Skinny is the new moral/hard working and all other kind of superiority?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My experience in life is that thin women very rarely think they are more moral or virtuous than other people. I'm a thin person and while I exercise and try to eat a nutritious diet, I know that my thinness is largely the result of luck and genetics. I've never assumed I was better than anyone because of my weight. I have fat people in my immediate family and I've seen firsthand how terribly they can be treated and how little people understand about fatness and weight loss. I've also seen how self-punishing they can be because of their weight and I never, ever want to add to anyone's negative self image.

But after years of being around women a lot, and thus hearing lots of women talk about bodies and weight loss, my observation is that the women who are most invested in the "thin=moral superiority" myth are people who are not naturally thin but who are close enough to thinness the they can achieve it through dieting, exercise (sometimes excessive amounts of both, sometimes not). I think this group drives the entire attitude because they are the one group who can say thinness is something you can achieve through hard work. Naturally thin people don't think this (we are thin regardless). And people who are actually fat usually understand that there are limits to how thin they will ever be, even with extreme interventions.

But women who are naturally a size 6 or 8, but can diet and exercise down to a 0 or 2, tend to be the most complimentary of my body, like it's an achievement (it's not). They also tend to be the most irritated when they discover that I don't have to diet to maintain a size 0. And they also tend to have the harshest things to say about people who are heavier than they are. Or they tend to say nasty or critical things about other women's bodies, commenting on someone's postpartum belly or the cellulite on someone's legs, stuff that it would never occur to me to point out because it seems cruel and tacky.

If anything comes from the body acceptance movement, I hope it's for women in this category (healthy weights but not necessari

THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I live in NYC and this is so true

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As usual thin judgy pps posting and bragging about themselves and ripping others apart

Formerly overweight people are the worst about it... right up until they join 90%+ of successful losers in gaining back significantly.

I think you are the same poster that posts this every time this discussion comes up.

While it may be statistically true it demonstrates exactly what a lot have been talking about in here. A complete lack of mental discipline if that’s going to be your attitude. Go ahead and die prematurely if you think making healthy life choices is impossible and unsustainable. Have at it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As usual thin judgy pps posting and bragging about themselves and ripping others apart

Formerly overweight people are the worst about it... right up until they join 90%+ of successful losers in gaining back significantly.

I think you are the same poster that posts this every time this discussion comes up.

While it may be statistically true it demonstrates exactly what a lot have been talking about in here. A complete lack of mental discipline if that’s going to be your attitude. Go ahead and die prematurely if you think making healthy life choices is impossible and unsustainable. Have at it.

Lol so you acknowledge that the vast majority of dieters regain the weight “statistically” and your response is to tell them to go ahead and die. They deserve what they get.

What a lovely encapsulation of the question OP asked!

[Anonymous]

I was on vacation in very rural West Virginia and saw many, many morbidly obese people. Much more so than in DC where I live. Some of them were in wheelchairs because they were so fat they could not walk. What’s worse is their kids were fat as well and I saw them shopping in the snack food aisle of
of the grocery store.

These same people also stared, followed me, and leered at me because I am a person of color and it was like they had never seen one before. They did not look askance at my companions because they are white. It wasn’t just one or two. As my white friend said, about 40% of the store was looking at you weirdly.

The store itself was very poorly stocked with produce but had multiple aisles of alcohol, soda, chips, and processed food. I still managed to buy a lot of fruits and other ingredients to make a homemade peach salsa, salad, tacos, and fruit for dessert.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was on vacation in very rural West Virginia and saw many, many morbidly obese people. Much more so than in DC where I live. Some of them were in wheelchairs because they were so fat they could not walk. What’s worse is their kids were fat as well and I saw them shopping in the snack food aisle of
of the grocery store.

These same people also stared, followed me, and leered at me because I am a person of color and it was like they had never seen one before. They did not look askance at my companions because they are white. It wasn’t just one or two. As my white friend said, about 40% of the store was looking at you weirdly.

The store itself was very poorly stocked with produce but had multiple aisles of alcohol, soda, chips, and processed food. I still managed to buy a lot of fruits and other ingredients to make a homemade peach salsa, salad, tacos, and fruit for dessert.

