Any strange looks/comments about your healthy habits?

24

Replies

  • dammitjanet0161
    dammitjanet0161 Posts: 319 Member
    By far the weirdest looks and comments I've had are from cashiers in stores - particularly Walmart, or more traditional grocery stores. I do not shop there often, but it seems like every time I do the clerk says something about my purchases. It's either confusion "WHAT is this?" (gingerroot almost always gets that) or comments like "WOW you don't eat very much" or "Not a lot of real food here, you must be single" (I guess real food = meat?), "Obviously you DO NOT have kids" stuff like that. So rude and weird.

    Ha ha yes the nosiness in the supermarket queue! I once had two shoppers in the queue behind me look into my basket - which mainly contained veg and plain dairy but also had a jar of peanut butter - actually chuckle and PICK UP the peanut butter out of my basket :angry: and say laughing "ha ha, you'll never be slim eating that!". I turned round and saw that their basket was filled with Weight Watchers cakes and biscuits. Because of course that's the only way to eat and lose weight, grrrrr. And put my stuff down!!
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    I'd buy single pack earplugs- they are pretty cheap at hard ware stores- and every time she makes a comment - just throw them at her.

    There's a very good chance she won't be working here much longer (I'm not the only person she's rude to), so I'm going to wait her out. She's temp-to-hire. If they do hire her, I've already decided that I'm going to be direct and just say, "If my crunching is actually bothering you, ask me to eat somewhere else, but do not try to make me feel bad about what I'm eating."
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    By far the weirdest looks and comments I've had are from cashiers in stores - particularly Walmart, or more traditional grocery stores. I do not shop there often, but it seems like every time I do the clerk says something about my purchases. It's either confusion "WHAT is this?" (gingerroot almost always gets that) or comments like "WOW you don't eat very much" or "Not a lot of real food here, you must be single" (I guess real food = meat?), "Obviously you DO NOT have kids" stuff like that. So rude and weird.

    Ha ha yes the nosiness in the supermarket queue! I once had two shoppers in the queue behind me look into my basket - which mainly contained veg and plain dairy but also had a jar of peanut butter - actually chuckle and PICK UP the peanut butter out of my basket :angry: and say laughing "ha ha, you'll never be slim eating that!". I turned round and saw that their basket was filled with Weight Watchers cakes and biscuits. Because of course that's the only way to eat and lose weight, grrrrr.

    Are you KIDDING me??? they picked up food out of your basket????

    and why did you not punch them in the face???
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    By far the weirdest looks and comments I've had are from cashiers in stores - particularly Walmart, or more traditional grocery stores. I do not shop there often, but it seems like every time I do the clerk says something about my purchases. It's either confusion "WHAT is this?" (gingerroot almost always gets that) or comments like "WOW you don't eat very much" or "Not a lot of real food here, you must be single" (I guess real food = meat?), "Obviously you DO NOT have kids" stuff like that. So rude and weird.

    Ha ha yes the nosiness in the supermarket queue! I once had two shoppers in the queue behind me look into my basket - which mainly contained veg and plain dairy but also had a jar of peanut butter - actually chuckle and PICK UP the peanut butter out of my basket :angry: and say laughing "ha ha, you'll never be slim eating that!". I turned round and saw that their basket was filled with Weight Watchers cakes and biscuits. Because of course that's the only way to eat and lose weight, grrrrr. And put my stuff down!!

    I would have said, flat voiced and blank-faced, "It is rude to touch other peoples' things." Who raised these people to think that's okay? I have had people point to things in my cart/basket and ask if they're any good, but how dare they touch your stuff. Ew.
  • dammitjanet0161
    dammitjanet0161 Posts: 319 Member
    By far the weirdest looks and comments I've had are from cashiers in stores - particularly Walmart, or more traditional grocery stores. I do not shop there often, but it seems like every time I do the clerk says something about my purchases. It's either confusion "WHAT is this?" (gingerroot almost always gets that) or comments like "WOW you don't eat very much" or "Not a lot of real food here, you must be single" (I guess real food = meat?), "Obviously you DO NOT have kids" stuff like that. So rude and weird.

