Anorexia

[keiko]

sometimes it's not a lazy person you see in the store that you can't get past. it's me. i have a problem with eating. i forget to eat and i get sick. i happen to be fat. not from eating to much my 5 year old eats more than i do. my body remembers when i was 85 or 90 pounds and did'nt eat. i store fat and have'nt been able to keep it off. i'm one big girl with an eating disorder. it sucks that you assume all fat people eat to much. also fat people who overeat know they do. but sometimes food helps fill a void. it dose'nt make it right it just is. food is not my friend. all it does is make me feel like a pig.

I was pointing out the people I have to squeeze past who are toting two carts full of ice cream and twinkies. Not people with actual eating disorders. The people who are just flat out lazy. People who go on about how Big is Beautiful but complain about back and chest pains. the people who you stand behind at a fast food resturaunt and order four double cheese burgers three apple pies and a diet coke then sit down and eat it all themselves. People that refuse to belive that they're unhealthy even though they tip the scales at over 300 lbs. People who have to buy shoes in double wide because the excess weight they're carrying around made their feet spread. Carrying alittle extra weight is one thing, carrying three other people worth of extra weight is entirely another matter. The people who look up from their fourth ice cream sundae and tell you they have a "gland problem" are the people that need to be sat down with a doctor and some friends who care about them and tell them "look, you have a problem and it's not glandular". Those are the people who make me want to scream. Then there are the depressed fat people. People that say that eat the way they do because they're depressed about being fat. If you want to change, you have to try. People that don't try are numbering more and more and it's just a vicious cycle. As some one who grew up fat and has a fat family I know it's hard to do something different. But i did because I didn't like what I was. I nthe process I became a licensed Personal Trainer and Nutritionist. I stopped having to wear a heart monitor and was told that I could escape the family curse of Diabetes if I stayed healthy. My mom just got out of back surgery beacuse of the damage done to her bone structere from being over weight. 8 months later she dropped three dress sizes and can sit upright. She's still over weight but she's better than she was, because some one cared enough to sit her down and tell her she had a problem, and it wasn't an organ or a gland but the choices she had made after having her second child. That's where my frustration comes from. Not every one has a legitmate reason for a weight problem, but it's become taboo to tell some one "look I think maybe you should have something other than an entire cheesecake for dinner". "Fat" has become a dirty word. I don't think you should make fun of people who are fat, anymore than you should make fun of people who have problems gaining weight. If you really don't like the way you are Bella, try talking to a doctor, or a dietician or a nutritionalist and see what can be done to make you feel better about yourself. I didn't mean to offend. I wasn't trying to say ALL fat people are lazy or anything like that, I was expressing the way I felt about a particular group of people who blame their choices and problems on something that doesn't actually apply to them. I'm sorry if in the process I offended.
k

[Belladonna]

thank you for that k. i just can'nt get past the people that assume i'm lazy. i have too many kids to be lazy. but maybe it's time i get help.

[skully]

personally i hold know merit to the bmi calculating your hight to weight ratio is not much of an indicator involving what is really important (in this discussion anyway) body fat composition.

there are way to many girls (and a few guys) who look totally thin but have cholesterol and fat levels that make them worse off then people who exceed the nations overweight bmi levels of 28 for men and 32 for women(umm don't quote me on those they may be off +/-3)

(for those of you that don't know) how messed up the bmi (body mass index) is they showed an article about it in muscle and fitness a couple years back when they increased the definition of overweight and obese overweight was something like 32+ and got lowerd to something around 28 the problem is if someone has a low fat composition (there example was evander holyfield who has one of the most rock hard bodies imaginable) then there weight and height give them an index of 30+ classifing them as being medically overweight possibly obese which was totally rediculous b/c there body fat was on the low side but still safe and there nutrition was just shy of perfection... and everything else was perfect.

as for the whole attraction to thin people thing...
personally i prefer a little more curviness over thin but there is definately a fine line between curvy and disgusting... and the more i have worked to take better care of myself the more i require that in a partner...i don't need perfection but you can't let yourself go either... being health and weight concious is important.

