Why is fatness such an issue?

[Jester Joe]

shut up....

But why?!?

[Deleted]

But why?!?

'Cuz he said so Joe.

Don't make him get his pimp slapping hand out!

[tj119]

My favorite is the fatties who park in handi-cap spots with no sticker, had to watch one steal the last handicap spot then wabble like a penguin into walmart one time while some old man had to park farther back and push his wife in a wheel chair into the store. She had no sticker nor tag hanging on her mirror. The old couple had both.

[Jester Joe]

'Cuz he said so Joe.

Don't make him get his pimp slapping hand out!

I'm not a pimp so I'd be immune right?

I mean, it's a hand for slapping pimps right?

[Bigbazz]

Who started this whole 'good metabolism' shit? I have heard so many different versions of what this term even means in the first place; most of them defying the most simple laws of physics.
After you condense this idea down and strip it of all things that are flat out wrong you are left with: You burn more calories than you take in = you lose weight. Now that doesn't make as good an excuse to stay fat as "Yeah, I inherited my mom's slow metabolism, fml".

People who neither exercise nor eat a lot get skinny, with no muscle.
People who exercise but eat little are skinny with a little muscle. Muscle growth is limited by what they put into their body.
People who don't exercise but stuff their faces all day get fat.
People who exercise a lot and eat a lot turn into fucking giants. More muscle = more calories burnt even when not actively exercising.
This goes for 100% of healthy people. If your perception is different then see your doctor or psychiatrist. I'm not even kidding.

Rant over.

Good metabolism, who started it? You're telling me that in your life you have never met someone who eats like a pig and who looks like a stick insect? Because I know several of them, I also know people who are overweight and who don't particularely eat great ammounts of food.

Yes basic logic that less food and more excersize means less fat but different peoples bodies work very differently at burning that energy. I used to be overweight and started to go to the gym every single day and followed a strict diet, my results were lesser and slower than those that did it with me, it's very hard for me to put on muscle and it drops off me fairly quickly... But if I don't constantly watch what I eat I will put on fat fairly quickly. I've maintained my weight for a few years now, but I cant just eat what I want and not get fat as some of my friends do.

You're talking about "simple laws of physics" - Because you're well versed in the laws of physics, I bet you have a PHD too am i right? And of course these laws really have a practical application when discussing biology... Oh right, they dont. There's also that small factor that even if they were relevant, these "laws" of physics are not absolute, they are not facts but simply the best explanation or most likely situation... Because science does not claim to be absolute.

It's like using an arguement of "laws of physics" when comparing why some people get sick from a disease and others do not, it makes no sense. Doctors and Nutritionists and Scientists have been getting it wrong over and over and over for a long bloody time and there is still a lot that isn't understood about the way our bodies work... So it's strange to me that we get these bro-scientists that know it all going around getting mad at people.

[Netherspark]

I don't disagree with obesity being an issue, but enough with the smug I-am-better-than-you attitude. It does NOTHING to help. Education and better access to healthier foods, empathy and motivation are what's needed.

Well, if people don't see it as a problem they'll never have a reason to change.

"Fat pride" must die.

[Drekker17]

Well, if people don't see it as a problem they'll never have a reason to change.

"Fat pride" must die.

Yeah but there is a difference with going up to a complete stranger and asking why they're fat vs telling your dad he needs to lose weight. One you can help with, while the other you're just being an annoying douche.

[Celista]

Why are people getting fatter and fatter? Do they have no self control when it comes to food? Do they strife to look ugly? And it especially disgusts me how people are talking about self accepting their body when they look like they're about to suffocate in their own triple chins. THIS IS NOT OKAY.

I suspect we'll start moving away from such simplistic assessments as calories in > calories out = weight gain when more people start realizing the various factors that play a role in weight gain.

I would gauge that for most people, it's not a simple matter of self-control because most people I know who struggle with weight issues put a lot of time and effort into weight maintenance and weight loss. The social stigma alone often drives people to extreme measures when it comes to their quest to lose weight.

Some factors that might influence weight:

-Endocrine disorders (much higher than common knowledge, 1 out of 4 adult women, with increasing prevalence over the age of 50).
-Stress (increases cortisol production). We live in a society that is much more rushed and stressed-out than ever before. Stress = weight gain.
-Lifestyle factors (less physical activity than ever before, partially due to the increase in jobs/careers that require sitting in front of a desk).
-Processed food and the stuff we put in it (HFCS only being one of those, additives that actually increase hunger instead of satiating it).
-Chemical pollutants in the air/clothing/household products (google "endocrine disruptors").

I think we need to stop shaming people for their weight gain and come to terms with the fact that there are many, many factors that encourage weight gain in our society, only some of which is the fault of the individual.

[Jester Joe]

Yeah but there is a difference with going up to a complete stranger and asking why they're fat vs telling your dad he needs to lose weight. One you can help with, while the other you're just being an annoying douche.

Also I don't get this hatred for "fat pride". It's not like there's tons of people getting fat because it's cool, it's not like every single fat person brags about being fat.

It's just like, a handful. And for some reason that really rustles jimmies.

[BloodyAngel12]

Not dis shittu again.

[NuLogic]

Who started this whole 'good metabolism' shit? I have heard so many different versions of what this term even means in the first place; most of them defying the most simple laws of physics.
After you condense this idea down and strip it of all things that are flat out wrong you are left with: You burn more calories than you take in = you lose weight. Now that doesn't make as good an excuse to stay fat as "Yeah, I inherited my mom's slow metabolism, fml".

People who neither exercise nor eat a lot get skinny, with no muscle.
People who exercise but eat little are skinny with a little muscle. Muscle growth is limited by what they put into their body.
People who don't exercise but stuff their faces all day get fat.
People who exercise a lot and eat a lot turn into fucking giants. More muscle = more calories burnt even when not actively exercising.
This goes for 100% of healthy people. If your perception is different then see your doctor or psychiatrist. I'm not even kidding.

