Clash of Cultures: Accept Yourself

I'm sorry, but the fat acceptance groups lose me when they say things like "The GUTS and DONALD studies join a profusion of other studies, both clinical and epidemiological, over the past fifty years demonstrating that fat children and adults as a population normally eat exactly the same as thin people." These are very delusional people. It's one thing to ask for a little respect, but to overshoot and claim that obesity is perfectly normal and healthy and they wouldn't want to be anything else, that is doing nobody a service.

Why wouldn't obesity be normal for some people within the range of human genetics? Perhaps not for all of the people who are obese, but at least for some of them. It's doing nobody a service either by arguing against what we know of biology that all obesity is self-induced and unhealthy, or suggesting that we should artificially believe this, even if evidence suggests there is some biological factors at play, for the sake of 'public health'. And if studies do show that obese people eat the same, how is that delusional?
I know from my family, that I and my sibling have eaten the same (accounting for age) and exercised the same (we always went together) for our whole lives, and yet we are two disparate weights and always have been.
It's not delusional to be willing to take a small health risk (and obesity is only a small health factor if you're otherwise healthy), a possibility of dying a little early, over years of unhappy dieting, low self esteem, eating disorders, self-image disorders and all the associated pitfalls of gaining a socially acceptable body that make life simply not worth living. and if part of doing that is claiming that you wouldn't want to be anything else, I'd say that's a much healthier attitude.

Almost all mammals are designed to be able to store excess fuel for later famines. That's why we even have fat to begin with. I think genetically all people are programmed to be fat, it's just a matter of modern society being able to control the tendency to be huge. I don't think it's wrong to accept your body for what it is, but I do think it's dangerous to say "I'm fat and happy and not doing anything about it" for health reasons. I think it's awesome if you are fit and maybe a little overweight because a bit of extra padding is fine.

I personally question the validity of studies that claim that fat people eat no more than slender people for one simple reason... I have SEEN FOR MYSELF that fat people eat more. I have seen overweight people (strangers, friends, colleagues, family members) order the quarter-pounder with cheese, super-size it, drown the fries in ketchup, get a regular soda, and eat every last bit. I on the other hand am 5'5" and 120 lbs, and I order just the sandwich with a diet soda. I've seen fat people ordering at restuarants, again eating every bit of what they're served (plus non-diet drinks and dessert), and I usually end up taking half my meal home. I also go to the gym 2-3 times a week, whereas the only exercise some of my weightier colleagues get is the walk between their desks and the coffee pot.

Of course genetics are a factor, I'm not disputing this. I'm also not disputing that some people can seemingly eat like horses and not gain an ounce while others hang on to every extra pound (my bf can eat as much as he likes and not gain, but I have to put some work into staying thin). What I'm saying is that NO ONE naturally weighs 400 lbs, and once you've gone above a certain weight ratio there is obviously some bodily abuse going on - usually in the form of consuming far more calories than are required. So long story short, some fat people might eat the same as their thinner counterparts, but I'll bet you anything that the thin ones put in far more time at the gym.

Hiya my names ellen in 14 years ald im about 7 stone and i still havent gotten my period im really into danceing and do it 2 times a week ( hip hop and ballet ) i feel kinda tired al the time and this is effecting my dance and i just got accepted to a realy good dance company.. my mom makes me take " b complex" she says it wil help 4 my period to come im realy worried please help all my other friends are really developed and im really falt i love dancing .. am i tired because of my diet? i dont eat junk and have a well balanced diet? im really confused please help!

Hello, my name is Jackie and i am turning 14 in 4 months and i weigh 137 and im 5'3. and i was wondering if i am overweight? i can see that alot of kids posted comments about this and i just want to see if i am. and if i am how can i prevent my weight from gaining. i workout and i am watching what i eat but im always staying between, 135-139 and i cant ever go under 135. and what are the results to this diet pill if you eat a fatty food product. thank you for your time, Jackie

I think sometimes people don't understand metabolism. My coworker smokes does not exercise and is very overweight. She use to tell me that I look anorexic(I have a healthy BMI) and that I should not exercise(heart disease runs in my family). Now she is always trying to engage me in this one sided lunch as a competition farce. She is always talking about how little she eats and that she eats less than me. I think people who don't exercise think it's all about starving. They don't think about the fact that someone who runs five miles a day will burn more calories than someone who takes an elevator up one flight of stairs. Someone who is six feet tall will burn more calories than someone who is five foot two. Someone with 12% body fat will need more calories than someone with 35% body fat. Someone who has always done things to speed up their metabolism like lift weights, do cardio, add activity to their daily life will have a faster metabolism, than someone who has put themselves on crash diets that cause metabolism slowing muscle loss and make their body think that there is a famine, so it slows the rate it burns calories, and go out of their way to avoid physical activity. It's not all about starving and deprivation. There are many variables, but unfortuntaly people either don't understand or don't want to put the time in to learn and implement positive change.

PS to the dancer who posted a while ago about not getting her period. That is called amenorrhea. I means that you possibly have really low body fat, and you are not taking in enough calories to fuel your dance workouts. I had that my freshan year in high school during the track and cross country seasons, because I did not eat junk food, and didn't keep track of my calories. I wasn't getting enough calories. It happened my freshman year in college too because the training for track and cross country was more intense than it had been in high school. Amenorrhea is not good, you body cannot produce enough estrogen because your body fat may be to low, so your cycle stops. When this happens you can develope osteoporosis(fragile easily broken bones) at a VERY young age. You can then start to develope stress fractures in your bones, which will mess up your training. I would talk to a nutritionist about your diet. I just had to eat a little bit more now my cycles are fine. I just hate it when women try to make more feel bad for eating the amounts of food I need to fuel my workouts because I'm slim, they don't understand that women who are active need more calories especially if they are thin. You posted a while ago, so I hope you get a chance to read this.