Boris declares war on fat

[Weallhavevalidopinions]

Boris has said his being overweight contributed to his problems with Covid-19.
Stories this morning suggest he will wage war on fat...

What type of help do you think might be suggested?

Have you decided to lose weight due to Covid-19 worries?

YABU - no I will not lose weight due to Covid worries
YANBU - I will lose weight due to Covid worries

With respect specifically to Covid (although arguably some other conditions too) the people who really need to lose weight are men.

Not to belittle the efforts of women who aim to lose weight and are succeeding - well done to them.

but I think we need to see a lot more harrying of lardy men and a lot less about the "bikini body"in society if this has any rational basis

So no one else can enjoy a takeaway/fast food just because others have no self control?

They can enjoy one, they'll just have to make a bit more effort than tapping an app to obtain it.

@TileFloors well done! Re chocolate being your downfall. Have you tried slowly upping your chocolate to 85 then 90 then 99% chocolate?? It’s an acquired taste but I think you can train your tastebuds and then it actually hits the chocolate spot. I’m on 100% chocolate now and can only have 2 squares max because it’s so strong

They can enjoy one, they'll just have to make a bit more effort than tapping an app to obtain it.

Yeah. No. I agree with pp. You can't just ban something because you have no self control. I enjoy takeaway once a month and have uber eats app.

I predict significant weight gain by leftists.

Sums up large swathes of MN at the moment. I swear that if it came out that BJ had donated to a foodbank certain MNetters would say 'well I'm never doing that again!'

Good luck to those trying to lose weight. Crack on to those planning to increase your doughnut uptake. .

I’ve cut my alcohol consumption in half as it contributed many unnecessary calories. Also to give my body a break. I replaced the wine with sparkling water and a lemon slice.
It’s got to be good for me and my pocket.
I’ve also been saving (chip app) and treated myself to a multi gym. I might not lose weight but hopefully replace fat with muscle.

*Refusing licences to the dozens of cheap takeaways you now see popping up, and also to the drive-thru MacDonalds, Costas etc that sprout on empty land would be a good start.

Make apps such as 'Just Eat' illegal to remove the temptation to order fast food on a whim.

Stop all advertising of fast food.

But I somehow doubt that when it comes to it, Boris will put his new quest ahead of something he can tax*

I doubt he’d want the unemployment figures either.

@TileFloors and other chocolate lovers. I got these (image attached). I don't have particularly sweet tooth but when I get the craving the fact that I have to actually open each and single one makes me stop. I don't know why

I need to lose weight, so does DH but shielding in woefully overcrowded housing with no use of the outside space (it's eat infested and our neighbours are arseholes) leaves me so depressed I'm struggling to move off the sofa let alone do some form of exercise.
I don't have space to do a Jo Wicks every morning.
I'm eating 1 meals a day and grazing on sugar the rest of the time.

so you end up saying yes to a 50p packet of 5, gooey, jam filled donuts in Morrisons
Please stop with this shit.
Saying 'no' to your children when it's warranted is part of good parenting. There are millions upon millions of parents around the world (and throughout history) who have had to raise their children in poverty without copping out on their responsibilities.
I grew up in Britain in a poor family and it is getting rather embarrassing to read this kind of thing on a parenting forum, and to see this attitude being accepted.

Helping the UK become less fat is a great idea:

free school meals for all school children. Good quality, nutrious food

Excellent food tech lessons in schools (free)

Subsidised fruits and vegetables in supermarkets

Subsided free range farming to produce good quality/ organic meats high in protein.

Tax junk food

A healthy diet needs: enough money, good food education and emotional support.

They need to bring back mandatory and simple cooking lessons.

Funnily enough we were talking to our son about school cookery yesterday. He made a very valid point that you simply couldn't prepare and cook "proper" meals in the 90 minute lesson. The lesson was all geared around things that could be cooked quickly, such as stir-frys, shepherds pie, salads, scones, rock buns, etc. He also said the short lesson increased stress etc as they had to do all the prep etc quickly so more likelihood of making mistakes. It wasn't something we'd really thought about because when we were at school, the lessons must have been longer as I remember cooking a chicken which is something you simply couldn't have done in 90 minutes!

At least with other "tech" subjects you can spread over several lessons, i.e. the typical wooden fish, pencil case, trowel, etc can all be put away and continued next lesson.

Perhaps cookery lessons should be made to be fewer but longer, i.e. a full morning/afternoon, with a break, to allow for a more relaxed and more thorough lesson. Surely that could be possible as most schools seem to use the week A/week B timetable model these days, so you have a full half day every other week instead of a quarter day every week.

I think a lot of people perceive losing weight to mean highly restrictive and boring diets. It's intimidating. And sure, if you want to lose weight fast, they might work. But they won't lead to long-term changes because restrictive diets are difficult psychologically and people will yo-yo.

When you're dieting, you can still have takeaways, chips, wine, chocolate, cake, and so forth.

You just need to have smaller portions of them less often. Choose lighter options (i.e. chicken / vegetable pizzas with low fat cheese).

When I decided to lose weight, I upped the amount of salad and proteins I ate and reduced the amount of large carby / fatty meals. I still ate pasta and biscuits and sweets, I just had smaller portions of them. E.g I would only have pasta once every ten days or fortnight, whereas previously I could have two or three pasta meals in a week.

As I posted on another thread, weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint, and it's better to focus on making small long-term healthy changes to your diet and mindset, rather than to follow a fad diet or fast for a couple of months and then going straight back into your old habits.