How would they know to leer at you if they saw one like you before?!
Plus it is possible to be a victim of discrimination and at the same time to be discriminating against those that discriminate against you, based on their appearance! Pot meet kettle and the exact person OP is talking about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was on vacation in very rural West Virginia and saw many, many morbidly obese people. Much more so than in DC where I live. Some of them were in wheelchairs because they were so fat they could not walk. What’s worse is their kids were fat as well and I saw them shopping in the snack food aisle of
of the grocery store.

These same people also stared, followed me, and leered at me because I am a person of color and it was like they had never seen one before. They did not look askance at my companions because they are white. It wasn’t just one or two. As my white friend said, about 40% of the store was looking at you weirdly.

The store itself was very poorly stocked with produce but had multiple aisles of alcohol, soda, chips, and processed food. I still managed to buy a lot of fruits and other ingredients to make a homemade peach salsa, salad, tacos, and fruit for dessert.

Do you think the store was stocked with so much crap because the man wants these people to be obese? Or maybe because that’s the kind of stuff people there want to purchase?

[Anonymous]

Didn't read the rest of this almost certainly hateful thread, but of course OP is right. There are people who really like being stooges of.tbe food industry and being cruel to their fellow humans. Shrug. I think they are miserably unhappy humans who defend junk food manufacturers more than they defend anything else in their lives, including their own kids, but at this point, I think this is a lost generation and I cannot waste mental energy on it. The reckoning with agribusiness will have to wait for another generation to die.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Didn't read the rest of this almost certainly hateful thread, but of course OP is right. There are people who really like being stooges of.tbe food industry and being cruel to their fellow humans. Shrug. I think they are miserably unhappy humans who defend junk food manufacturers more than they defend anything else in their lives, including their own kids, but at this point, I think this is a lost generation and I cannot waste mental energy on it. The reckoning with agribusiness will have to wait for another generation to die.

Well said and very wise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t believe in shaming anyone. But it’s a destructive myth that it’s somehow expensive to be thin. Eating half a sandwich is cheaper than eating a whole sandwich. Eating less will make you lose weight, whether you’re eating Cheetos or kale.

+1. DH and I used to split entrees or take away all the time. Saved money and kept us from overeating. Portion sizes are out of control here.

The occasional meal out doesn't cause obesity, regardless of whether you split it. The cheapest way to eat in this country is fast food - it's cheaper than groceries. If you have $5 for a meal you are not in splitting entrees territory. If you are working shifts or a delivery job, you are not eating at a place where that's an option nor do you have refrigeration to keep the rest of your meal.

There are plenty of overweight people on DCUM who have more money than that, but it is not a "destructive myth" that it's expensive to be thin. It's a well studied fact that impoverished people are overweight because of the food options available to them.

Not true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on vacation in very rural West Virginia and saw many, many morbidly obese people. Much more so than in DC where I live. Some of them were in wheelchairs because they were so fat they could not walk. What’s worse is their kids were fat as well and I saw them shopping in the snack food aisle of
of the grocery store.

These same people also stared, followed me, and leered at me because I am a person of color and it was like they had never seen one before. They did not look askance at my companions because they are white. It wasn’t just one or two. As my white friend said, about 40% of the store was looking at you weirdly.

The store itself was very poorly stocked with produce but had multiple aisles of alcohol, soda, chips, and processed food. I still managed to buy a lot of fruits and other ingredients to make a homemade peach salsa, salad, tacos, and fruit for dessert.

How would they know to leer at you if they saw one like you before?!
Plus it is possible to be a victim of discrimination and at the same time to be discriminating against those that discriminate against you, based on their appearance! Pot meet kettle and the exact person OP is talking about.

So true, though I am sorry that you were discriminated against, PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t believe in shaming anyone. But it’s a destructive myth that it’s somehow expensive to be thin. Eating half a sandwich is cheaper than eating a whole sandwich. Eating less will make you lose weight, whether you’re eating Cheetos or kale.

+1. DH and I used to split entrees or take away all the time. Saved money and kept us from overeating. Portion sizes are out of control here.

