14 posts
My Son wanted to go to the local "American Diner" the other day.....so we went. Big mistake, way too much food. The burger alone was 1/2 pound !!!! I left most of it, far too much for my poor old gut ! Good fun none the less.
Precisely why many of us Yanks are fatties. I would not touch that plate, too many carbs, and I don't east wheat or beef.
However I would have banged Marylin (The pict behind you) if I could have got my hands on her back in the 50's/60's
One flaw in the pic...a true American wouldn't need a knife and fork to eat anything on that plate! ;)
DBM is right sadly though, that right there is a big reason nearly 50% of us Yanks are overweight. :(
"Only" a half-pound? :D
Kabala — Oct 23, 2013
...that right there is a big reason nearly 50% of us Yanks are overweight. :(
50%? Not even close! According to the CDC, almost
70% are overweight with about 36% being classified as obese! (Many appear to live up here in and around Portland too. ;))
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/overwt.htm
Well, it has been a long while since I read that article! Obviously it's getting worse not better.
currently, I'm in decent shape... I workout everyday... by observation (I haven't measured it), I have a reasonably low body fat percentage... but I am about 3 pounds into the "overweight" zone as measured by BMI.
that 69% includes everyone who is fit and has some muscle mass. I suspect kab is likely closer to the correct number... still a big number!
Nice job working out every day, sheep, like it when I hear people say that, especially Americans. I used to hate it when I'd hear people from around the globe label us as all 'fat Americans', but then ya know what, the truth of the matter is we do have a problem. At least we're trying to straighten it up.
I recall reading that article maybe three years ago, where they mentioned that at our (US) current pace, in less than 15 years we'd be crossing the 50% line/threshold in which we would then be (officially ;)) more overweight than not.
right on.
I just don't like BMI at the "normal" breakpoints - 18 for me would be close to emaciated... 25 or 26, not bad... but as it gets to the 30's and up, it's pretty hard to argue that you're close to a reasonable weight unless you're a pro athlete or something.
I work out regularly and play the occasional sport. I have never ever ever watched what i eat. I have always worked in a professional job and one part of that was normally going to "nicer" places for lunch. Huge lunches were the norm.
In the last two years though, I have really started trying to watch what I eat. Less fried stuff, less all you can eat buffets, more salads for lunch, less of the places like this with huge burgers and piles of fries,etc.
I will be 53 in a couple weeks, am 6'3" and weigh right around 185. Please hold your jokes til the end of the program. I have always been slender/athletic in build. I weighed 165 when I graduated high school. I was in phenomenal shape then! Routinely played basketball 3-4 hours per day. My freshman year in college, my summer job was pushing a mower all day at a state park, then I would go olay basketball 3-4 hours at night. So yeah, I was "thinner." An example, my varsity jacket is too tight in the shoulders, but not at all too small in the belly or waist area. My jeans were 31" waist at 18 and are 33" now. I looked at one of these things a year ago and it said i was over my preferred weight! What the??? The funniest thing is, i was down to the mid 170s last year, but every time I up my workout level, i GAIN a pound or two. Its muscle! But this thing says I am overweight???
I go to the Y. I play softball with all younger guys. I play basketball with college basketball players. Not guys who are in college, guys who play college basketball. I am NOT overweight. I really have to wonder what these things use as basis for their guidelines...
The way I like to think of it (and often have to remind friends that get on the weight loss kick and sometimes get discouraged), you don't necessarily have to like what you see when you look in the mirror (poundage wise ;)), just as long as you're eating right and exercising, then for the most part you are benefitting from the effort. Charts, scales, mirrors, waist lines/pants sizes, etc, don't fully tell the tale, meaning they don't show your blood pressure, lungs, heart, etc, which are all benefitting from proper nutrition and exercise. "Looking" tone and fit is just the nice bonus - feeling it from the understanding you're putting in the work is the goal!
Hmm... Sorry about that, I didn't notice they were using BMI. Ever since my knees, back and rotator cuff all decided to have issues at the same time, I haven't done any real sports or serious exercise (10+ years now). I'm 6'4" and have been as heavy as 255 lbs. recently (about 240 lbs. now) - however, when I was playing two-man beach volleyball (at a AA level - AAA is pro) I was still in the 215-225 lbs. range and nowhere's near fat. Testing with my dietician and trainer had me at 8% body fat - as low as they would let me go for someone in their late 30's - and always in the top 5 percentile on the fitness tests. The BMI would have considered me overweight. I think body fat percentage is a far more accurate measurement.
My biggest problem was going from 5,800 calories a day diet while playing volleyball, softball and tennis to suddenly not playing any sports but still with the same appetite. My six-pack abs turned into a pony-keg... :(
Lol, pony keg....made me smile that did ;D
