Battle of the Bulge

[Ching]

Obesity is gaining increasing attention in the media, not as fat/thin, but as a health issue. What are your thoughts on this growing (no pun intended) concern? Is all this dieting craze crazy, or is it really an epidemic of fat?
What about you, personally? Have you bought into the Subway diet, the Atkins diet, or any of the other fads around? Do you avoid dieting altogether?
Does the coverage in the media make you more health-conscious, or more body-conscious?

[The Blue Tory]

I heard earlier of a child in Britain who was only 3 years old and weighed 80lbs died of an obesity inflicted heart problem...

I've bought into the EAT WHAT I WANT TO EAT diet

[Ching]

I haven't bought into any real dieting fads... well, not really. I'm on a milkshake diet. I've tried them before, but I didn't really stick to it, so it didn't work. Hopefully, with a little willpower, it'll actually work this time. My butt's really gotten out of hand. :o
I don't know if I'm convinced about this fat epidemic, but I have been noticing a lot of unhealthily large people around... I don't know if it's because i"m paying more attention, or because there really are more obese people around these days.
I saw a kid the other day that I seriously felt sorry for, he was about a foot shorter than I am (I'm 5'3"), but he had to have weighed 180 lbs. And, surprise surprise, he was getting his meal at KFC. It's not cool.

[Nitrane]

Quite honestly, that was a horrid and uncalled for remark, whether it was sarcastic or not. It is a health issue, and it is becoming a problem, but a new dieting plan like the atkins or subway, in my opinion, creates an even bigger problem. These diets are targeted at everyone, and suffice it to say, it will not work for everyone. Some people can go carb aware, or even eat food out of one chain, but that won't solve the problem. I'm 5'8 and I weigh 215 lbs. To some that may sound overweight, but thats a weight that Ive maintained ever since reaching this height and it's a weight I plan to maintain
henceforth. I eat a balanced diet, balanced meaning it contains all foods, whether they contain carbohydrates or not. Is my health at risk? I really don't think so, I take physicals like everyone else, there hasn't been any problems or even suggestions, and I remain as active as I've ever been. My advice, you have some extra pounds and you want to do something about it? Consult a specialist, fork over some money and construct a diet that works for you, and when I say diet, it doesn't mean stop eating carbs or stop eating this, it means eat balanced, and eat organized. But whatever, thats my two cents, like it or no!

[The Blue Tory]

If a parent turns a blind eye and keeps feeding their children fatty food and the kid becomes fat, do you think that is child abuse

[ctjj.stevenson]

I have to admit that I am an overweight person, and that I should take better care of my body. The day that I deside to loss some weight and take better care of my body, it will be more of health concern rather than personal appreance (even thought I will look a bit better, and I won't have to worry so much of my uniform pants).

I would say that the smartest thing that anyone could do is to exercise, and follow the Canada Food Chart recommendations.

Good day and healthy eating!

[Bos'n101]

I'm on a strict food/food-like substance diet

[The Blue Tory]

I'm on a strict food/food-like substance diet
Uh Peter... McDonald's is not food-like, and will never be...

[Earlam]

Obesity and fat-ness (for lack of my coming up with a better word):
There are definitely more obese and, say, chubby people today than there were a couple of decades ago. It is a growing problem.
I think this is, in large part, due to diet. I work at KFC, and I can honestly say that over a third of KFC customers would do well to spend a half hour making their own dinners. Alot of the time I look out front and say to myself (not out loud, of course, as it would be against my crappy work ethic and loyalty thing) "Dear God man, do yourself a favour. Walk the kilometre to Safeway, pick yourself up a pack of chicken, and put it in a frying pan yourself".

Dieting and the Dieting Fad:
Taking care of yourself is always good. If you watch how much grease you're putting into yourself, great. If you take a jog every day to get rid of all that fat you consumed the previous day, great.
Going on these diets, though, seems crazy to me. I have a simple solution to the "I'm getting fat" problem. Don't eat something that's gonna result in instantaneous, massive heart attacks, and exercise for a little while every day.

I myself have a good metabolism (God-willing it'll stay that way long after I'm dead..... hehe. Get it?). I try not to eat much fast food (I still do 2 or 3 times a week, as I get a kickass discount), I do a couple hundred pushups a day, and I like to walk (now that the weather is nice, I can do that again).
Some people with less-advantageous metabolisms have to work harder, but it's always possible.

Reference: The Don't-Screw-Yourself-Up-Too-Badly Diet Plan (ask me for details should you desire them)

Something to consider:
100 years ago, obesity was not an issue. The genetics of the human race haven't changed enough for obesity to be a genetic problem (not the majority of cases). People back then had bad metabolisms, and they rarely became overweight.
Why? Do some research if it interests you.
My opinion: Fast food, inactivity in the workplace, being top-dog.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta go starve myself
(because I'm on the No-Food-In-The-House Diet).

