurate
- know that measuring by volume is not always precise
- weigh everything that they eat
- have sustainable food plans
- know that forbidding foods could lead to greater temptation
- know that attempting to moderate could lead to greater temptation
- know that micro nutrients are important for body composition
- know that protein intake is recommended at .8-1g per pound of lean body mass
- know that certain food types are more satisfying for different people
- know that certain diets work because they make it easier for some to manipulate energy balance
- you get my point...
There are many who know all of this yet fail regardless. Why?
Nm1 -
MissusMoon wrote: »singingflutelady wrote: »
Moving along....what were talking about again?
Oh well thank you so much !0 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
That's fine.
Are you saying I lack education or the people I am talking about lack education. What education is lacking?
I think the majority of people who are overweight/obese lack education in anything food related.
I watched an episode of my 600lb life...the guy gained weight and the doctor was asking why? the patient said "I don't know I should be losing I switched out my white bread for whole wheat"....seriously.
And based on my own experience I knew about calories from being a teenager and having my mother diet all the time...but had no clue on how to lose weight and maintain...
I could lose like a demon...but gain it back.
diet books, diet websites, diet pills, diet programs aka WW etc...all teach people how to lose but not how to maintain...
and as adults if we weren't taught about nutrition and calories how do we teach our kids??????
So, you're basically saying people with weight problems do not know lack education on how to maintain?
No what I am saying is most people have no idea how calories work.
I'm not sure I believe this is true of most. It doesn't seem to mesh with the number of posts asking "why can't I stop overeating" or "how do I stop binge eating" or "how do I break my addiction to sugar"
To me these sound more like issues with control of cravings than a lack of knowledge that too many calories are being consumed.
This is a very small sample tho...I do firmly believe based on my own life most don't understand calories.
If they did there wouldn't be statements of CICO doesn't work for everyone and there wouldn't be this large diet industry preying on people...
Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...
But I feel like this is going to get into "food addiction" area and I am not into that debate.
What does it truly mean if not; determining the calories of current intake and eating less than that; or determining caloric output and eating less than that?
to lose weight it truly means taking in less calories than you burn
to maintain weight it truly means that you are eating the same as what you are burning.
If your current intake is making you gain 1lb a week...eating 50 calories less a day won't work...but you know that
Ok, I'm still trying to fully understand what you meant by "Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...". So for the sake of clarification, you are saying that they miscalculate their caloric needs or the number of calories they should cut from their diet? In other words, you are saying they know they need to eat fewer calories, but don't know how much fewer?
sort of...
People know that to lose weight they need to eat (for arguments sake) 1200 calories and that means to them 1lb a week. *I know this as a friend is on MFP and this is her life....
They log 1200 calories and really believe they ate 1200 calories.
They exercise and log 500 calories for 45mins of treadmill walking at 3.5 mph because that's what the treadmill says.
In reality they are eating 1600 a day and burning maybe 300..(I am being generous)
They lose 1/2 a week or maybe none because they really ate 1800 for a few days.
They ask "why am I not losing weight"...
They really believe that they are eating 1200 calories and exercising that much and feel they are one of those "that can't lose weight" or "it's the kinds of calories" or "it's because I ate after 7pm" or "because I didn't drink my hot lemon water this morning to rev my metabolism"
No concept of what 1200 calories looks like or how hard it is to exercise off 500 calories walking...
See for me I can tell you what 30gram of marble cheddar looks like and that fact it has 120 calories...or how much 180 grams of mix frozen tropical fruit looks like...I got cha...150 grams of chicken I know but if I am not familiar with the food I would need my food scale to know the weight to get the calories...
Ok, but this is somewhat different than what the thread seemed to be about....I suspect they're trying to say that, for them, either Calories In is harder to limit or that Calories Out is harder to achieve than for the average person...
...Why are they eating so much? What drives the desire and need to consume extra calories than needed?...
If you have been able to build a skill set which allows you to be able to eyeball what 30g of marble cheddar looks like, what makes you think others who have struggled for years haven't been able to develop the same skills? Surely many of them have and still struggle nonetheless. What drives overeating in people who know better? I'm talking about people who:
- know energy balance (CICO)
- Know a pound of fat is about 3500 calories
- know that exercise estimations are inaccurate
- know that measuring by volume is not always precise
- weigh everything that they eat
- have sustainable food plans
- know that forbidding foods could lead to greater temptation
- know that attempting to moderate could lead to greater temptation
- know that micro nutrients are important for body composition
- know that protein intake is recommended at .8-1g per pound of lean body mass
- know that certain food types are more satisfying for different people
- know that certain diets work because they make it easier for some to manipulate energy balance
- you get my point...
There are many who know all of this yet fail regardless. Why?
This interests me too and I've seen some comments on other threads that tell me there are a few people here who might say that this describes them. I would love to hear from them.
A friend of mine has been obese probably her entire life. As far as I can tell, she seems to know all of the above yet still struggles with her weight. It's something that I can never ask her about because it's none of my business and I would never want to risk hurting her feelings, but I know she's not the only one in her shoes and I hope someone can shed some light on what it might be like for her.2 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »I don't really see how this thread won't end up here anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and throw it out there:
In some (or many) cases, people are afflicted with a compulsion/addiction/condition/whatever-term-that-won't-cause-mental-anguish-to-people. I believe that there is both a physical and mental component to this.
The physical is that there is an abnormal reaction to the effects of certain behaviors and or experiences (such as overeating and/or eating highly palatable foods). This reaction manifests in a phenomenal craving. Once the craving is triggered, it cannot be satisfied.
