To think being slim should be normal for most people.

[DevilishDebbie]

By slim i mean sizes 8 to 12.

Obviously you get a minority who are not in this range naturally but for 80% of people this size should be natural, say they eat a reasonable diet of between 2000-3000 calories.

Im so sick of people at work making out i am abnormally thin for being a size 10. I watch what I eat but dont deprive myself. The same people making me out to be lucky to be slim eat fried chicken or pizza for lunch and seem to be able to demolish a whole pack of biscuits at 3 o clock.

Aibu to think that the normal human man/woman should be a size 8-12 and that to attain or maintain this does not require super human discipline or strength.

Eat less
Move more
stop making excuses

Oh wow what a revelation! No one's ever said that before.

'Eat less, move more' is trotted out by slim people who are impatient of the overweight. It's true but it's also trite and unhelpful. And it misses out a key step.

Address the reason for your overeating
Eat Less
Move more

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0984481745/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_8?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&psc=1&tag=mumsnetforum-21

Thinner isn't always healthier. Fitness and nutrition also come into it. Plenty of people who wear smaller sizes live off crap food that does not nourish them.

I think you should think of the 'walk a mile in someone else's shoes before judging them' principle.

Society is set up to keep people inactive and buying too much crap food. Once you get to a certain BMI, it's statistically hugely unlikely you'll ever be slim again, certainly not permanently. Your body adapts to it and gives you hormonal signals to keep eating like that.

You're being judgmental and narrow minded.

I'm morbidly obese. I was brought up to eat a lot because my mother was a 'feeder'. I can't get out of the habit, now, and feel deprived if I eat a small amount. On top of that I suffer from delayed satiety. On top of BOTH of these things, I comfort eat when I get stressed and I get stressed easily. When I binge (oh yes, that as well) it's as though another person takes over. I think the ready availability of a huge range of delicious foods is part of the problem though. I don't know what a normal weight for most people would be, but I should be about a size 10.

There's a lot more to it than eat less, move more. I.e.

-addressing habits (psychological)
-nutrition knowledge
-basic cooking skills
-improving fitness gradually
-family & friend support

Eating is a complicated, multi-layered behaviour and even if you have all the will power in the world, you still need to be in a good place to change negative habits and overcome ingrained behaviours.

You wouldn't say an alcoholic simply hasn't got enough will power to stop drinking, or someone in debt hasn't got enough will power to stop spending - we know these are complicated issues.

Being overweight is about so much more than food and it's so upsetting to see how many people still judge and condemn anyone who is overweight for not being slim enough.

Women beating on other women has to be the ugliest form of one-upmanship.

@SabineUndine

I just wanted to say I sympathise completely. You seem really self aware of your relationship with food and that's really impressive in itself - (I was in denial for a long time) and please don't take any notice of the OP here dictating what 'normal' is and what you should or shouldn't be. Bollocks to that x

Yes and being nasty to people because they’re slim is just as bad! Which is what this thread was about...

It really is as simple as burning off more calories than you consume. However, if there’s something stopping you doing that then it’s for you to pinpoint what that is and work on it. Nobody else can do it for you.

However, the point of this thread was about ‘normalising’ being overweight and treating those who are within the standard, healthy range as the oddities. That needs to change because the more we just accept obesity as the norm the more it will continue to increase.

So many women being complicit in ruining other womens self worth.

Helena. Yes you’re right, calling someone skinny bitch etc is horrible and that kind of behaviour has been linked to people developing life threatening (and worse) eating disorders.

You wouldn't say an alcoholic simply hasn't got enough will power to stop drinking, or someone in debt hasn't got enough will power to stop spending - we know these are complicated issues.

Why not? Why should the pissheads get away with it, They have chosen to drink No one forces them to pour wine or beer down their throat.

See i can be a smuggo too.

Dorset so has calling someone names for being bigger as @PortiaCastis has already pointed out.