[The Blue Tory]

Obesity and fat-ness (for lack of my coming up with a better word):
There are definitely more obese and, say, chubby people today than there were a couple of decades ago. It is a growing problem.
I think this is, in large part, due to diet. I work at KFC, and I can honestly say that over a third of KFC customers would do well to spend a half hour making their own dinners. Alot of the time I look out front and say to myself (not out loud, of course, as it would be against my crappy work ethic and loyalty thing) "Dear God man, do yourself a favour. Walk the kilometre to Safeway, pick yourself up a pack of chicken, and put it in a frying pan yourself".

Dieting and the Dieting Fad:
Taking care of yourself is always good. If you watch how much grease you're putting into yourself, great. If you take a jog every day to get rid of all that fat you consumed the previous day, great.
Going on these diets, though, seems crazy to me. I have a simple solution to the "I'm getting fat" problem. Don't eat something that's gonna result in instantaneous, massive heart attacks, and exercise for a little while every day.

I myself have a good metabolism (God-willing it'll stay that way long after I'm dead..... hehe. Get it?). I try not to eat much fast food (I still do 2 or 3 times a week, as I get a kickass discount), I do a couple hundred pushups a day, and I like to walk (now that the weather is nice, I can do that again).
Some people with less-advantageous metabolisms have to work harder, but it's always possible.

Reference: The Don't-Screw-Yourself-Up-Too-Badly Diet Plan (ask me for details should you desire them)

Something to consider:
100 years ago, obesity was not an issue. The genetics of the human race haven't changed enough for obesity to be a genetic problem (not the majority of cases). People back then had bad metabolisms, and they rarely became overweight.
Why? Do some research if it interests you.
My opinion: Fast food, inactivity in the workplace, being top-dog.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta go starve myself
(because I'm on the No-Food-In-The-House Diet).
lol my metabulism decided to walk out the door, allowing Mr. Freshmen 15 to come in

[Ching]

but a new dieting plan like the atkins or subway, in my opinion, creates an even bigger problem. These diets are targeted at everyone, and suffice it to say, it will not work for everyone. Some people can go carb aware, or even eat food out of one chain, but that won't solve the problem. I'm 5'8 and I weigh 215 lbs. To some that may sound overweight, but thats a weight that Ive maintained ever since reaching this height and it's a weight I plan to maintain
I agree. I'm not convinced about this Atkins diet, considering Dr Atkins himself was quite overweight when he died. It's all about the balance. And the quantity of food being eaten.
I think I"ve got the balance, but I eat too much, and therein lies my problem. No matter how active I am, I don't lose fat, because I eat too much. I don't have the willpower to just go with the smaller portions... it just tastes so good! So I'm going with the milkshake thing... see if it works.
It's not about the weight, it's about the fat. Abdominal fat is the most dangerous, because it's closest to the vital organs. I've got the flat tummy, so that's not my personal problem. MY problem is the size of my butt wrt my pants. It's like putting a circular peg in a triangular hole. Not happening.

I wasn't quite sure what you were offended by, Nitrane... was it my remark about the kid at KFC? I didn't mean it as sarcasm or offensive. He was (maybe) 10 years old, still young enough for the kids' meal, and he was large. Not just chubby, or else it wouldn't have been remarkable. He was large like, his face looked like he had 2 grapefruits for cheeks. And that's the state of society today. If we don't take charge, it's going to get worse.
The only problem is, the fastest way to cook food properly is to dip it in a bunch of hot oil. So we need to slow down a notch and accept food that is grilled, or broiled, or even baked. It takes a bit longer, but we'll have that much longer in our life to wait for it.

[Cheryl Tucker]

I'm overweight but its because of a heredity thing. I'm losing weight now but I think the people and the media contradict themselves. 1st they put toothpick-like girls in magazines... then people say how that thoose girls are computer editied and are starving themselves and we should not try and be like them. Then people say that we are all too fat and we need to lose weight. Where is the happy-medium?!?

[Fufu_65]

personally i think it IS a problem...i myself am lucky enough to have a fast metabolism and coming from an eastern european family it's is a BONUS...i'd be wayyyy overweight if it wasn't for my metabolism

do i think the growing number of ppl who are overweight is because of all the fast food restaurants? NO!...it's because ppl have become to god damn (am i allowed to say that?) lazy to excercise...like walk to school..or walk your dog..or go for a 10 minute jog*even that will help* try and get excercise at least 3 times a week..and you'll see that not ONLY will you feel better about yourself, but you will FEEL better in general..like climbing up to the 3rd floor of your school won't have you huffing and opuffing at the end...

ITS NOT THE FAST FOOD'S FAULt..it's our LAZY-NESS...

so get out there adn enjoy the fresh air:)

-SS

[Little Cadet]

I think this dieting is going way too far. I'm not too sure if it's because people are getting bigger or if it's because companies like to push people to consume, buy diet books and pills and whatever else. My friend's 7 year old sister makes comments like "oh no, I can't eat that, i'm going to be fat". Wahhh!!! :eek: I don't know about you, but at 7 years old, I wasn't worried about getting fat (well I was really really small, that might be it?) but I don't think it was as bad as now.

