"So this is really about maintaining systems of white supremacy and patriarchy ... I think a lot of us are really working to divest from those ideas, but we haven't given ourselves permission to stop dieting or to accept our weight wherever it might fall."
As one who has battled his weight, body mass, and shape almost all of his teenage a…
"So this is really about maintaining systems of white supremacy and patriarchy ... I think a lot of us are really working to divest from those ideas, but we haven't given ourselves permission to stop dieting or to accept our weight wherever it might fall."
As one who has battled his weight, body mass, and shape almost all of his teenage and adult life, I found this most interesting.
There is a fine line (not an invisible one) between acceptance of one's weight (and perhaps by extension, one's self), and insisting that one's morbid obesity is all right, even healthy, which is what the body-positivity movement is doing, and it's more destructive than the morbid obesity, itself.
Accepting that you are morbidly obese and admitting that it is not okay gives you a starting point to make changes (tiny, little ones, first) and work on becoming more healthy. In doing so, you are taking responsibility for your condition from that point, forward.
Whereas proudly (but ignorantly) proclaiming that your morbid obesity is a good thing, healthy, and even remotely attractive, is harmful. The odds are that if you are morbidly obese, you also are contending with other co-morbidities (type-II diabetes, high blood pressure, hypoglycemia, neuropathy, et al.) which, if not managed, will ultimately be prematurely fatal.
Being morbidly obese does not make you a bad person. It has nothing to do with your value as an individual. Being on the receiving end of someone maliciously fat-shaming you is no fun, and as difficult as it may be, there is likely something to take away from their ignorant remarks that smacks of truth.
It's okay to admit that you're not healthy. It's NOT okay to do nothing about it.
Exactly this! Struggled with morbid obesity from 16 to last year, 57. Since then have been on an intermittent fasting journey since I saw the signs that say weight is going to snowball health issues shortly. It’s one thing to be avoiding the health realities of it at a young age, but at some point, those realities will not ignore you. What I am curious about is what fault it will be when that day comes for them?
For me, gastric bypass surgery became necessary if I was to have a fighting chance managing my type-II.
For those who scream, "Follow the science!" let me point out that the BMI is a fluid measurement, at best, and its data is all but useless as it cannot be contextualized across gender, ethnicity, and a host of other genetic factors, and a determination of 'healthy' cannot be made, using it.
That doesn't mean that morbid obesity is genetically determined, and/or that some are destined to be so - there are many other factors (many psychological) that go into why someone may be that way. Often, self-medicating with food is a major culprit, and that is a mental-health problem – not without a solution.
But I submit that another major contributor is decades of consuming highly processed foods with high concentrations of high-fructose corn syrup. Additionally, low-calorie, low-fat foods contain chemical compounds that act as preservatives, but that the human body cannot metabolise – these chemicals remain in the body, and I submit that the effects are compromised metabolism digestive processes, that make weight-loss for some damn near impossible, because this dysfunction has been passed on from their parents who also consumed this same highly processed food for generations, and their parents before them. None of this can be borne out by studies because those studies will never be done – this nation's ag lobbies drive ag policy (I grew up on a farm – I know this). This video is not scientific either, but can anyone argue against the common sense he imparts?
Thank you so much for your detailed answer, really appreciate it. Yes, for me it was a combination of medicating with food and of course gravitating to all the junk I could find. But I often think one of the reasons I’m still around today is that for as long as my parents could control my eating habits, I ate straight out of a health food store, plus was given supplements. Was given junk food as a treat a few times a treat. Naturally, the minute I was able to get out of the house, I ate my way from one fast food place to another and of course the weight piled on but I didn’t even notice for a long time as I was so busy eating, lol. Still recall when my mother’s home furnishings were going away, her guardian and his team were astounded that the stove she had had since I was a toddler until she passed in 2008, did not have a single drop of grease on it or in it anywhere. They were further astounded that she didn’t own a coffee pot, microwave, toaster, and I can’t recall her ever using a blender. Now that I’ve had years to think on it, beginning to appreciate that about her very much and pondering it more now for my own life.
But yes. If medicine and psychology were able to combine better in the area of obesity, I think many would be better off for it. I recall way too many doctors over the years asking if I’d ever thought about losing weight. One in particular simply waved his hand and said, “You know what to do.”
As well, don’t think many really understand how the many things added to processed food today can severely impact your weight. I started this intermittent fasting thing after I had a discussion with somebody where they asked me if, I had ever eaten foods that made hungry afterwards? They told me real food should fill me up, not make me hungry. I hadn’t ever really looked at it like that before. But once I started paying close attention, I realized that indeed, some foods (some sweets in particular), really made me want more right away, or soon after. Stopping eating those foods has been a struggle ever since but getting better slower. Honestly though, for myself, think I’ll eventually have to cut all added sugars and highly refined flours. Agree too that BMI isn’t really a one-size-fits-all anymore than clothes with that designation, lolol.