    Ha ha yes the nosiness in the supermarket queue! I once had two shoppers in the queue behind me look into my basket - which mainly contained veg and plain dairy but also had a jar of peanut butter - actually chuckle and PICK UP the peanut butter out of my basket :angry: and say laughing "ha ha, you'll never be slim eating that!". I turned round and saw that their basket was filled with Weight Watchers cakes and biscuits. Because of course that's the only way to eat and lose weight, grrrrr.

    Are you KIDDING me??? they picked up food out of your basket????

    and why did you not punch them in the face???

    Yes they did! I was so shocked that I just sort of gazed open mouthed at them for a second then glared at them but said nothing. They were quite elderly so maybe they'd crossed over into 'eccentric old person who doesn't care' territory.

    That's actually not the only time someone has picked food up out of my basket. It happened again a few months later when someone picked up a pack of prawns out of my basket in the checkout queue - that day I did ask what the hell are you doing, and he said unapologetically that he was interested in whether the supermarket's prawns were ethically sourced. So I told him if he was that interested he should walk over to the fridges and check for himself. To be fair he did apologise then and his poor wife looked mortified. I must have a sign above my head saying 'help yourself to my shopping, all opinions welcome'!

    (ETA sorrry OP for going a bit off topic with 2nd example)
  • DemetraDawn
    DemetraDawn Posts: 60 Member
    I had a co-worker who would eat three lean cuisines for lunch (like, she'd literally just slop them all into a bowl and microwave it all mixed together, it was really kind of gross), and she would comment that I had better start eating better lest I end up like her. (This woman was large to the point that she couldn't wear pants)

    And I'd look at my lunch of some sort of protein and lots of veggies (I am a broccoli fiend) and be like...yeah I get that it *looks* like more food than you're eating, even if you have three lean cuisines in a bowl, but um, a cheese stick, a boiled egg and a bunch of raw veggies is really not something to be concerned about...

    She'd also comment that I was probably spending too much money on food, and I was concerned about how much three of those per day cost compared to my produce, which isn't cheap either but still.

    This was my old workplace, thank god. There was also a woman there who would commend my self control in eating healthy and exercising, when she was trying to gain thirty pounds so she would be fat enough for gastric bypass.

    Unfortunately, since I moved and started a new job, I fell off the wagon a bit. Since I've gotten back on it though, I've started to hear little snide remarks like "Oh wow, someone is being a good girl today" or "Edamame is not a breakfast food. That's gross."
  • Sinisterly
    Sinisterly Posts: 10,913 Member
    Why is it any of her business how you eat. She doesn't pay your bills, she doesn't pay your doctor, she also doesn't really care if you gain weight and then have to work extremely hard later on to lose all the weight.

    Do what YOU need to do.

    Everyone else can screw themselves. :flowerforyou:
  • mzbek24
    mzbek24 Posts: 436 Member
    Haha yeah, the weighing thing totally throws my dad as well. He's like "Why do you need to weigh pasta? pasta is healthy for you isn't it?" or he thinks my dinners are small, says theres not much food there or comments that I've finished dinner before everybody.
    I've been eating just under 1600, and now 1740, so even if my one meal a day that he actually notices me eat is 'small' by his standards (my parents have 650g bowls of pasta with beef bolognese sauce and cheese for example) I'm by no means starving hungry. lol
  • usmcj80
    usmcj80 Posts: 58
    I love that haha. People do NOT get why you workout if it's not to eat more. Like, nope, my life decisions are not all based on how much junk food I can consume.

    mine are.

    more running = more oreos.

    I have absolutely ZERO Fkcs given- and no shame. I love beer- and ice ream and oreos.

    Oh trust me I can eat more because I run and cheating never really bothers me I just don't do it at work and since I am so concerned about what I am eating most of the time then obviously there is no point to my running if I cannot consume huge amounts of junk. Trust me I run to eat sometimes :)
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    I love that haha. People do NOT get why you workout if it's not to eat more. Like, nope, my life decisions are not all based on how much junk food I can consume.

    mine are.

    more running = more oreos.

    I have absolutely ZERO Fkcs given- and no shame. I love beer- and ice ream and oreos.