Anyhow, I now believe in the "eat a balanced diet, carbs included and exercise". That diet isn't at the profit of anyone BUT you. The no carbs diet must of been the most stupid diet i've ever seen! People are now afraid to eat bread and pastas, anyways, as soon as you start to eat carbs again, same as if you try to eat less than what you need, once you do eat right again (and you need carbs) you'll gain all the weight again and more. I mean people have been eating them for centuries, they didn't get fat. It's all in your lifestyle, if you sit on your bum all day, obviously you're going to gain weight whatever you eat, people know that, but they are either too tired, too busy or too lazy. The media's not helping either, it really contradicts itself, example a magazine, one page will advertise this skin and bones model, but to us it's gone "the norm" and the next page will advertise McDonalds. Then you wonder why so many people develop eating disorders. Sometimes the parents don't help. Some of them will totally get their kids paranoid about getting fat, and put them on diets. I don't think kids should be on diets unless their weight is really a problem, some grow "out of it". Anyhow, the media is horrible for that.

Oh and don't get me started on McD's...their burgers are 100% beef yes but not 100% meat! :mad: You should see some people, they eat the EVERY day...sometimes people ordered and in my head I would be thinking "nooo don't supersize that fry".

About that, did anyone see the movie "Super Size Me" about this guy who goes on a McD's diet for a month? I hear it's crazy.

[DMCorrigan]

I come from a family with two parents who are overweight, and I too was overweight for a very long time before I began to grow. Now I'm 6'1, 160 lbs and my metabolism is extremely fast. Lucky for me.

But there are three problems that contribute to this issue.

-Fast food and "junk food" that has high sugar concentration, which after a certain point is changed into glycogen in the liver. After glycogen reserves hit a certain level, excess glycogen is changed into fat, which is deposited... anywhere. The booty, the belly, whatever....

-People NOT exercising! Good god! I see people there sitting in front of their couches and televisions literally shoving burgers into their face with the palm of their hands! It's obvious that without activity they're going to become obese.

-Hereditary problems. (No need to comment here.)

Basically, if number one and number two are not simulataneously handled, no weight loss really occurs at any rapid rate. Diet all you wish, but without increased exercise, not much will occur.

[sic_transit_gloria]

I believe fast food does play a role in the "battle of the bulge", but they're noticing it too and trying to give people a more 'healthy' selection.. everyone has a choice of what they want to eat, so we can't really go around and say that it's the junk food company's fault, although it is easy to go a little over board because it's easier to make, it's cheaper and it's yummy.. but what we're losing sight of is the whole 3-4 servings of veggies and fruits each day and exercise.. it's not that hard to replace cookies with some carrots and grapes.. maybe we're just becoming lazier?? But if you try doing about 30 mins of cardio 3-4 times a week and replacing junk food with healthy alternatives for a month, you'll feel a difference..

[Nitrane]

I agree. I'm not convinced about this Atkins diet, considering Dr Atkins himself was quite overweight when he died. It's all about the balance. And the quantity of food being eaten.
I think I"ve got the balance, but I eat too much, and therein lies my problem. No matter how active I am, I don't lose fat, because I eat too much. I don't have the willpower to just go with the smaller portions... it just tastes so good! So I'm going with the milkshake thing... see if it works.
It's not about the weight, it's about the fat. Abdominal fat is the most dangerous, because it's closest to the vital organs. I've got the flat tummy, so that's not my personal problem. MY problem is the size of my butt wrt my pants. It's like putting a circular peg in a triangular hole. Not happening.

I wasn't quite sure what you were offended by, Nitrane... was it my remark about the kid at KFC? I didn't mean it as sarcasm or offensive. He was (maybe) 10 years old, still young enough for the kids' meal, and he was large. Not just chubby, or else it wouldn't have been remarkable. He was large like, his face looked like he had 2 grapefruits for cheeks. And that's the state of society today. If we don't take charge, it's going to get worse.
The only problem is, the fastest way to cook food properly is to dip it in a bunch of hot oil. So we need to slow down a notch and accept food that is grilled, or broiled, or even baked. It takes a bit longer, but we'll have that much longer in our life to wait for it.

I wasn't offended by anything you said... it was an offence to the response of the above post. Joking about it? That doesn't fix it.

[piper]

I'm a wee bit on the big side, I am however exercising for one hour each day and my goodness, I'm getting fitter. What a concept. People look for a quick fix with diets, then screw themselves up. All you need to lose weight is a good does of daily PT. I work on the 'I eat meat, meat and meat and anything else I damned please' diet and yet, with PT, I have turned and shall remain fit and fitter. Funny that, maybye once people realise that great revelation our society will be fitter and STILL be able to eat that yummy greasy burger. Duhh.

[Dick]

I challenge everyone on here to jog for at least 15 min a day. (thats about 2km) I'm going to take part in this, as I don't really get much exercise other than mowing the lawn and walking around all day at work.

Consider this a test. Post results here: Post when you started and when you quit.

I'm starting tomorrow after work, I'm going to take the dog for a jog. I hope it can keep it, becuase it's getting fat too.