Tax junk food

Most is already taxed 20% VAT, such as all takeways, chocolate, crisps, fizzy drinks, etc. Fresh fruit and veg is already a lot cheaper than ready meals.

If you increase tax on junk food, you'll just get the lefties whinging about more tax on the poor!

Boris' experience with with Covid 19 could motivate middle aged men to lose weight.
Mumsnetters not so much. Some will gain weight to show how much they hate him

I agree with pp. You can't just ban something because you have no self control.

So why is anything harmful and addictive banned or restricted?

Shall we legalise heroin because some people could exercise self-control and only have one hit a year?

Let's remove all restrictions on the sale of alcohol - some 12 year olds are capable of self-control, so why can't we trust all of them not to buy bottles of gin to swig?

It’s an uncomfortable truth for many that obesity is a huge risk factor for huge numbers of illnesses but obviously covid is so prominent and obesity is the second biggest risk factor so in the forefront of people’s minds. So many people brush off doctors advice regarding weight as it’s easy to not think about hypertension/diabetes as it can seem a long way off or unlikely to happen to them as an individual. Hopefully if anything comes out of this whole thing it’s the important of maintaining our health as much as within our control. Also encouraging daily exercise and walking/cycling to work May change some people’s lifestyles long term which would be great.

Yes definitely.

I've been overweight for about 30 years.

I'm 50, male and just in the obese category.

I'm also on medication for HBP and cholesterol.

I very recently thought I had COVID-19, and read in horror at what a risk factor I was. Fortunately on this occasion it was normal flu. Next time I might not be so lucky. I genuinely believe that if I catch COVID-19 my chances of survival are very slim.

Now really trying to lose weight..

So why is anything harmful and addictive banned or restricted?
Shall we legalise heroin because some people could exercise self-control and only have one hit a year?
Let's remove all restrictions on the sale of alcohol - some 12 year olds are capable of self-control, so why can't we trust all of them not to buy bottles of gin to swig?

Where would that end, eh? Restriction on supermarket deliveries? Only healthy food? Food is not a heroin. Nor it is alcohol. Even if it's fatty food. Such a freaking hyperbole there

@Kazzyhoward we used to have 60 minute lessons and cooked plenty of healthy options. It's far more useful to have an arsenal of faster meals rather than those that take over an hour and a half, surely? One of the reasons people cite for eating convinience food is the time is takes to prep! No reason you can't show him how to cook a chicken at home.

There's just no way to win this one on MN. Tax junk food: What, penalise the poor even further?
Cooking lessons involving lentils: Why should poor people be forced to eat disgusting, depressing food?
Putting healthier food in food bank donations: that's horrible, poor people need a treat
Publish facts about obesity: that's stigmatising and makes people eat more
Do nothing: just let them die and decrease the surplus population

Etc etc ad infinitum.....

So many people brush off doctors advice regarding weight as it’s easy to not think about hypertension/diabetes

It appears doctors are no longer giving that advice. I’m married to someone with both hypertension and diabetes, neither the GP nor the diabetes nurse have even mentioned weight loss.

So no one else can enjoy a takeaway/fast food just because others have no self control?

A would assume that deleting an the JustEat app wouldn't delete the actual takaways from the street too.

@Weallhavevalidopinions. If it gives you and anyone else the motivation to lose a bit of weight then I'll happily put up with Boris in Lycra crowing about how easy it is if you just 'eat less & move more'

Congratulations to anyone who has lost weight & maintained their loss 🌷

However, there are lots of Smuggy McSmugs & nasty comments on this thread (as always)

I posted this the other week, but will post it again

I had a virus in my 20's it affected my liver
At the time I was 7.5 st. I was very ill. At this time I had glandular fever and at the end of it had Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver. At that time the connection of that to Diabetes & other things wasn't (widely) known. I put on weight despite still being very active & eating the same/healthily. I haven't been 'right' since.

So basically, now I'm...

51 years old
BMI over 40
Diabetic (T2)
High blood pressure.
Fucked knees

I don't take any medication

I control my diabetes with a low carb diet (extremely low) & it's in the 'normal' range

I'm Vegetarian, I eat very low carb (basically only carbs from vegetables & tofu/soy (both another debate)

I don't drink a lot of alcohol
I have a couple of coffees a day
I drink lots of water
(Nothing else)

I do intermittent fasting
I do a mix of OMAD & 16:8

Before lock down I was walkIng 5 miles a day, going to the gym (leg/arm machines & free weights)

In the 8 weeks of lockdown the only non low carb/healthy things I have had are, 1 small hollow Easter egg & one cheese scone on VE Day & that's it.

I am the exact same weight as when lock down started

So I'm a bit puzzled as to what other 'responsibility for my weight & health' people would like me to take??! Or exactly what else I can do (due to fucked knees I am somewhat limited in what type of exercises I can do)

I'm always happy when someone says I've given up sugar/chocolate/fuzzy drinks (whatever) & the weight is falling off me or I've started walking to work & I've lost x pounds.

I'm happy for them, but it is hard when
I do SO much and lose nothing, nada, zip

But the scorn is hard, the disbelief & the accusations of 'choosing to be obese & not dealing with it' really is hard to take

Even when People say x happened & it made me realise I needed to do something about it, so I did and everyone else should do the same.

Not all if us who are obese sit around on our arses all day eating crap 😢

Ignore the superfluous "an"