    Oh trust me I can eat more because I run and cheating never really bothers me I just don't do it at work and since I am so concerned about what I am eating most of the time then obviously there is no point to my running if I cannot consume huge amounts of junk. Trust me I run to eat sometimes :)

    um.
    not cheating.. I don't do "cheats. - think we are on a different page as oreos and ice cream are a daily part of my diet. :)

    I'm a lifter- so if/when I'm running- it really is so I can eat more I have a very very massive inner fat kid.
    Yes they did! I was so shocked that I just sort of gazed open mouthed at them for a second then glared at them but said nothing. They were quite elderly so maybe they'd crossed over into 'eccentric old person who doesn't care' territory.

    That's actually not the only time someone has picked food up out of my basket. It happened again a few months later when someone picked up a pack of prawns out of my basket in the checkout queue - that day I did ask what the hell are you doing, and he said unapologetically that he was interested in whether the supermarket's prawns were ethically sourced. So I told him if he was that interested he should walk over to the fridges and check for himself. To be fair he did apologise then and his poor wife looked mortified. I must have a sign above my head saying 'help yourself to my shopping, all opinions welcome'!

    (ETA sorrry OP for going a bit off topic with 2nd example)

    jesus- you are just significantly nicer than me.

    WTF comes out of my mouth so frequently and easily that is most certainly what I would have said. God- that's rude- I'm sitting here like OFFENDED for you!!! LOL
  • xRay85Rayx
    xRay85Rayx Posts: 369
    I remember one office job sitting opposite a young lady who was HUGE. She would eat a pasty, a sandwich and a king size bag of crisps at lunchtime, washed down with two bottle of full fat coke and then tell me I wasn't enjoying life or REALLY LIVING (?!?! WTF?!!!) because I eat salads, veggies and pitta breads and it can't be good for me to restrict myself the way I was and men don't like skinny girls.

    She got shut down when I said actually, I'm loving life. I can wear the clothes I want, run for miles, enjoy treats when I want them, oh and I was off on an adventure week to Spain - no uncomfortable flight seats, and I'm going horse-riding, canyoning, kayaking, rafting in a National Park - all the things I really want to do because I'm healthy from the inside and I can fit into the seats and not squash the horse.

    Apparently, that was me being spiteful and got me reported to HR.

    I'm not sure it warrants being reported to HR - but I do think you have taken wrong approach here.

    Your reply does just come across as defensive and spiteful IMO..

    far better to go with the flow, someone says something like that to you, just smile and say Oh well, that's me - or something equally inane, and neither agreeing or disagreeing with her food choices - which are really beside the point anyway.

    I think people lose interest fast in teasing if you don't rise to the bait - and they lose interest fast in your eating habits if you don't act all self righteous and over zealous about them.

    I wasn't being spiteful, I was defending myself and my choices.

    Telling me I was unloveable because I wasn't huge the way she was? Or that I couldn't possibly be happy? That doesn't warrant some sort of response? Bearing in mind she commented on EVERYTHING I ate. Everything. I wasn't rising to the bait, I was simply sick of her comments and defended myself. If she can comment on my body and my food choices, then damn straight I can comment on hers.

    I think one comment after 6 months of listening to her drivel was justified. It sure as hell shut her up in the way that my radio silence or smiling and nodding didn't. I'm not self-righteous or over-zealous. I unpack my lunch and I eat it. I don't make a big deal about carrots and bananas vs pastys and coke. I don't shout "OH I'M GOING TO THE GYM AGAIN HAR HAR LOOK HOW VIRTUOUS I AM". No. I wasn't the one making unwarranted, unwanted and uneducated comments.

    LOL, good for you! Just curious, what did HR do about the complaint?
  • WanderingPomme
    WanderingPomme Posts: 601 Member
    I spend twice as long in the grocery now than before because of all the nutrition label reading and comparing. Lol I do get weird looks especially when I compare certain brands, compare labels, put them back and get another one. Family thinks it's odd that I do this especially when I measure food! Cereal, rice, milk, etc!

