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

I have spent decades reading up about the body and weight gain. Blood sugar, insulin response, metabolism etc

I first gained weight age 13 when I grew past my mum and aunties who told me I was fat. I was a size 10 to 12 until I started gaining and was a size 16 at age 13 due to comfort eating.

It really affected me and lead to an eating disorder. That I no longer have preferring to be fat than to have bulimia. (Well hit rock bottom in late teens and early twenties after multiple feelings, stomach pains, bad it's and really in ill health due to bulimia.) Hg and vomiting 50 times a day literally also cured me of bulimia never wanting to vomit ever again. Laxative use was painful and also stopped.

However my auntie projectied onto me how they felt about weight and their insecurities and we're naturally size 6 and size 8. One had two kids and was now a size 10 and always going on about it. My mum would show me her size 6 trousers and lament not being able to wear them.
Also tell me that a size 10 now was a old size 14 etc. They also did not have the large boobs I got naturally, my first bra was a c cup. Like my 10 year old daughter. Big boobs make you look bigger.

They didn't consider that we are all different and I was not meant to be small and petite like them. The other side of my family were all much taller with curves and I fell into the middle 5 foot 6 and not under 5 foot 2 like them or 5 8 or 5 9 like the other side. Most of that side are under 5 foot.

This period of life affected my metabolism and it has never recovered. I eat much healthier now and I cook from scratch sometimes and I exercise when motivated and able.

However my family like the fat shamers on this thread are so sanctimonious and they act like they are doing a fat person a favour.

Believe being left alone to live a good life is doing a fat person a favour and they will get healthy when they are ready and able to.

Online yoga

Online Zumba

Dance around your kitchen

Do burpees in the living room and plank and press ups and sit ups or whatever

Do joe wickes

Just do it (sorry no Nike placement intended)

fromdownwest

Done that. No surprise.

Six stone weight loss in three weeks, ah, best joke I’ve heard all day

I could sit on the loo and wee for 10 minutes straight. I think it was all water weight

Fillings not feelings

I’m sorry that happened to you.

I came from a family who did not shame me about my appearance or weight, unlike many girls. I’ve long said that it is shameful how society fetishises women’s bodies and how internalised misogyny leads young girls into eating disorders as you describe. Your female relatives were abusive. That also needs to change because there are many many healthy body shapes and all should be celebrated in our youngsters.

The nation's dependence on alcohol, junk food and the motor car is a long term problem.

@oliversmumsarmy

Well, you should send your works to the Science Council as you have just re written the first law of thermodynamics.

You didn’t urinate 38 litres of water. Your bladder also cannot hold enough urine to allow you to urinate for ten minutes, even with a low flow as your bladder can only hold 400-600ml of liquid.

Sorry that was to flirty.

If the only way to not be fat is to have access to personal trainers and private chefs then we're fucked aren't we.

I hate cooking, I mostly have a fresh pot of soup from the supermarket for my tea each night. It's absolutely a 'ready meal' and it costs 1.50.

I am a gym member but in lockdown I've upped my steps by jogging in the flat and going for a daily walk. These are free.

Of course there will be outliers who need very specific support to lose weight. But for most, it's eating less and if possible moving more.

I think to reduce obesity on a government level will be very difficult. A start would be access to cheper exercise & sports clubs for ALL children, some types of exercise should be subsidised to make it cheaper / accessible for all. There needs to be a good and safe cycle network for everyone to use. Cheaper (or none at all) parking at seaside and country parks. It's £4.50 for parking at our local park... some families will think twice....
If we can change the mindset of people in regards to a healthy lifestyle, we can combat obesity.

Re medications, ie like Mirtazapine which gives the most awful cravings for food. And works on your brain like loads of medications of that type, try fighting against that.

My size 6 niece went to a size 12 in weeks.

I put on 2 stone in 4 weeks and then stopped taking it after reading up about it and was so angry with my doctor as they knew I had a lifetime of weight gain and issues and Mirtazapine is widely written about and researched, yet they prescribed it to for me for sleeping.

In a period where I had successfully lost 3 stone in weight by healthy eating and exercise. I faithfully did 30.kin agreed daily. I was feeling great about my body but I just could not sleep.

There are so many better things for sleeping that they could have prescribed. I've since read up about better meds.