[Coomber 535]

I'm overweight but its because of a heredity thing. I'm losing weight now but I think the people and the media contradict themselves. 1st they put toothpick-like girls in magazines... then people say how that thoose girls are computer editied and are starving themselves and we should not try and be like them. Then people say that we are all too fat and we need to lose weight. Where is the happy-medium?!?
I have a similar situation. My Mom's side of this family is filled with larger people, and diabetes. I also have a hip problem inherited from my mom's side as well. It's called hip dysplasia (sp?), and it's hereditary. Basically, it's that your hip joint is in a different position than it should be, and it rubs on the muscles and other stuff when you move. It's common in dogs too... not that my family has breeding issues... LOL.

My thing is, it's hard to exercise when you're in pain. It's hard to do drill with you're in pain. If I stand in one place (like at my old job at McDonald's working the drive-thru, or standing at attention) for more than about 5-10 minutes it hurts. If I'm moving around for more than about 30, I have to sit down. The whole day of annual I was taking more than the total amount on the bottle of tylenol.

It's not always as easy as it looks. I used to go to physical therapy but it was proving to be useless. And now with the whole new ON budget I wouldn't be able to afford to go anyway.

All I can do is watch what I eat and exercise as much as I can. I have a great job as a security guard where I only need to be on my feet for about 20 minutes every hour walking around. The rest of the time I'm answering phones and doing paperwork.

I also switched to diet pop... but the only one I can stand is diet Dr. Pepper. :D

[Ching]

You are HILARIOUS !O!OLLO!LO!
I'm glad you liked it. :cool:

[aduff]

I think if your fat its simple - eat less and excercise more. Not rocket science.

Unfortunatley for us brits obesity is starting to makes its way over across the altlantic and effecting our kids now. Very bad.

[Ching]

Personally, I'm of the opinion that everyone should have PE every day of their school career. Not just this one mandatory high school credit of it, and 3 days a week or whatever in elementary... Every day. Even if it's just like morning PT at camp, they should have to do it. It would benefit everyone, but especially the people (like me) who lack the willpower to just get up and get active.
The idea behind this is, if everyone is in the habit of being active every day, more people will continue to be active once they're finished high school.

I also think they should ban vehicles (except delivery trucks, public transit, and emergency vehicles) in cities. Not suburbs, that wouldn't be practical, but in the city core, it would totally be practical, in so many ways. People would have to walk more, or take transit, which would cut down on pollution, there'd be less road rage... the sidewalks would be safe with people like Colin off the roads... :p
And the money that was raised from the increased transit usage would give more $$ for the city... and less gas would be used... and I could go on. I think it's a great idea. :)

[Earlam]

Personally, I'm of the opinion that everyone should have PE every day of their school career. Not just this one mandatory high school credit of it, and 3 days a week or whatever in elementary... Every day. Even if it's just like morning PT at camp, they should have to do it. It would benefit everyone, but especially the people (like me) who lack the willpower to just get up and get active.
The idea behind this is, if everyone is in the habit of being active every day, more people will continue to be active once they're finished high school.

I also think they should ban vehicles (except delivery trucks, public transit, and emergency vehicles) in cities. Not suburbs, that wouldn't be practical, but in the city core, it would totally be practical, in so many ways. People would have to walk more, or take transit, which would cut down on pollution, there'd be less road rage... the sidewalks would be safe with people like Colin off the roads... :p
And the money that was raised from the increased transit usage would give more $$ for the city... and less gas would be used... and I could go on. I think it's a great idea. :)

I have so many problems with this post it's not even funny.

i) Mandatory PE.
I don't know about most of you, but I could hardly stomach this class up until Gr10 (actually, I had to take Gr10 PE twice, as I couldn't stomach it).
If you lack the willpower to keep yourself in shape, tough. You can work up the willpower, or you can get fat and die of a heart attack.
You want people to force you to do something against your will? That's insane! It's like democratically electing someone whose platform is the eradication of the entire human race in alphabetical order (while the Z. Zurakowskis of the world would be sittin' pretty, the Chings would have problems).
I'll provide a URL to a page on a related issue (it'd help with my argument to ban PE altogether, if it was written to convince) (warning: it's kinda offensive).
http://maddox.xmission.com/dumbassjocks.html


ii) Ban vehicles in inner-city.
People have a right to be lazy, fat, unhealthy *******s. It's their decision.
You can't regulate laziness. If it's possible to be lazy, people will find a way. Trying to stop them is just making things inconvenient.
Besides, this would never happen. It would never be allowed. I'd like to think that most people in our supposedly free-democratic nation like to decide what to do on their own, instead of being told. Yes, there have to be rules for society to exist. But this is running pretty close to telling people when to urinate. I'll offer a horrifying example of the society that could follow this sort of thing.

It is 16:46 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Harry looks at the clock, expectantly. He hasn't taken a **** since noon, as the washrooms are locked except during the designated urination time-frames (DUTs). The clock turns to 16:47, and a buzzer rings throughout the city. Harry gets up and heads to the washroom, where he waits 5 minutes in line to relieve himself. He returns to his cubicle feeling immensely better, and continues his productive, mindless generic task until the bell at 17:30 tells him it's time to get some dinner and go home.