[Nautilus]

I was pointing out the people I have to squeeze past who are toting two carts full of ice cream and twinkies. Not people with actual eating disorders...etc (don't want to take up too much space)

Hey great story K--thanks.
Be careful though Belladonna some nutritionists are quacks. When I was too thin I saw two and they gave me all sorts of bullshit about how I'm supposed to eat 2000 calories a day and like a zillion servings of grains. I only got up to 1300 calories a day, just couldn't do more than that, and gained too much weight really fast. I have a very slow metabolism along with a slow heart rate and very low blood pressure (85/50), it runs in my family. Some nutritionists seem to think everyone's the same. (maybe you should employ Keiko's advice
)
-Nate

[Nautilus]

personally i hold know merit to the bmi calculating your hight to weight ratio is not much of an indicator involving what is really important (in this discussion anyway) body fat composition.

there are way to many girls (and a few guys) who look totally thin but have cholesterol and fat levels that make them worse off then people who exceed the nations overweight bmi levels of 28 for men and 32 for women(umm don't quote me on those they may be off +/-3)

(for those of you that don't know) how messed up the bmi (body mass index) is they showed an article about it in muscle and fitness a couple years back when they increased the definition of overweight and obese overweight was something like 32+ and got lowerd to something around 28 the problem is if someone has a low fat composition (there example was evander holyfield who has one of the most rock hard bodies imaginable) then there weight and height give them an index of 30+ classifing them as being medically overweight possibly obese which was totally rediculous b/c there body fat was on the low side but still safe and there nutrition was just shy of perfection... and everything else was perfect.

That's true the BMI is just a quick little test to see if you should maybe talk to a doctor or not. Being overly muscled is not a good idea either, it can lead to all sorts of joint problems and circulation problems. but everyone is different. The BMI seems to generally work for a lot of people, but if you know you're healthy then who cares what the test says.

[TheDeathKnight]

It's an interesting phenomenon, the whole appearance thing.

It used to be, way back in the olden days, that only the rich and successful people could afford good food, so being fat was seen as sexy, successful, and a good thing. But now that anyone can go to costco, and buy a crate of twinkies for $5, now it is seen in a new way. That only the weathy and successful can afford the time to exercise, to buy healthy foods, and hire a personal trainer, etc... This is a fairly new phenomenon. In the last 40 years... Back in the 1950's, it was not that way. And before that too. Except the flappers in the 20's. But in general, in most cultures, chubbiness=success. Skinniness=no food. It's only recently that the health risks of being overweight were known...

It's funny how people like to complain about how society views body image, and yet they also think people of the opposite sex are not attractive if they are fat. Women will talk about how unfair it is that men only like some sexy actress, etc, and in the next breath, talk about how sexy Brad Pitt or Johnny Depp is... I don't see those women talking about how sexy Jack Black is...

I think it is cool that the gothic and alternative communities have more variety in what is seen as attractive. But it still comes down to skinny, white, big boobs, etc... Even if the hair is colored, she has tattoos, or the outfit is extreme, a lot of gothic models have very similar bodies to other models, if not skinnier...

So it creates a new ideal. Not the same as the rest of society, but it is still an ideal that does not represent "normal" girls and guys. I'm not against it. I think sexy guys are girls are a good thing. (Yum!) But I think it is odd that people criticize it, and at the same time, that is what they want... If most girls, or guys, were given a choice, between a sexual encounter with a sexy person, and a chubby person, I think most people would choose the sexy one. That is a fact of life. That's what drives people to diet, become anorexic, etc.... The desire for attention
from the opposite sex. You see it at clubs all the time. The top 5% of sexy people at the club, get 95% of the attention. It sucks for the normal people. But are you interested in those "regular" looking people? Or are you drawn to the really sexy looking people?

It's a self-generating problem.

And if it flips to be that fatter is sexy again, then all the naturally skinny girls will feel like crap, trying to gain weight, etc...

It would be much nicer if there were a wider variety of acceptable qualities
of sexiness in the media, etc... It's gotten better. There are a hell of a lot more
teenage boys thinking Halle Berry is sexy now, than there were in the 1950's!
So that new generation will be much more open to interacial dating, than past
generations were... So there is hope...