    Also, (I'm doing IF) sometimes I get home late and I haven't had anything for the day and then I would eat with them and they'll think I'm eating TOO much and in my head I'm like... "MUST NOT GO UNDER 1,200 CALORIES TODAY!!!!!" and they don't understand. (Don't know if you would call that a healthy habit but yeah)

    Another thing is when I stare at my plate before I eat, I check it out for a while and all I see is a pie chart that shows protein, fats and carbs on my plate. LOL <--- *I* give myself a strange look and laugh at myself. Sorta like an inside joke. Lol
  • KRM51
    KRM51 Posts: 24
    All the time. I don't eat meat so they look funny when I order veg.
    When I am overeating on junk they look disapprovingly, and when I am eating veggies they look funny too. Some comment over my weight subtly in both situations, good as well as bad. And some comment bluntly.
    Some people enjoy when you are fat and wanna gossip about you. They don't like it when you lose weight and wanna gossip about that too. It's just that they don't have anything substantial or constructive at hand and they enjoy commenting on others as entertainment.
    You do exactly as you please, and just ignore them. All the best!
  • shmulyeng
    shmulyeng Posts: 472 Member
    I get these comments all the time. The good part is that my wife and kids sometimes comment but it's in a very good natured way. They know why I'm doing this and are very supportive. Some of the comments I get from friends (and strangers) are a bit more strange.

    "Don't throw away your clothes. The weight always comes back."
    "Are you crabby all the time? People on diets are always crabby."

    At work, in the cafeteria, someone asked me if I'm feeling fine. When I replied that I'm feeling better than I ever have, (I also mentioned that I had run a 10K the day before) two people standing nearby commented that they thought I was very sick and losing weight because of some illness. I guess that's the rumor in the office. Oh well, it doesn't mean anything to me.

    She got shut down when I said actually, I'm loving life. I can wear the clothes I want, run for miles, enjoy treats when I want them, oh and I was off on an adventure week to Spain - no uncomfortable flight seats, and I'm going horse-riding, canyoning, kayaking, rafting in a National Park - all the things I really want to do because I'm healthy from the inside and I can fit into the seats and not squash the horse.

    All this is definitely true. I went to Peurto Rico for a few days a couple of month back. I was able to enjoy many things I wouldn't have before I lost weight.
  • KRM51
    KRM51 Posts: 24
    I spend twice as long in the grocery now than before because of all the nutrition label reading and comparing. Lol I do get weird looks especially when I compare certain brands, compare labels, put them back and get another one. Family thinks it's odd that I do this especially when I measure food! Cereal, rice, milk, etc!

    Also, (I'm doing IF) sometimes I get home late and I haven't had anything for the day and then I would eat with them and they'll think I'm eating TOO much and in my head I'm like... "MUST NOT GO UNDER 1,200 CALORIES TODAY!!!!!" and they don't understand. (Don't know if you would call that a healthy habit but yeah)

    Another thing is when I stare at my plate before I eat, I check it out for a while and all I see is a pie chart that shows protein, fats and carbs on my plate. LOL <--- *I* give myself a strange look and laugh at myself. Sorta like an inside joke. Lol

    Hehe.. I like that! :)
  • R1ss4n1
    R1ss4n1 Posts: 35 Member
    Luckily for me I have several breaks at work to eat (I'm a dealer at a casino and we regularly get a 20ish minute break every hour or hour twenty) so my eating habits aren't often remarked on except a bit enviously since I'm eating my nice home-prepared food and they're eating what the cafeteria is serving. Plus our health insurance goes up if we're deemed 'unhealthy' (we have biometric screenings once a year, mandatory!) almost everyone is trying to eat healthier or lose some weigh.