If I ran the world, things would be alot like the above. Fortunately for humanity, I don't. Think about it.

[Thib]

I challenge everyone on here to jog for at least 15 min a day. (thats about 2km)

I already do it every morning when a wake up at 0550.

I don't think diet work. Has soon then you stop one, you'll stop gaining the wait you just lost. So I think the best way is exercise. Even if you don't go to the gym, you can still take a 30 or 40min walk outside after supper and do some setup/pushup when you wake up and go to sleap.

[Little Cadet]

I already do it every morning when a wake up at 0550.

I don't think diet work. Has soon then you stop one, you'll stop gaining the wait you just lost. So I think the best way is exercise. Even if you don't go to the gym, you can still take a 30 or 40min walk outside after supper and do some setup/pushup when you wake up and go to sleap.
Diet works if you keep it going. Example if someone eats really unhealthy, junk food etc...going on a diet will help, and if they eat healthy from then on, it works. Obviously it won't if as soon as you get fitter and loose weight, you just start to eat like before....

[DMCorrigan]

Well, truth be told, in BC we are forced to take English 12 to graduate, as well as CAPP 12. Who's to say that PE 12 being a graduation requirement is all that bad?

On the flip side, there are those of us who plan to go into very competitive fields such as, oh, say, SCIENCE, where we need at least one grade 12 science and, to be safer and better prepared, that grade 12 science number should be 2 or 3... It's difficult these days to have ANOTHER required course in a world where university is getting more and more competitive.

[Ching]

It is 16:46 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Harry looks at the clock, expectantly. He hasn't taken a **** since noon, as the washrooms are locked except during the designated urination time-frames (DUTs). The clock turns to 16:47, and a buzzer rings throughout the city. Harry gets up and heads to the washroom, where he waits 5 minutes in line to relieve himself. He returns to his cubicle feeling immensely better, and continues his productive, mindless generic task until the bell at 17:30 tells him it's time to get some dinner and go home.

If I ran the world, things would be alot like the above. Fortunately for humanity, I don't. Think about it.
I think you're being a wee bit melodramatic. You'd probably protest against the mandatory 40 hours of community service needed to graduate from high school in Ontario too, even though you, as a cadet leader, already do way more than enough.
People need to be fit. People sit on their butts all day at school, and then all evening at home. They need to have some activity. I'm not saying that we should have 3 hours of gym class every day, I'm saying that, even 15 minutes at some point during the school day would help. I don't think that's too much to ask of anyone, even someone who hates gym class. I never liked it until grade 10, either, and I've ended up taking it every year of high school. (It's only mandatory in grade 9 here) It also inspired me to get involved with the lacrosse and wrestling teams, something I would never have dared to do without being in a gym class.
Making people take the bus to work isn't at all like making people pee at appointed times. That's just ridiculous. My suggestion isn't to control people, it's to cut down on traffic, which is downright ridiculous (in this area, anyway), and to cut down on pollution (which is also nastygross around here)
Don't treat me like some fascist dictator. I'm not into controlling people, I'm into helping people. In all aspects of my life. My ideas would help people in many ways, as I outlined in my previous post.

[Ching]

On the flip side, there are those of us who plan to go into very competitive fields such as, oh, say, SCIENCE, where we need at least one grade 12 science and, to be safer and better prepared, that grade 12 science number should be 2 or 3... It's difficult these days to have ANOTHER required course in a world where university is getting more and more competitive.
I could (and would) argue that an increased knowledge of health and physical education would both stimulate an interest and develop understanding of sciences, specifically Biology, Chemistry and Physics, presumably the three senior sciences you're referring to. I know that it helped me. I'm not going into science professionally, but I'm taking senior sciences anyway, out of interest. I couldn't have cared less about it, until I started associating the sciences with my own experiences, such as gym class.

[gunzgirl85]

Hello there...

i believe in eating healthy and following the Canada food Guide :D
i also don't get obsessed about my weight cause i loose like 2 dress sizes every summer on staff...not that you notice with that uniform though! :rolleyes:

[Earlam]

I think you're being a wee bit melodramatic. You'd probably protest against the mandatory 40 hours of community service needed to graduate from high school in Ontario too, even though you, as a cadet leader, already do way more than enough.
People need to be fit. People sit on their butts all day at school, and then all evening at home. They need to have some activity. I'm not saying that we should have 3 hours of gym class every day, I'm saying that, even 15 minutes at some point during the school day would help. I don't think that's too much to ask of anyone, even someone who hates gym class. I never liked it until grade 10, either, and I've ended up taking it every year of high school. (It's only mandatory in grade 9 here) It also inspired me to get involved with the lacrosse and wrestling teams, something I would never have dared to do without being in a gym class.
Making people take the bus to work isn't at all like making people pee at appointed times. That's just ridiculous. My suggestion isn't to control people, it's to cut down on traffic, which is downright ridiculous (in this area, anyway), and to cut down on pollution (which is also nastygross around here)
Don't treat me like some fascist dictator. I'm not into controlling people, I'm into helping people. In all aspects of my life. My ideas would help people in many ways, as I outlined in my previous post.