[pedar]

Here is a way to find out if you or someone you know might be dangerously underweight (anorexic). Calculate your BMI , I believe below 18.5 is underweight, below 16.5 is anorexic for women, and below 14.5 is anorexic for men. If you find you are underweight, but you have not experienced any of the symptoms of anorexia (exhaustion, sickness, stress, decreased mental acuity, hair or fingernail brittleness/waves/discoloration, sleepiness, insomnia, ask if want to know more...) then you might just be naturally a very thin person and don't worry too much.

took the test- I'm slightly overweight according to the BMI- I'm 5'10- 185-- so how much more do I lose? I love to get down to what I was when I was 25- abt 155..P.

[pedar]

btw- wasn't there at least one band with that name in LA?
P.

[TheQuietPlace]

Here's my friend's motto:

"Anything under 200 is fine"

[OliX]

27.4 is my bmi and it seems that i have 8 kg (18 pounds) more than i should
who cares

[macabrette]

Pedar _ You can't really trust a calculation more than you trust your own eyes. Does it seem like you have extra folds of fat, maybe at your stomach or hips? If you see the evidence, diet and exercise until you *look* like you want to. My ex was 5'10", and he didn't start to look bad until he hit 190, and then went up to 198, and looked downright nasty. At 185, chances are, you probably just have a couple of places that area-specific exercise could take care of....

[Nautilus]

27.4 is my bmi and it seems that i have 8 kg (18 pounds) more than i should
who cares

Huh? I thought 27.4 was an ok BMI. Anyway, I think you have the right attitude about it

[Nautilus]

took the test- I'm slightly overweight according to the BMI- I'm 5'10- 185-- so how much more do I lose? I love to get down to what I was when I was 25- abt 155..P.

Everyone is asking me for advice as if I know what I'm talking about bwahahahaha I love it. Just be the weight you want to be and are comfortable with, I'd like you to be healthy 'cuz I like you so much but you can be whatever you want to be. It sounds like you're off to a good start with your hiking trips And you know sex is good exercise too so get yerself some pussy

[Nautilus]

I know this is off topic but since we're talking about nutrition, I just read the most fascinating article on enzyme deficiencies--here . It talks about how enzyme deficiencies are the root cause of a lot of what we think are vitamin and protein deficiencies. Pretty much all americans have enzyme deficiency because we cook our food, which may not hurt vitamin content as much as we think it does but does denurture the proteins that make enzymes. Without the natural enzymes in food to help us digest our meals we are forced to use enzymes our immune system and other parts of our body need. The article is really cool, please read if you are interested in health. I guess it all comes down to eating your fresh fruits and veggies peeps!

[badkitty]

All through high school I was very thin,like 110 pounds at 5'5.But then I decided to go on a diet for a little while and it took control.In no time I was eating 800 calories a day, exercising like crazy,and I couldn't stop.I would sit in the bathroom and stare at my stomach in the mirror forever cause I was convinced that it was growing.After about six months I was able to kinda snap myself out of it.I think the only reason it happened was due to my already being depressed and having a very bad self image because of my not so happy home life.I've gained a lot of weight in the past few years and I hate how I look,but I'm not trying to starve myself anymore.That doesn't have control of me anymore.Now I'm just too lazy.

[Nautilus]

All through high school I was very thin,like 110 pounds at 5'5.But then I decided to go on a diet for a little while and it took control.In no time I was eating 800 calories a day, exercising like crazy,and I couldn't stop.I would sit in the bathroom and stare at my stomach in the mirror forever cause I was convinced that it was growing.After about six months I was able to kinda snap myself out of it.I think the only reason it happened was due to my already being depressed and having a very bad self image because of my not so happy home life.I've gained a lot of weight in the past few years and I hate how I look,but I'm not trying to starve myself anymore.That doesn't have control of me anymore.Now I'm just too lazy.

More than 1 out of four girls will battle anorexia or bulimia (or both) at some point in their life. (I don't know what the statistic is for boys) It's really common in this society. Just calculate the BMI of any playboy bunny (average is 16) or model and you'll see why so many girls think they've got to be too thin. Unfortunatly, boys are catching the bug too and there are now cases of boys with not enough fat (although they usually aren't underweight because of all the muscle) and taking steroids.