Ignorant statements

Options
SayRah
SayRah Posts: 104
in Health and Weight Loss
One of the many great things about losing weight is the knowledge I've gained about the human body and healthy nutrition. I took a nutrition/fitness class a few semesters back and I can honestly say it changed my life. I even considered becoming a nutrition major for a little while, because there is an extreme amount of ignorance out there when it comes to eating...it's really quite sad what some people believe, even though it's an old wive's tale, or something a friend told them, or just something they heard. It irritates me to no end.

I know it doesn't really harm me in anyway, but it does irritate me, but I guess I should take this in a positive manner, to think of all the things I have learned! For example, my roommate's reasoning for eating only once a day because 'eating less = losing weight' ....if I didn't know any better, I would see her reasoning, but that can seriously mess up your metabolism. Said roommate also doesn't believe in counting calories, "because the French don't and they're skinny." I know much better than that, and I think everyone should count calories, even if they just want to maintain weight. Calories are very important.

So, what ignorant things have you heard -- AND, much more importantly, why do you know it was ignorant? :)
«1

Replies

  • beerbomber
    beerbomber Posts: 184 Member
    Options
    I majored in sports medicine/ nutrition for almost 3 years and I hear dumb things all the time, even on these boards.
  • angebean
    angebean Posts: 195 Member
    Options
    I wish that nutrition was a required course in junior high and high school.
  • tmdugger
    tmdugger Posts: 132 Member
    Options
    I can eat whatever I want because I exercise and I have a high metabolism...You may not be gaining weight but not eating a balanced diet is not providing the essential nutrients your body needs to function optimally and could cause low energy, lack of sex drive, mood swings etc etc depending on what you're deficient in.
  • bparr
    bparr Posts: 246 Member
    Options
    The Weight Watchers theory that you can have all the vegetables you want everyday above those 'points' they count. Are you kidding??? Vegetables have calories too. I know one person that can't figure out why she's not losing weight on WW when she eats a bag of corn as her "free" food.
  • aprilmssmith
    aprilmssmith Posts: 35 Member
    Options
    "I think the reason I'm not losing weight is that I don't eat enough calories" . Um, trust me, if you weren't eating enough calories you would lose weight. Ask people with anorexia.
  • ybba12490
    ybba12490 Posts: 252
    Options
    I wish that nutrition was a required course in junior high and high school.

    Nutrition and health were required when I was in 5th grade, 8th grade, and high school. It just depends where you went to school I guess. And then obviously you can take optional nutrition classes in college which I think I'll do just for fun... geek!:laugh:
  • ybba12490
    ybba12490 Posts: 252
    Options
    One of the many great things about losing weight is the knowledge I've gained about the human body and healthy nutrition. I took a nutrition/fitness class a few semesters back and I can honestly say it changed my life. I even considered becoming a nutrition major for a little while, because there is an extreme amount of ignorance out there when it comes to eating...it's really quite sad what some people believe, even though it's an old wive's tale, or something a friend told them, or just something they heard. It irritates me to no end.

    I know it doesn't really harm me in anyway, but it does irritate me, but I guess I should take this in a positive manner, to think of all the things I have learned! For example, my roommate's reasoning for eating only once a day because 'eating less = losing weight' ....if I didn't know any better, I would see her reasoning, but that can seriously mess up your metabolism. Said roommate also doesn't believe in counting calories, "because the French don't and they're skinny." I know much better than that, and I think everyone should count calories, even if they just want to maintain weight. Calories are very important.

    So, what ignorant things have you heard -- AND, much more importantly, why do you know it was ignorant? :)

    You should post some tips! I would love to hear even obvious info
  • aprilmssmith
    aprilmssmith Posts: 35 Member
    Options
    The Weight Watchers theory that you can have all the vegetables you want everyday above those 'points' they count. Are you kidding??? Vegetables have calories too. I know one person that can't figure out why she's not losing weight on WW when she eats a bag of corn as her "free" food.

    Corn is not one of the "free" vegetables. Its only vegies with very low calories and in single serving amounts. They tell you to count them if you eat multiple servings. That is someone using the system incoreectly, not WW giving incorrect information.
  • jacquejl
    jacquejl Posts: 193 Member
    Options
    I wish that nutrition was a required course in junior high and high school.

    I know, right?! I raised my children with basically good nutrition. Not great, but old school balanced meals (protein, carb & veggie each meal) with nuts, fruits or veggies as snacks. My daughter is a teenager right now. She's very athletic and slender. She's become a fairly picky eater. She thinks all food should come conveniently pre-packaged and boxed so she can eat at her whim. She buys candybars, mac n cheese, ramen noodle cups, etc. Drives me cra-Z! I can lecture 'till I'm blue in the face, but she thinks it's all hokey pokey BS and, I quote, "If I'm so unhealthy, then why am I the skinniest one in the house?" Seriously, she needs to learn it somewhere else because she sure won't listen to me. End of rant :smokin:
  • Pril2000
    Pril2000 Posts: 254 Member
    Options
    The Weight Watchers theory that you can have all the vegetables you want everyday above those 'points' they count. Are you kidding??? Vegetables have calories too. I know one person that can't figure out why she's not losing weight on WW when she eats a bag of corn as her "free" food.

    Good grief! That is a doozy! ha. I definitely hear a lot of silly things. Chain emails that say that cold water causes cancer or that fruit rots in your stomach if you eat it with other foods. I get these emails from otherwise intelligent adults who obviously have no clue how their own bodies work. I mean. . it's WATER. You're full of it. How does it cause cancer because it's cold!?!