A wee bit melodramatic? Oh, Hell yes!
I'm not so dramatic in person, so I must make up for it with every contrary post. I figger it evens out........

I do, actually, protest the 40 hours mandatory community service.
Who is the school to tell me how I should spend my time after school? Screw them!
If I choose to use 40 hours of my time to help others, great for me. If I choose to spend those 40 hours doing bone-crushing labour where I actually get paid, I think that's a choice that should be open to me.
I'm still not sure if I'm going to do those 40 hours. But I could debate that all day....... moving on.

A short break for physical activity? That sounds reasonable enough to me. Although I may still object to it if it ever comes up as an actual issue in which my opinion would mean anything (as a matter of principal, you understand).

I think that making people take the bus to work is a great idea. If you edit out the entire part about not giving them a choice. Encourage it all you want, lower transit fares, raise gas prices, institute user-fees for inner city roads (I would argue against all but one of these, but they are seperate issues). But it still has to be their choice in the end. Or we may as well tell them when to pee, as they have no real control over their lives anyways.

I'm not accusing you of being a fascist dictator (I'd probably be better at that job, as I'm more interested in helping humanity than people). In fact, quite the opposite. Well, not the opposite. Something different.
I'm saying that yes, you mean well. It's obvious. But if you go too far down that road, it will end badly.
There is always a fascist-dictator-type to take advantage of a system that gives too much control to itself. Always.

Reference A: Roman Republic to Roman Empire transition years.
Caesar created a system that gave one man too much power (though he was pretty democratically inclined himself). Suddenly he's dead, and you've got Augustus. From then on, there were good Emperors and bad Emperors, but once they were in, they were in for life. It was all at their whim. So you'd better hope they're the benign type.

[Nitrane]

How did this go from a thread relating to general health and fitness, to one relating to a fascist/dictator? Has the government turned while I was perplexed by the multi dimensional bouillon cube?

[Ching]

A wee bit melodramatic? Oh, Hell yes!
I'm not so dramatic in person, so I must make up for it with every contrary post. I figger it evens out........

I do, actually, protest the 40 hours mandatory community service.
Who is the school to tell me how I should spend my time after school? Screw them!
If I choose to use 40 hours of my time to help others, great for me. If I choose to spend those 40 hours doing bone-crushing labour where I actually get paid, I think that's a choice that should be open to me.
I'm still not sure if I'm going to do those 40 hours. But I could debate that all day....... moving on..
I think it's a good system. Except that it's a pain in the butt to document the hours. But it's not at all difficult to do 40 hours over 4 years. I think I completed them in my first month in gr 9 without even trying (but I haven't documented any yet... :eek: )
I think that it's a poor reflection on society today that, after so many years, this issue is still making front page news (yesterday's Toronto Star). Why is it so difficult, and such a big deal, that it's on the front of the newspaper? It's not like we're saying "Over 4 years, you must not do anything for yourself, your life must be devoted to helping others. At the cost of your school marks and social life."
40 hours over 4 years. And almost anything you do that you don't expect money for counts. And it helps other people. Where's the frickin downside?
Mow some crippled old lady's lawn once a week for all of high school. You've got your 40 hours and then some. And she's got one less burden.

[Earlam]

I think it's a good system. Except that it's a pain in the butt to document the hours. But it's not at all difficult to do 40 hours over 4 years. I think I completed them in my first month in gr 9 without even trying (but I haven't documented any yet... :eek: )
I think that it's a poor reflection on society today that, after so many years, this issue is still making front page news (yesterday's Toronto Star). Why is it so difficult, and such a big deal, that it's on the front of the newspaper? It's not like we're saying "Over 4 years, you must not do anything for yourself, your life must be devoted to helping others. At the cost of your school marks and social life."
40 hours over 4 years. And almost anything you do that you don't expect money for counts. And it helps other people. Where's the frickin downside?
Mow some crippled old lady's lawn once a week for all of high school. You've got your 40 hours and then some. And she's got one less burden.

I hate that system.

It's not the hours. I've done over 40 hours of community service over the last 3 years, easy (I've only documented 3, and I still need signatures for it, but bah).
I'm not opposed to doing community service work. I am opposed to being forced to do community service work. Forced, as in, against my will.

The downside is that I'm being told what to do by an organization that has no right to tell me what to do. The function of schools is to teach me. If they want to do something outside of that extremely limited box (classes, and that's pretty much it), they can do it themselves.

It's great if someone wants to do it themselves. But it's slave-labour if they don't have a choice.
Just because everyone can do it (even should do it) is no reason for them to have to do it.


And back to health and fitness.........