There has been plenty of stories about this in the press One example was a journalist calling Karen Carpenter chubby. Due to her hourglass figure

Dont be so disingenuous when you are one of the ones being complicit.

No one should be referring to anyones weight at all MN is all My body my business when it comes to abortion and im pro choice like most on here but that flies out the window when it comes to weight.

A persons body is THEIR businness and theirs alone whatever weight or shape they are.

If you cant mind your business then you must have too much time on your hands.

Helena. Smug AND rather silly if you don’t understand the difference between actual food addiction and being overweight due to making poor food choices or not bothering to walk anywhere 🙄

I had a bad hangover on Saturday. Is that because a) I’m clearly an alcoholic or b) I made a bad decision to drink too many French martinis? 🤔

Do you see how dismissive that sounds to those who actually have addictions?

Most people are over weight because of their diet and quite importantly diet when younger.
Upto early late teens/ early 20’s the number of fat cells can rise or fall. After early 20’s you are stuck with them. Yes they expand or shrink but if you were an overweight teen then you will always stuggle to lose weight and find it more difficult to keep off.
Size 16 for most people is over weight. The fact its seem as normal is not something to celebrate.

The more we just accept obesity as the norm the more it will continue to increase

Exactly this. Over the past decade obesity has become more and more prevalent. Reasons for this need to be addressed. Prevention is simple, whether it's hard or not : eat less, move more.

People can be addicted to certain foods Sugar can be as addictive as cocaine.

But its obvious to me you dont want to acknowledge that because you like having a group of people you can feel superior to.

And overweight ppl are a nice safe little prejudice you can happily hate on.

and ive got no patience for people with hangovers They chose to drink too much the night before.

i found Slipknot great music to play near someone with a hangover.

we have a massive drinking culture in the country. Brits have a bad reputation in foreign holiday resorts because of it.

Over the past decade obesity has become more and more prevalent

Obesity is prevalent in the West because of a myraid of complex reasons including a lack of nutritional education, prioritising convenience and the availability of sub-standard processed food.

NOT because we've suddenly accepted an ideology of obesity being acceptable.

It's a complex issue immersed in a cultural and societal web. You're naive to not see that.

Using clothes size as a measure of someone's weight and healthiness is (to put it bluntly) stupid, and unreliable. I have jeans in a size 8 that fit perfectly but tops in a size 12/14 that are very snug. I am by no means overweight and would be pretty pissed off if someone said i was based on a label on my clothes.

Upsy i think shops should be made to have the sizes exactly the same right across the board. It would also save time not to have to try everything on.

People commuting for longer and spending more time away from home is a feature too.

Helena. Yes of course that’s it 🙄.

Except I haven’t once said anything nasty or demeaning about those who are overweight so because you have no valid point to make you resort to trotting out the old ‘superiority/hate’ BS.

Come back when you have a point worth making that adds to the debate rather than just name calling. Makes you look silly

Harrysowl. I agree that there are factors that make being obese more likely but those are still choices in the majority of cases.

There is more nutritional information than ever easily accessible nowadays, fast food/takeaways are a choice, GP’s can make referrals to free exercise classes/support groups etc so there are clearly options available.

And btw, commuting does NOT make you fat. Probably 80% of my friends/family commute due to where we live yet none of them are overweight. You can exercise around work commitments, get off the bus a stop earlier, take the stairs instead of the escalator, brisk walk at lunchtime, take healthy food into work if you choose to.

Even being ‘away from home’ it’s far easier than ever to be healthy, most restaurants have calories specified on the menu and offer a choice of healthy options. Hotels often have gyms or pools as standard these days (or take your trainers and get outside in the evening).

It’s not impossible, if you want it.

I’m usually a size 8 but my waist is still 25 inches and I still weigh just under 8 stone at 5 foot 5. I’m not skinny. I could still lose some weight from my legs to be honest.
I have to eat less than 800 calories to maintain this.