The mental aspect is an obsession with the behavior or experience. They are inexplicably drawn to attempt normal consumption even if they have proven an inability to do so in the past. No matter their level of commitment or the seriousness of their situation (i.e. you'll have to get your leg amputated if you can't get this under control), they will trigger the craving again.
Basically it boils down to this, they can't stop once they've started and they can't stop themselves from starting.
I don't believe this for one second.
Lack of education.
That's fine.
Are you saying I lack education or the people I am talking about lack education. What education is lacking?
I think the majority of people who are overweight/obese lack education in anything food related.
I watched an episode of my 600lb life...the guy gained weight and the doctor was asking why? the patient said "I don't know I should be losing I switched out my white bread for whole wheat"....seriously.
And based on my own experience I knew about calories from being a teenager and having my mother diet all the time...but had no clue on how to lose weight and maintain...
I could lose like a demon...but gain it back.
diet books, diet websites, diet pills, diet programs aka WW etc...all teach people how to lose but not how to maintain...
and as adults if we weren't taught about nutrition and calories how do we teach our kids??????
So, you're basically saying people with weight problems do not know lack education on how to maintain?
No what I am saying is most people have no idea how calories work.
I'm not sure I believe this is true of most. It doesn't seem to mesh with the number of posts asking "why can't I stop overeating" or "how do I stop binge eating" or "how do I break my addiction to sugar"
To me these sound more like issues with control of cravings than a lack of knowledge that too many calories are being consumed.
This is a very small sample tho...I do firmly believe based on my own life most don't understand calories.
If they did there wouldn't be statements of CICO doesn't work for everyone and there wouldn't be this large diet industry preying on people...
Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...
But I feel like this is going to get into "food addiction" area and I am not into that debate.
What does it truly mean if not; determining the calories of current intake and eating less than that; or determining caloric output and eating less than that?
to lose weight it truly means taking in less calories than you burn
to maintain weight it truly means that you are eating the same as what you are burning.
If your current intake is making you gain 1lb a week...eating 50 calories less a day won't work...but you know that
Ok, I'm still trying to fully understand what you meant by "Sure they get the concept of I need to eat fewer calories but when it comes down to it they have no idea what that truly means...". So for the sake of clarification, you are saying that they miscalculate their caloric needs or the number of calories they should cut from their diet? In other words, you are saying they know they need to eat fewer calories, but don't know how much fewer?
sort of...
People know that to lose weight they need to eat (for arguments sake) 1200 calories and that means to them 1lb a week. *I know this as a friend is on MFP and this is her life....
They log 1200 calories and really believe they ate 1200 calories.
They exercise and log 500 calories for 45mins of treadmill walking at 3.5 mph because that's what the treadmill says.
In reality they are eating 1600 a day and burning maybe 300..(I am being generous)
They lose 1/2 a week or maybe none because they really ate 1800 for a few days.
They ask "why am I not losing weight"...
They really believe that they are eating 1200 calories and exercising that much and feel they are one of those "that can't lose weight" or "it's the kinds of calories" or "it's because I ate after 7pm" or "because I didn't drink my hot lemon water this morning to rev my metabolism"
No concept of what 1200 calories looks like or how hard it is to exercise off 500 calories walking...
See for me I can tell you what 30gram of marble cheddar looks like and that fact it has 120 calories...or how much 180 grams of mix frozen tropical fruit looks like...I got cha...150 grams of chicken I know but if I am not familiar with the food I would need my food scale to know the weight to get the calories...
Ok, but this is somewhat different than what the thread seemed to be about....I suspect they're trying to say that, for them, either Calories In is harder to limit or that Calories Out is harder to achieve than for the average person...
...Why are they eating so much? What drives the desire and need to consume extra calories than needed?...
If you have been able to build a skill set which allows you to be able to eyeball what 30g of marble cheddar looks like, what makes you think others who have struggled for years haven't been able to develop the same skills? Surely many of them have and still struggle nonetheless. What drives overeating in people who know better? I'm talking about people who:
- know energy balance (CICO)
- Know a pound of fat is about 3500 calories
- know that exercise estimations are inaccurate
- know that measuring by volume is not always precise
- weigh everything that they eat
- have sustainable food plans
- know that forbidding foods could lead to greater temptation
- know that attempting to moderate could lead to greater temptation
- know that micro nutrients are important for body composition
- know that protein intake is recommended at .8-1g per pound of lean body mass
- know that certain food types are more satisfying for different people
- know that certain diets work because they make it easier for some to manipulate energy balance
- you get my point...
There are many who know all of this yet fail regardless. Why?
This interests me too and I've seen some comments on other threads that tell me there are a few people here who might say that this describes them. I would love to hear from them.
A friend of mine has been obese probably her entire life. As far as I can tell, she seems to know all of the above yet still struggles with her weight. It's something that I can never ask her about because it's none of my business and I would never want to risk hurting her feelings, but I know she's not the only one in her shoes and I hope someone can shed some light on what it might be like for her.
Because they aren't willing to change. I know this isn't the best analogy - but surely crack addicts know crack is bad? Surely that guy with diabetes who's repeatedly admitted to the hospital knows he shouldn't be chugging soda and what not? Knowledge isn't the first step in change, acknowledgement is. You can look in the mirror and say "hey, I'm fat" but you're not acknowledging that your own choices and lifestyle are the reason. And even if you do, you're not necessarily willing to step out of your comfort zone and make a change. That requires a very high , sustained level of emotional energy. You're settling for your lifestyle. Deep down, you don't believe that you deserve better.7
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