    I have used my meals to introduce people to eating healthier, usually by offering someone a bit of what I'm eating and giving them recipes. :D
  • lauracos79
    lauracos79 Posts: 4 Member
    Office birthday gatherings can be annoying. A bunch of people standing around waiting for cake and when I turn down a piece (beleive me, I l.o.v.e cake!) I get a few comments, "Oh, you're good", "Well, look at you over there not eating.", "Go ahead and lose 10 lbs for me!". I just smile and nod. When I first started losing weight, I would feel pressured to eat cake and desserts in front of them but now I don't. I feel like saying, "You can be good too!" or "Why not start RIGHT NOW, put down the cake and start losing your own 10 lbs!" ugh....
  • mveach0822
    mveach0822 Posts: 19 Member
    Every Sunday I have dinner with family and I went for the salad first (took quite a huge portion), and someone was like, "That's ALL you are going to eat?" Um..no. I just haven't got to the rest yet. Then, I went to the other food and I decided not to have the meat, and the same person asks, "Are you going vegetarian today?" And then another day I skipped the pasta. She asks, "No pasta? You must be going low carb today."

    MAN ALIVE.
  • csk0018
    csk0018 Posts: 219 Member
    My mom and dad would shake their head when I would ask for a measuring cup to measure out my rice but now, they have it handy for me when I come to visit. After a while -- people get used to it and those who don't, just ignore them.
  • jlynnm70
    jlynnm70 Posts: 460 Member
    my husband - who is very supportive by the way - occasionally laughs when I am weighing things for dinner.

    **He is a chef and can portion control by eye pretty darn accurately - he says 'this is ________ oz or grams" and puts it in a bowl for me - and I swear he is within a gram every time- he can do the recipe calculator in his head also and tell me how many cals are in a serving of something - wish my brain could do that!

    He says "I think it's funny to watch you weigh every thing - but I'm proud of you for doing it!"
  • Hell_Flower
    Hell_Flower Posts: 348 Member
    [/quote]

    LOL, good for you! Just curious, what did HR do about the complaint?
    [/quote]

    Not much to be honest - when they got me in to "review my actions for having made personal and inappropriate comments" about the other woman, I came back and said actually, she did it constantly to me and I'd got fed up of her constant critique and dealing with her comments was interfering with my work (it wasn't, not really, but what else can you say to HR?!) - also that the rest of the team had witnessed how much she would comment on my food behaviour, so they could check with them if they wanted to.

    They didn't.

    She got moved to another team (which coincidentally, had 3 other people a similar size and with similar eating habits).
  • tjohnoconnor
    tjohnoconnor Posts: 58 Member
    I have an in law that looks at me like she just caught me having an intimate relationship with a farm animal, when I portion out food. Then goes into a rant about obsessive people for about 10 minutes. I just smile because you cant fix stupid.
  • DamePiglet
    DamePiglet Posts: 3,730 Member
    I remember one office job sitting opposite a young lady who was HUGE. She would eat a pasty, a sandwich and a king size bag of crisps at lunchtime, washed down with two bottle of full fat coke and then tell me I wasn't enjoying life or REALLY LIVING (?!?! WTF?!!!) because I eat salads, veggies and pitta breads and it can't be good for me to restrict myself the way I was and men don't like skinny girls.

    She got shut down when I said actually, I'm loving life. I can wear the clothes I want, run for miles, enjoy treats when I want them, oh and I was off on an adventure week to Spain - no uncomfortable flight seats, and I'm going horse-riding, canyoning, kayaking, rafting in a National Park - all the things I really want to do because I'm healthy from the inside and I can fit into the seats and not squash the horse.

    Apparently, that was me being spiteful and got me reported to HR.

    I'm not sure it warrants being reported to HR - but I do think you have taken wrong approach here.

    Your reply does just come across as defensive and spiteful IMO..

    far better to go with the flow, someone says something like that to you, just smile and say Oh well, that's me - or something equally inane, and neither agreeing or disagreeing with her food choices - which are really beside the point anyway.

    I think people lose interest fast in teasing if you don't rise to the bait - and they lose interest fast in your eating habits if you don't act all self righteous and over zealous about them.

    I wasn't being spiteful, I was defending myself and my choices.

    Telling me I was unloveable because I wasn't huge the way she was? Or that I couldn't possibly be happy? That doesn't warrant some sort of response? Bearing in mind she commented on EVERYTHING I ate. Everything. I wasn't rising to the bait, I was simply sick of her comments and defended myself. If she can comment on my body and my food choices, then damn straight I can comment on hers.

