6 replies to this topic

[Ives]

What do you think of America right now in its overweight status? Should we toss it out? Are people too lazy? What?

My opinion:

Most people, men in paticular, seem to have an endo-meso build. Whats this? It means they tend to carry on too much weight, especially with a sedentary lifestyle, but do have the capability to be in good shape. However, without reading a lot and understanding the fundamentals of nutrition, most of these people will think its impossible to be lean. It's harder, but not impossible.

I believe it would be suit if more money was spent on educating people regarding nutrition in paticular. Excersizes are very basic, and well understood, but nutrition is over 50% of the equation, but the most people usually elaborate on it is "eat your vegetables, fruits, and avoid junk food." This seems not to work, so if we're going to have public schools (which I'm against, but thats another ballpark), then rather than spend all this money teaching sexual abstinence and other stupid subjects, I think nutrition in itself should be a required study.

1) "Government shouldn't hold kids hands"
2) "Give Up! McDonalds and other corporations have brainwashed them!"
3) "Health class teaches this, I thought?"

In brief response:

1) Are we expecting them to be able to read a nutrition chart and expect them to know everything? The education system really hasn't helped give their share of the deal by teaching kids what eating well is, what fat is, and everything. People know from what they think they know, that fats are bad, and that calories are bad. Crap like that needs to be corrected, not furthered.
2) It's better to try than assume their minds have been wrapped around Ronald McDonalds finger. The film Supersize Me seems to generate a bad vibe in one scene, but thats not true for everything. He probably went around and filmed at a bunch of classrooms, and found the one with the best response to suit his political agenda.
3) Health class teaches (from what I remember) mostly about the "Dangers posed to youth." The class is only a semester long, and it only goes briefly into nutrition.

[Quadra]

Though an important tool, I don’t think nutritional education is the only key to ending the American obesity crisis. It is important to address the sedentary lifestyle that has become a part of North American culture. These days there is little need to actually get up and engage in physical activity. In past physical activity was an unavoidable component of life. Movement used to be needed to accomplish most tasks and now it has become an unnecessary chore. In order to find a solution to obesity, people must be given a tangible motivation to lose weight that will not negatively impact on their deskbound culture.

[Ives]

There is no negative to getting into shape. Thats the one thing which needs to be emphasized. Not being in shape can cause stress, not seeing straight. It's psychological AND physical.

And a sedentary lifestyle; if people are going to insist they dont have the time, they might as well get the proper nutrition. Nutrition is 80 percent of it.

[Jewbert]

Oh wow. I am HUGELY against obesity. I HATE fast food, I never eat the stuff. And I think it should all be rid of. People just really don't care anymore. In my town, in Mississippi...like the fattest state... there are SO many fat people. Most are just overweight, but many are nastily obese and mostly found at the buffets. Totally disgusting.

[Tetiel]

Personally I'm borderline overweight and I'm really trying to lose it but living in a dorm environment where there practically is no healthy food in the cafeteria... and I have no kitchen... I really don't have any choice but to eat fast food I even barely eat anything and I don't lose jack shit. I know I need to excersize more but it's really hard to get the motivation to do so as the building is on the other side of campus (and being for an extremely small student population our campus is one of the biggest I've seen). *sigh* I know I gotta force myself though. But I don't know what's wrong. For over a month I eat nothing but dinner because I literally can't because even then half the time I get sick and throw up eventually... yet I don't appear to lose weight at all. I mean for goodness sakes, when I DO eat at the cafeteria most of my meals are half vegetables and hardly any meat. If people looked at my diet even and didn't know me and why it happens they'd say I were anorexic, but... for some reason I can't lose weight. I don't get it. Maybe the cafeteria food is literally that bad for you.

Maybe it's just me though. I don't know.

[Zeeky]

I just don't see how someone could even get fat, sure I'm only 15, but there are tons of fat kids my age. If you just live a slightly active life style and eat normal meals, fast food or not, you should not be fat. I'm underweight, and all my meals the past 4 days have been fast food, haha. It just disgusts me seeing how many people; children, teenagers, and adults, are obese. I don't know how people can just get like that, if you're born into a fat family, you aren't automatically fat, don't overeat god damnit. I don't know what more people want, a healthy eating course right next to the agenda with sex-ed, honestly, its pathetic.

[Ives]

Thats where genetics come in. Tons of bodytypes, but here are the main ones.

Ectomorph - Hard gainer, usually capable of high endurance. Doesn't gain muscle or fat easily, and if they do, they can lose both easily. Example: Lance Armstrong
Ecto-Mesomorph - Has the bonestructure of an ectomorph. Can gain muscle easier, but can lose it as easy as they lose fat. Example: Fitness model
Meso-Ectomorph - Has the bone structure of an mesomorph, but still finds it difficult to gain muscle compared to the non-ecto classes. EX: Flex Wheeler
Mesomorph - Someone like Arnold Schwarzenegger. Has the tendency to gain and lose weight fairly easily. Gains muscle easily, and tends towards being lean
Meso-Endomorph - Football Linebacker, someone like Lou Ferigno. Can gain fat easier than mesomorphs, but also has the tendency to gain muscle easier than mesomorphs, so it can balance itself out. To be say, ripped, would be harder, but if they do get ripped theyre top of the line bodybuilders and powerlifters.
Endo-Mesomorph - Predominatly endomorph. Softer and flabbier. Gain fat significantly easier than they do gain muscle. Still, they can be powerlifters and football linebackers.
Endomorph - Gains muscle easier than say, an ectomorph, but it is still difficult. Flabby, soft, and stores a lot of fat.