Is it OK to be fat?

No!! It's NOT okay to be unhealthy, whether it be obese or underweight.

Haha this made me laugh!!

Chubby people may be hard to kidnap, but can be easy to chase....

I saw this on a bumper sticker the other day - except with "fat" instead of "chubby" and minus the thing you added there about being easy to chase. :laugh:

Just watched the video - and it is hard for me to not agree with the health concerns. There is so much research for holding that extra weight. I really agree with the woman who lost the 212 pounds. I have a lot of overweight and obesity in my family and from MFP I have learned that it doesn't have to be that way - that eating habits that I learned from my family is what got me here. So, I am changing my lifestyle. The runner though - her 1300 calorie diet for maintenance does sound low. I would imagine that she should be eating around 2000 calories.. but that's just my understanding from MFP (she says she eats 1800 from exercise, but I feel like it could be a little higher than that).

For those of us going through this journey to become healthy this may peak your intrest. I just saw this today it aired last night on ABC Nightline. What do you think?

http://www.hulu.com/watch/130074/abc-nightline-tue-feb-23-2010

Sorry to cause diversion from your original post while I was watching the video.

It scares me that the two people who were most vocal are the most dangerous. The obese woman was preaching the values of the narcisistic society that has gotten so many of us here. No, it is not OK to be fat, we have just tolerated it for too long.

On the other hand, her counterpart is out of control. Seriously, did she say it "sickens" her to see children eat cake at a birthday party? If you demonize food, you will create taboos that prevent people from learning to eat in moderation. (Kinda like on a strict diet, we tend to binge)

Thanks for giving us the link. It was a interesting.

Yeah, I completely agree with you. I am not sure she meant that it sickens her to see children eat cake for a birthday party, but more eat cake for everything. I think she got her points a little mixed up a couple times though with it at first, then cleaned up her argument. I don't think there should be a debate though - underweight and eating disorders are just as unhealthy as being overweight - they are just different.

For those of us going through this journey to become healthy this may peak your intrest. I just saw this today it aired last night on ABC Nightline. What do you think?

http://www.hulu.com/watch/130074/abc-nightline-tue-feb-23-2010

Sorry to cause diversion from your original post while I was watching the video.

It scares me that the two people who were most vocal are the most dangerous. The obese woman was preaching the values of the narcisistic society that has gotten so many of us here. No, it is not OK to be fat, we have just tolerated it for too long.

On the other hand, her counterpart is out of control. Seriously, did she say it "sickens" her to see children eat cake at a birthday party? If you demonize food, you will create taboos that prevent people from learning to eat in moderation. (Kinda like on a strict diet, we tend to binge)

Thanks for giving us the link. It was a interesting.

I believe that all parties were out of control except for the woman who lost 200 lbs and kept it off. I do defend Roth however that she did say it is okay to have cake and ice cream at a birthday party - no big deal. What is not okay is having cake and ice cream everyday for your kids. "you had a bad day honey, here, have some cake" --- "you had a good day honey, here have some cake". I totally agree with her on that.

No!! It's NOT okay to be unhealthy, whether it be obese or underweight.

Renn makes this point at about 18:13. You can't judge a person's health by looking at them. There are "skinny" people who eat fast food all day and "chubby" people who eat healthy foods, eat moderately, and exercise.

Renn is a size 12/14. She also works out 4 times a week and eats a healthy, protein-rich diet. I've read her autobiography and her eating habits are similar to many of us here on MFP. I've bumped into her several times walking our dogs. She is a size 12/14, healthy and full of energy. But she still looks like a blimp next to any runway model. :grumble: She's called a "fat model," and yet she's one of the few models we see in Glamour or Vogue who is actually eating 1400+ calories/day and has a menstrual cycle. We rarely see the bodies of healthy women in magazines or retail.

We have to separate "thin" from "healthy" in our minds because they are two separate things. "Healthy" should be the goal we give ourselves and our children, not "thin."

[end rant]