    Other things bother me as well. A lot of times, people are just lazy all around. They don't exercise, they don't take the time to eat properly, why the heck do I expect them to take the time to research and educate themselves on nutrition when they can just spout whatever they pick up from tv or erroneous websites?

    Blarg. Sorry. This gets me worked up a bit.
  • JennLifts
    JennLifts Posts: 1,913 Member
    Options
    The women being able to bulk like a man.... gets me every time! Why? Women don't have the testosterone levels baha. Let's be honest :)
    Or the fruit sugar. It's all innocent ignorance. I feel as though people should easily be able to be educated on these things, and I wish that it was required also.
    People worry about their cholesterol, but they're cool with sat fats.... hmmmmmmmmmm? Sat fats raise cholesterol more than cholesterol itself :)

    I love them to death though! So great that people ask!
  • quara
    quara Posts: 255 Member
    Options
    The Weight Watchers theory that you can have all the vegetables you want everyday above those 'points' they count. Are you kidding??? Vegetables have calories too. I know one person that can't figure out why she's not losing weight on WW when she eats a bag of corn as her "free" food.

    Corn is not one of the "free" vegetables. Its only vegies with very low calories and in single serving amounts. They tell you to count them if you eat multiple servings. That is someone using the system incoreectly, not WW giving incorrect information.

    Corn is not a vegetable - it's a grain! That's why :)
  • scagneti
    scagneti Posts: 707 Member
    Options
    The Weight Watchers theory that you can have all the vegetables you want everyday above those 'points' they count. Are you kidding??? Vegetables have calories too. I know one person that can't figure out why she's not losing weight on WW when she eats a bag of corn as her "free" food.

    Worse than the "free" veggies is the free fruit. Sure, you should be encouraged to eat fruit, but just three apples a day is 300 calories. I'm sure that I could eat my daily allottment in just fruit if I knew it was "free".

    Hmm, ignorant statements. Other than telling people that they're building muscle after a week on a diet which is why they haven't lost weight "because muscle weighs more than fat", I'd say the one that bugged me the most was someone saying that walking isn't enough of a workout to lose weight. Sure you need more than that once you get going, but it's a great jumping off point.
  • Kellee_76
    Kellee_76 Posts: 91
    Options
    "Eating before bedtime makes you fat." Totally false. It's how many calories you consume and how many you burn overall that causes you to gain or lose weight, not what time of day you eat them.
  • sarahazelnut99
    sarahazelnut99 Posts: 307 Member
    Options
    The Weight Watchers theory that you can have all the vegetables you want everyday above those 'points' they count. Are you kidding??? Vegetables have calories too. I know one person that can't figure out why she's not losing weight on WW when she eats a bag of corn as her "free" food.
    i cant help but think that weight watchers was made for really stupid people who dont actually care to learn anything about nutrition or there health.
    this site helps me track everything, not just "points" and i now know that i dont get enough calcium in my day...and to much sugar, **** like that is important to understand
  • JennLifts
    JennLifts Posts: 1,913 Member
    Options
    Nutrition and health were required when I was in 5th grade, 8th grade, and high school. It just depends where you went to school I guess. And then obviously you can take optional nutrition classes in college which I think I'll do just for fun... geek!:laugh:

    I'm taking one in college now... best class i've ever taken!
  • mhotch
    mhotch Posts: 901 Member
    Options
    "The Weight Watchers theory that you can have all the vegetables you want everyday above those 'points' they count. Are you kidding??? Vegetables have calories too. I know one person that can't figure out why she's not losing weight on WW when she eats a bag of corn as her "free" food. "

    Weight watchers does NOT encourage eating "all you want" , it encourages eating until satisfied, not to you feel full. Also any fruit/veggies more than a serving size then begins to get a point value. So your friend is eating points, just not logging it. She is not following the plan. Besides corn is not one of the "free" vegetables.

    "i cant help but think that weight watchers was made for really stupid people who dont actually care to learn anything about nutrition or there health. "

    I think that statement is a blanket, ignorant statement!
  • Pril2000
    Pril2000 Posts: 254 Member
    Options
    "I think the reason I'm not losing weight is that I don't eat enough calories" . Um, trust me, if you weren't eating enough calories you would lose weight. Ask people with anorexia.

    Sometimes you don't lose weight if you don't eat enough. Most people don't starve themselves the way anorexic people do. They might happen to eat just enough to be under their own personal threshhold. That person's body might be in starvation mode and not letting them lose weight, even if they are eating what most would consider an ok amount of food. Sometimes eating more helps you lose weight.

    Anorexic people eat so few calories that it's obvious to anyone who sees what they eat that they need to eat more. A healthy person going into starvation mode might just be falling a couple hundred short of 1200 due to exercise or some other factor.
  • txsjhawk
    txsjhawk Posts: 25
    Options
    It drives me crazy when people complain that they are always under their calorie goal but are not having the results they expected. All calories are NOT created equal. You only get out what you put in. Crap in= crap out!
  • JennLifts
    JennLifts Posts: 1,913 Member
    Options
    It drives me crazy when people complain that they are always under their calorie goal but are not having the results they expected. All calories are NOT createdl calories. You only get out what you put in. Crap in= crap out!


    There's a thread up right now about that exact thing. "are all calories equal" or something like that. Boooo.

Categories