Anyway that's just one example of medication, I've also been on high doses of steroids, which led to weight gain.

So not sure why people keep saying meds do not cause weight gain.

Thank you fascinated.

@IncrediblySadToo, thank you for sharing your post and showing there is no one size fits all solution on weight management. Your situation sounds particularly tough.

On a general note I wrote above not everyone who is overweight got there through gorging on takeaways, cake and chocolate. However, I realise even this makes assumptions and those who massively overeat will often have emotional issues behind the overeating.

I liked Lockedheart’s latest post that rightly points out fat shaming is not right but there is nothing wrong in having honest conversations about weight and ways to help with weight management.

Finally, I have seen the odd poster on here saying they hate how being fat has become normalised. I am now overweight after being slim for many years. I do not feel being fat is considered ok by much of society. I do feel when you are overweight many - not all - make value judgments on your size. We also live in a society that very much values toned, fit bodies. Eating a well balanced diet and regular exercise if you are able is important, but I don’t think fat shaming is helpful to anyone.

( I had a tin of sardines with salad last night - delicious actually)

Dh is on mirtazapine and it is a bastard of a med but mil takes it with no appetite increase at all.

He’s also on beta blockers that slow his metabolism but he keeps on trying because he’s shielded and I don’t fancy his chances of surviving a bout of covid 19.

Food is not as addictive as heroin.

Not on its own, but the problem with food is that you can't go cold turkey on it if you are addicted. You obviously have to eat something and if you are addicted to food, that's like asking an alcoholic to have half a lager per day or a drug addict to only shoot up once a month. It's easier to give things up if you can go cold turkey because once you have got over the initial craving period (which I agree may be far worse than hunger) you never have to touch the stuff again.

I do think we could do more to stop putting temptation in people's way by making food that is very high in fat and sugar, but has minimal nutritional value, more difficult to access. It seems wrong that other harmful things are formally disincentivised by taxes, restrictions or an outright ban, but 'harmful' food is available, pre-cooked, literally at the touch of a button.

I think Boris needs to address the issue of people working, maintaining a house, having to stand in queues for ages, staying financially secure during a depression and having to homeschool on top of all this first. Then I might have time to fucking exercise.

We also live in a society that very much values toned, fit bodies

I wonder if this is some primal thing.

Oliversmumsarmy Yep sorry no idea about the diet for a vegan. There must be some fat vegans who can point out where you are going wrong but my vegan friends are all very much on the thin side.
I have questions though?
How did you lose it before, why don’t you cook and what real food do you like?

I think there’s a lot of mixing of diet ideas that goes on hence people saying “ low carb is rubbish” or “eat less and move more, it’s that easy“ or “you’re not eating enough”.

Cutting carbs helps massively by a)stopping you craving food b) not setting of your insulin so you store calories consumed and c) just cuts out a ton of calories.

Yes you need to eat less. However eating more vegetables is key because they are a) essential for nutrients, b) fill you up so you don‘t feel hungry and c) are generally lower calories than other food groups.

Find a diet where you don’t need to think about food helps too. Constantly buying food, planning meals and cooking means food takes over your life.

@Xenia what is your problem.

Why do you think it's ok to talk about people like that?

Do you realise how horrific it is to say what you say?

We also live in a society that very much values toned, fit bodies

Which society is this? England?

Just ignore Xenia. They've been posting inflammatory shite on the boards for years.

I just said if you get too fat you can get sick and die. If doctors are not saying that to people that's a great pity. Sadly this awful covid 19 thing is not trying to spare people's feelings. I just feel it's a good time as a nation to realise diabetes and obesity is destroying the NHS and damaging so many people that we need a see change for the new normal when we come out of this.

I am not speaking as some skinny person. I am just over healthy weight and would like to lose a stone. It's not easy to eat less.

Being overweight makes you at risk of early death already. Are people that irrationally afraid of coronavirus that this will make them get healthy when cancer, heart disease and dementia didn't?

I thought this too. But if coronavirus is what gives everybody's head a wobble and sets them on their weight loss journey to a healthier future, then hooray for coronavirus!

If we could eliminate obesity (and with it, virtually eliminate type 2 diabetes and other diseases with which obesity is strongly linked) not only would it save the NHS billions of pounds but we would have a healthier, happier and more productive population.