The occasional meal out doesn't cause obesity, regardless of whether you split it. The cheapest way to eat in this country is fast food - it's cheaper than groceries. If you have $5 for a meal you are not in splitting entrees territory. If you are working shifts or a delivery job, you are not eating at a place where that's an option nor do you have refrigeration to keep the rest of your meal.

There are plenty of overweight people on DCUM who have more money than that, but it is not a "destructive myth" that it's expensive to be thin. It's a well studied fact that impoverished people are overweight because of the food options available to them.

Not true.

+1 You can buy more nutritious groceries that are just as cheap or cheaper.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on vacation in very rural West Virginia and saw many, many morbidly obese people. Much more so than in DC where I live. Some of them were in wheelchairs because they were so fat they could not walk. What’s worse is their kids were fat as well and I saw them shopping in the snack food aisle of
of the grocery store.

These same people also stared, followed me, and leered at me because I am a person of color and it was like they had never seen one before. They did not look askance at my companions because they are white. It wasn’t just one or two. As my white friend said, about 40% of the store was looking at you weirdly.

The store itself was very poorly stocked with produce but had multiple aisles of alcohol, soda, chips, and processed food. I still managed to buy a lot of fruits and other ingredients to make a homemade peach salsa, salad, tacos, and fruit for dessert.

Do you think the store was stocked with so much crap because the man wants these people to be obese? Or maybe because that’s the kind of stuff people there want to purchase?

Generational poverty, and all that goes with it, is a very tough cycle to break.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Didn't read the rest of this almost certainly hateful thread, but of course OP is right. There are people who really like being stooges of.tbe food industry and being cruel to their fellow humans. Shrug. I think they are miserably unhappy humans who defend junk food manufacturers more than they defend anything else in their lives, including their own kids, but at this point, I think this is a lost generation and I cannot waste mental energy on it. The reckoning with agribusiness will have to wait for another generation to die.

Lol. It’s always someone else’s fault.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on vacation in very rural West Virginia and saw many, many morbidly obese people. Much more so than in DC where I live. Some of them were in wheelchairs because they were so fat they could not walk. What’s worse is their kids were fat as well and I saw them shopping in the snack food aisle of
of the grocery store.

These same people also stared, followed me, and leered at me because I am a person of color and it was like they had never seen one before. They did not look askance at my companions because they are white. It wasn’t just one or two. As my white friend said, about 40% of the store was looking at you weirdly.

The store itself was very poorly stocked with produce but had multiple aisles of alcohol, soda, chips, and processed food. I still managed to buy a lot of fruits and other ingredients to make a homemade peach salsa, salad, tacos, and fruit for dessert.

Do you think the store was stocked with so much crap because the man wants these people to be obese? Or maybe because that’s the kind of stuff people there want to purchase?

Generational poverty, and all that goes with it, is a very tough cycle to break.

So you’re saying it’s because this is the type of food the people on this particular area want to buy. Got it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As usual thin judgy pps posting and bragging about themselves and ripping others apart

Formerly overweight people are the worst about it... right up until they join 90%+ of successful losers in gaining back significantly.

I think you are the same poster that posts this every time this discussion comes up.

While it may be statistically true it demonstrates exactly what a lot have been talking about in here. A complete lack of mental discipline if that’s going to be your attitude. Go ahead and die prematurely if you think making healthy life choices is impossible and unsustainable. Have at it.

Lol so you acknowledge that the vast majority of dieters regain the weight “statistically” and your response is to tell them to go ahead and die. They deserve what they get.

What a lovely encapsulation of the question OP asked!

You answered your own question by your response. The "trick" to all this is not "dieting." You have to completely reformulate your lifestyle. It isn't easy, but it isn't impossible.

My response is that immediately giving up and saying "whelp, they are going to gain the weight back anyway" isn't exactly a positive attitude. By that logic, might as well give up and just face the health consequences. Its impossible of course. Or, you can do something about it yourself, without blaming everybody else and the food system. Taco Bell doesn't get up in the middle of the night and sneak into your mouth with a gallon of Baja Fresh Mountain Dew.