[Coomber 535]

Hello there...

i believe in eating healthy and following the Canada food Guide :D
i also don't get obsessed about my weight cause i loose like 2 dress sizes every summer on staff...not that you notice with that uniform though! :rolleyes:

If I follow the food guide, I would be eating about 10x what I eat now!!! LOL

[Coomber 535]

Unfortunatley for us brits obesity is starting to makes its way over across the altlantic and effecting our kids now. Very bad.

Just blame it all on the North Americans why don't we!!! :D

*shakes fist* :D

[CKeenan]

If you guys want to lose weight, just go exercise... Do a little run everyonce in a while, jog, do push ups and sit-ups... just go to a fitness center and keep on at it while watching what you eat. it works miracles!!! that's what I do anyways...

[Tracker]

I'd rather be healthy and fit then stick thin. I know I won't be like a twig, but I'm healthy now and I like my size. I'm not overweight, but I'm not like a stick.

As for the Atkin's diet. Well, that's good if you wanna lose weight for a short term. But if you ever stop, you'll gain it back fast and in more abundance.

I know it's been said but here it goes again; MODERATE! Sure you can still have that bag of chips or that plate of fries but don't buy a large just cause you can and don't eat it for every meal. Fit in healthy foods, and don't eat between meals. Instead of eating when you're bored, read or walk.

Fit in a work out whenever you can. Make it a habit. Instead of taking the elavator, take the stairs, instead of crashing on the couch after school, go for a walk. Not only will you feel better, but any stress that you had that day will fade away and you can focus more. It gives you time to think. Every week I fit in a vicious work out. The gut-wrenching, sweating, teeth gritting kind. It makes you feel so much better.

Also, since technology has made it's debeut with video games and computers, that's when kids started getting obese. Parent's are too busy working to pay attention to their kid's eating habits. Instead of packing them a healthy lunch, they just give them money for the cafeteria. Instead of coming home to cook dinner, they just get take out. They let their kids stay inside for hours upon hours. Personally, I go crazy if I'm stuck in for a day.

Forget the diet pills, special diets, and useless therapy. All you need to do is excersice and eat right. Also, DRINK LOTS OF WATER and take your vitamins! Remember, don't give up if you don't notice you dropped a pants size in a week. It'll take at least 6-8 weeks before you see visable results. But in that time, you'll notice that you don't feel so drained and lazy. You'll be brighter and focused and energized. On a last note, 10 pounds is a lot of weight, so if you think you're doing great losing 5 lbs in a week, then you're not. That's unhealthy. You should actully loose 1 or 2 lbs a week. Oh, and one more thing (seriously this time) remember that muscle weighs more then fat BUT it takes up less room.


PS: GET RID OF THE SCALES! They're useless! Don't live your life on the scale. Do what feels right to you and your body!

[canoe instructor]

its quite simple when you look at it...get outside, do some exercise (something you actually enjoy doing) and eat healthy..(and that doesn't include mcdi#ks "heathly salads" and whatnot~~its all a lie...cuz it ain't healthy~~~ suggested reading Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser its a fanastic, eye opening novel.. and i'll never eat at fast food again....) Get some will power, peel yourself off your couch...get reintroduced to the great outdoors! :D :p
Cheers
CI Harris
ORCA Flatwater Instructor/Canoe Tripper I
HMCS Ontario Athletics Staff 2003 and 2004
"GO GREEN"

[Pilot]

I personally love the studies "children who eat french fries and one piece of fruit a day are less likely to suffer from (insert fat related concern here)

it's simple... eat right, exercise regularly, and you're good to go... yes I know, easier said than done..

[aduff]

Just blame it all on the North Americans why don't we!!! :D

*shakes fist* :D


Well you lot have had a problem with obesity in your populatoin for decades - its a relativley new thing over here. You and your bloody Big Macs :p

Give me haggis, neeps and tatties any day!

[Ching]

Give me haggis, neeps and tatties any day!
Yeah, having that every day would keep me skinny too. :p

[Lola]

If only I had gotten my dad's metabolism...

But I dont't. :( The fittest I have ever been was just after tg3 gunz. I was a size 14(possibly 12), and when you're 6'2", that's pretty good! After about a year I went through quite a long patch of depression(nothing too serious) that I'm still working on, and turned to food for comfort.

I was very happy with my body before and had great body confidence, but now I don't. However, last week I started a fitness and health program and it's been going pretty well. Hopefully I'm on my way to getting fit again!

[Ching]

You're 6'2"??
That's tall! :eek:

I've gone through the same waves... thin when I'm happy, fat when I'm not... I'm in one of my biggest phases now... :(

[Lola]

You're 6'2"??
That's tall! :eek:

I've gone through the same waves... thin when I'm happy, fat when I'm not... I'm in one of my biggest phases now... :(

I may not have gotten my dad's metabolism, but I did get his height!:)

Yeah, it really sucks. I have to keep telling myself, "you'll feel so much better once the weight's off." And it's not like I want to get down to a size 4(I think it would be physically impossible for me anyways). I'd be so happy to get down to my post-gunz weight. It's a shame though that a size 12 or 14 is considered fat by society.