    I think one comment after 6 months of listening to her drivel was justified. It sure as hell shut her up in the way that my radio silence or smiling and nodding didn't. I'm not self-righteous or over-zealous. I unpack my lunch and I eat it. I don't make a big deal about carrots and bananas vs pastys and coke. I don't shout "OH I'M GOING TO THE GYM AGAIN HAR HAR LOOK HOW VIRTUOUS I AM". No. I wasn't the one making unwarranted, unwanted and uneducated comments.

    You two were caught on video...
    gif-cats-fighting-cute-435452.gif

    Most businesses expect adults to simply excuse themselves or politely ask the other person to refrain from making comments about you and your lifestyles.

    I hope HR told you both to go back to your desk and do what you're paid to do instead of acting like 2 mean girls in high school.
  • highervibes
    highervibes Posts: 2,219 Member
    I get strange looks and comments when I eat food like McDonald's etc. since people have it in their heads that I'm genetically gifted for being able to do so when in reality it's that I'm conscious about the overall calorie intake for my day/week. Trouble seeing the forest through the trees I suppose, people don't 'get it' It doesn't matter what you eat, hit dem macros and calorie goals and you can eat what your tastes dictate :)
  • askeates
    askeates Posts: 1,490 Member
    Most people have shown concern.... they see how much I eat in a day, yet I've been losing weight and they think something is wrong health-wise for me.
  • BlueBombers
    BlueBombers Posts: 4,064 Member
    I don't care what other people think, I just do what I want.
  • kimacduff
    kimacduff Posts: 29
    People are looking for excuses NOT to eat right.IT makes them feel better to someone down who is eating better. Keep in mind that when you DON'T have Alzhiemers. diabetes, or heart problems & they do, they maybe wishing they had counted & measured what they ate.
  • KarmaKills
    KarmaKills Posts: 99 Member
    I remember one office job sitting opposite a young lady who was HUGE. She would eat [...] and then tell me I wasn't enjoying life or REALLY LIVING (?!?! WTF?!!!) [...] and men don't like skinny girls.

    She got shut down when I said actually, I'm loving life. I can wear the clothes I want, run for miles, enjoy treats when I want them, oh and I was off on an adventure week to Spain [...]

    [...] I do think you have taken wrong approach here. Your reply does just come across as defensive and spiteful IMO. far better to go with the flow [...]

    I disagree. Office coworker was RUDE to pp saying that pp wasn't attractive to men--coworker got the pwnage she deserved. No reason for pp to have to stomach that and "go with the flow." Coworker dishes it out but can't take it. Wahh!!!

    I agree 100%
  • KarmaKills
    KarmaKills Posts: 99 Member
    SHUTUP! For the love of everything that is good. I KNOW it won't kill me. However, i'm not going to spend 500 calories on a stupid giant cupcake at work with people I'm not even friends with just because it's there. My splurges are on my own time!

    Completely agree! I'd rather have ice cream out with my husband and kids after dinner than a piece of cheap grocery store bakery cake with my coworkers. It's none of their business how I "spend" my calories, and after a polite "Would you like a piece?" and a response of "No thanks" that's where it should drop!

    If I'm gonna "waste" a lot of calories....I'm gonna make sure it's worth it. Like you, I'd rather have something I baked myself than a sugary treat from a store bakery.
  • Amberlynnek
    Amberlynnek Posts: 405 Member
    I am a management consultant with a large national bank as my client. Their health insurance requires that they undergo a screening and if any of their stats are out of the healthy category they are not entitled to their full health insurance discount. They can do other activities that allows them to "gain points" to get their full discount like walking with a pedometer, etc. So every time the health assessment time rolls around, I have to kind of chuckle. There's a fairly large woman who wears shape-ups and complains she needs to lose 20 pounds to get her discount as she heads over to the candy bowl 20 times a day. There have been others who have asked me to wear their pedometers out on a run so they can get their step points. And people who make the "you're just naturally skinny" comments to me. And I hear myself repeating all the time, " Damnit, I worked hard for this body! I count everything I eat and workout, there is nothing natural about this!" They usually just won't hear any of it. On the flip side, I have had numerous people ask that I start a blog on my lunches and cooking for the young, single 20 something in the big corporate world.