Rant over.

Yeah it's not true I used to weigh back in the day 110 pounds at 5'10 but I was lazy and didn't eat as much. Now I weigh 153 at 6 feet and will go up when I drink too much soda since I don't eat a lot still kinda lazy but not as much.

[Jester Joe]

That's it. I've had it.. I'm telling teacher.

Tattle tale! Tattle tale!

[Celista]

This seems like an obvious bait thread.

The same topics tend to be repeated over and over again. In another week or two there will probably be another gender-related thread and/or a thread on tipping.

[Jester Joe]

This seems like an obvious bait thread.

My severe fatness is what's causing me to bite over and over.

[cyndallis]

Obvious troll thread aside, Tulune hit the nail on the head:

Education;
Better access to healthier foods; and
Empathy and Motivation

It is damned easy for us to put on weight and an unfortunate side effect is that the habits that got us there are hard to break. If you are interested in losing weight ignore the trolls and talk to your doctor. For many of us just cutting out high calorie drinks and switching out some processed foods (like white bread) can make a big difference. For others your doctor should be able to refer you to a nutritionist who will help you find a diet and exercise plan which will work for you. If you can, try to find somebody to lose weight with (a friend or a group dedicated to it) it will help you stay motivated. For the same reasons you should find somebody to exercise with it really does help. Finally if you are on a diet don't feel discouraged if you've messed up a few days and miss your target - it takes most of us months to form new habits and we all stumble along the way - just keep at it, you will get there!

[Auxora]

This thread should be locked and the OP banned for trolling.

My advice to the OP if you're actually serious (sad if true), myob. Everyone in this world has flaws, just because someone else has flaws that are more visible you don't be an ignorant rude jerk. I'm sure if anyone here followed the OP around for a little while they'd have a list of your flaws to equally gripe about. There are many different reasons people are overweight, just like there are different reasons for people to smoke, or drink, or watch porn, or have bad breath, or snore, etc. etc. etc. The only reason it's become a popular angle for people to target other people IMO is because other insults that people used to throw to try to make themselves feel better about their flaws in the past have become more socially unacceptable, so overweight people are an easy target for ignorant people like the OP to hurl insults at.

[Celista]

But the boldness and seeming ignorance of the OP seems like the bait, not the topic itself.

Yeah, I guess the two aren't mutually exclusive but agreed.

[Coolascancer]

This seems like a troll post to me because I find it hard to believe that someone doesn't know that obesity is and has been on the rise for the past 30-40 years.
Ok you ask a number of things in your post, op.
there are ads for weight loss everywhere because it is a money making business. everyone wants the fastest and/or easiest way to something and if you can take a pill or drink a shake to lose weight then you'll buy whatever product is being advertised.

You say fat people are everywhere and you're kind of right, it's been estimated that obesity will reach 40 percent in 2030 and as high as 60 percent in some states.

As you found out, it is not socially acceptable to ask someone why they are fat because most people know that being fat is a personal decision (or lack thereof) and are ashamed of it. (clarification: they are ashamed because they want to be thinner but do not make the actions to do so, regardless of goal if you do not live up to your own wants and expectations then you are probably ashamed of it)
OR they are not ashamed of being fat and are perfectly fine with it and are offended by the question because if has a connotation that being fat is not ok and that if you are fat you are doing something wrong or that something in your life has to have led to your weight like youre a victim.

To answer why people are getting fatter you have to understand a few things. A human's natural state is to move, a lot, every day. Before the industrial revolution people worked most of the day and walked nearly everywhere they went. The simple act of being outside helps keep fat off because your body is constantly fighting to keep internal body temp regulated. We have A/C and are indoors most of the day. We have cars and many many more luxuries that improve quality of life but decrease the amount of physical effort required to perform tasks.

Since the 70's people (*in the US) have spent increasingly more time indoors. with the popularity of tv and video games kids (and their parents) spend a lot of time in doors rather than playing a game of tag outside. These kinds of things can and do make a difference.

Generally, poorer and less educated people are more obese or overweight than more educated and wealthier people. I might be mistaken but this is thought to be because the less educated you are the the less you'd know about how nutrition and the less critical thinking skills you'd have so you wouldn't be able to make better decisions even with some experience.
Poorer people are more likely to be obese or overweight because cheaper food is generally less healthy. Although it really isn't that much more expensive to eat healthy (as opposed to eating fast food most days or eating out at restaurants), it is expensive to buy name brand healthy shit from organic food stores.
American lives are structured. Many people work the infamous 9-5 or 12hr shifts and these people also have kids, do other things, and simply dont have the time or energy (and yes, some of it is laziness but if you can say that you go at 100 percent at all times then godamn, good for you, you're like a super hero) to exercise. Eating right will get you there but without exercise the results come very slowly and it's hard to keep motivated.

Can people not control themselves? well the simple answer is yes, the public demands larger and larger portions for their money in restaurants and the like and the business has to respond. The general public is eating too much and does not control itself.
I doubt they strive to look ugly.

The self-acceptance thing is a natural product of the increasing prevalence of obesity; the more fat people the more that fat will become the norm and it just won't do if the minority of skinny people tells the majority obese people that they are wrong. Also, say the rate of obesity is 30 percent, the more obese people there are the bigger an issue it is meaning that each individual obese/overweight person will have the spotlight on them, more or less. Anyone who has personal issues is sensitive about it and a lot of the times being fat is a product of some other personal issue.

[Nachturnal]

Too much bait.

[Deleted]

Everyone responding why the fuck do you care and get upset are probably fat themselves,