[Ching]

I don't really think that size 12 or 14 is fat. For some people, yeah, it would be, like for me. But I'm 5'3". So I look fat if I'm any bigger than size 7. Which I am now. :o
Anyway, it's not the size, it's proportions and whether it's fat or muscle/big bones.

LOL I know "big bones" is usually just an excuse... but I have a bigger frame than size 0 girls, there's no way I could ever be a size 0, or even a 2, unless I lost all my fat AND muscle. And that just wouldn't look good.

[Lola]

Yeah, I have a bigger frame too, but I totally agree about some people using it as an excuse.

[GoGunz]

Yay, exercise. I rarely eat fast food, but that is the doing of my parents, and I appreciate that. My parents have played a role in preventing obesity (not only that, but I have an over-average metabolism), but the problem, in my opinion, is that most parents of obese children are the cause, not directly, but in the sence that they control what their kid eats. It could be the difference between the kid having a healthy sandwich, fruits, juices, cereals, et cetera, or greasy burgers, fries, pop, or those "McMuffin" or bagel breakfast things. If they parents can instill proper eating habits in the kids, than it will make life a lot easier for the both of them.

[ArmyBoatswain]

I agree with what your saying. I'm glad my parents gave me healthy eating habits. If not, so many things could've made me sick, and all of that lovely stuff...not literally lovely, but you know what I mean. If you don't have healthy eating habits, chances are, your children aren't going to either...It's sad!

[Anzac Angel]

I started the 123 success Weight watchers program 16 weeks ago.. I was 72.3 Kg and a size 14.. but rapidly moving towards a size 16

I have shead 8.8KG purely though what I choose to put into my mouth and meeting a daily points value.. i have 18 points / day, and I have quickly learnt what to eat..

I do no more excersize out of the ordinary then what i normally do.. and thats next to nothing..

I just stoped eating so much Take out, and watching how much I was eating..

I am a happy 63.5 KG and i have another 500grams to loose before I am in the healthy weight ratio for my hight. and another 3.5 KG before i am at my goal weight of 60 KG. and i am a size 12 falling out of size 14 pants..

I have an existing knee injury and i am noticing some difference on the strain that i have put on it. Its not a painful anymore.. this was one of the reasons that i did it..

Im doin it for me..

anyways... thats my 5cents worth'

Just remember DIET is DIE with a T..

Cheers
angie

[Ching]

Two of my aunts have been going to Weight Watchers for the past few months, it's done wonders for them! My aunt Kathy is not far from my size now, and that's impressive! She really looks good! My other aunt, Nancy, has also lost a lot of weight since Christmas, and it's really due, in both cases, to watching what they eat. I think I'll get my mom and myself involved with Weight Watchers this summer, so my mom can get her girlish figure back as well. :)

[Jiggy]

I have the WORST eating habits EVER!!! I cannot say no to junk. You wouldnt believe me if I told youall that Ive eaten today....however I must have an awesome metabolism cause I stay fairly thin, right now Im about a size 29/30 and about 5'7 so not too shabby.....its my health I should worry about! Though i did quit smokin over a month ago!

[Pilot]

You know this is a problem. However, I believe it is something that can be controlled. Why? I've struggled with keeping fit for most of my life.

The solution is quite simple; a diet that for the most part follows the Canada food guide, and exercise at least a few times a week. It does work, and it does keep you in shape.

You don't necessarily have to starve yourself (which eventually will slow your metabolism so much that you can't lose anymore weight) or eat just one thing. Everything is fine in moderation.

[Nitrane]

*snap* eat nothing but minced celery for 7 years... excellent

[Bando Commando]

Ladies and gents,

I happen to be a lil overweight as well. You know what I'm doing to lose it? Here...follow my step by step instructions:

1) Put on some shoes
2) Sign off CW :eek: Yes, this will be hard for some of you
3) Go outside

I've lost a ridiculous amount of weight (I had a ridiculous amount to lose in the first place... :p ) by going outside...walking...running....playing street hockey with my buds...biking...

Dieting alone will not do. Be carful also with your diet. Atkins I COMPLETELY discourage. Carbohydrates are turned into glucose. Glucose is the primary source of energy for the brain. Without it, the brain starts to shut down, and you're screwed.

Go outside. Have some fun. Its rewarding, and you'll have a good time! :D

[Ching]

*snap* eat nothing but minced celery for 7 years... excellent
Mmm... minced...
It's like water with (some) texture!
But you still don't have to chew it!

GENIUS! :D

[Ching]

Glucose is the primary source of energy for the brain. Without it, the brain starts to shut down, and you're screwed.
But the diet fad people aren't, because then you won't be able to see through their scams... :p

[Nitrane]

Mmm... minced...
It's like water with (some) texture!
But you still don't have to chew it!

GENIUS! :D

wait, thats nothing...a new exercise just for Emily_Ching. Chase her around with buttered toast saying "Emily sandwich" ha!

[Ching]

wait, thats nothing...a new exercise just for Emily_Ching. Chase her around with buttered toast saying "Emily sandwich" ha!


aaah!! No butter on my skin!! aaaaaah!