These are some great points, the nutritional science in this country is absolutely terrible. Bought and paid for by big ag, same as we saw for covid and big pharma.
For me things that have helped, paleo/keto, time restricted eating, one meal a day mostly for me for a while, 2 meals maybe. Lots of great authors and books.
Dr. Jason Fung, Mark Sissom, Nina Teicholz, Gary Taubes, Robb Wolf, etc.
"So this is really about maintaining systems of white supremacy and patriarchy ... I think a lot of us are really working to divest from those ideas, but we haven't given ourselves permission to stop dieting or to accept our weight wherever it might fall."
As one who has battled his weight, body mass, and shape almost all of his teenage and adult life, I found this most interesting.
There is a fine line (not an invisible one) between acceptance of one's weight (and perhaps by extension, one's self), and insisting that one's morbid obesity is all right, even healthy, which is what the body-positivity movement is doing, and it's more destructive than the morbid obesity, itself.
Accepting that you are morbidly obese and admitting that it is not okay gives you a starting point to make changes (tiny, little ones, first) and work on becoming more healthy. In doing so, you are taking responsibility for your condition from that point, forward.
Whereas proudly (but ignorantly) proclaiming that your morbid obesity is a good thing, healthy, and even remotely attractive, is harmful. The odds are that if you are morbidly obese, you also are contending with other co-morbidities (type-II diabetes, high blood pressure, hypoglycemia, neuropathy, et al.) which, if not managed, will ultimately be prematurely fatal.
Being morbidly obese does not make you a bad person. It has nothing to do with your value as an individual. Being on the receiving end of someone maliciously fat-shaming you is no fun, and as difficult as it may be, there is likely something to take away from their ignorant remarks that smacks of truth.
It's okay to admit that you're not healthy. It's NOT okay to do nothing about it.
Exactly this! Struggled with morbid obesity from 16 to last year, 57. Since then have been on an intermittent fasting journey since I saw the signs that say weight is going to snowball health issues shortly. It’s one thing to be avoiding the health realities of it at a young age, but at some point, those realities will not ignore you. What I am curious about is what fault it will be when that day comes for them?
For me, gastric bypass surgery became necessary if I was to have a fighting chance managing my type-II.
For those who scream, "Follow the science!" let me point out that the BMI is a fluid measurement, at best, and its data is all but useless as it cannot be contextualized across gender, ethnicity, and a host of other genetic factors, and a determination of 'healthy' cannot be made, using it.
That doesn't mean that morbid obesity is genetically determined, and/or that some are destined to be so - there are many other factors (many psychological) that go into why someone may be that way. Often, self-medicating with food is a major culprit, and that is a mental-health problem – not without a solution.
But I submit that another major contributor is decades of consuming highly processed foods with high concentrations of high-fructose corn syrup. Additionally, low-calorie, low-fat foods contain chemical compounds that act as preservatives, but that the human body cannot metabolise – these chemicals remain in the body, and I submit that the effects are compromised metabolism digestive processes, that make weight-loss for some damn near impossible, because this dysfunction has been passed on from their parents who also consumed this same highly processed food for generations, and their parents before them. None of this can be borne out by studies because those studies will never be done – this nation's ag lobbies drive ag policy (I grew up on a farm – I know this). This video is not scientific either, but can anyone argue against the common sense he imparts?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9XzSKIyqxg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGenmkhEbQA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ9RL6aziWE
Thank you so much for your detailed answer, really appreciate it. Yes, for me it was a combination of medicating with food and of course gravitating to all the junk I could find. But I often think one of the reasons I’m still around today is that for as long as my parents could control my eating habits, I ate straight out of a health food store, plus was given supplements. Was given junk food as a treat a few times a treat. Naturally, the minute I was able to get out of the house, I ate my way from one fast food place to another and of course the weight piled on but I didn’t even notice for a long time as I was so busy eating, lol. Still recall when my mother’s home furnishings were going away, her guardian and his team were astounded that the stove she had had since I was a toddler until she passed in 2008, did not have a single drop of grease on it or in it anywhere. They were further astounded that she didn’t own a coffee pot, microwave, toaster, and I can’t recall her ever using a blender. Now that I’ve had years to think on it, beginning to appreciate that about her very much and pondering it more now for my own life.
But yes. If medicine and psychology were able to combine better in the area of obesity, I think many would be better off for it. I recall way too many doctors over the years asking if I’d ever thought about losing weight. One in particular simply waved his hand and said, “You know what to do.”
As well, don’t think many really understand how the many things added to processed food today can severely impact your weight. I started this intermittent fasting thing after I had a discussion with somebody where they asked me if, I had ever eaten foods that made hungry afterwards? They told me real food should fill me up, not make me hungry. I hadn’t ever really looked at it like that before. But once I started paying close attention, I realized that indeed, some foods (some sweets in particular), really made me want more right away, or soon after. Stopping eating those foods has been a struggle ever since but getting better slower. Honestly though, for myself, think I’ll eventually have to cut all added sugars and highly refined flours. Agree too that BMI isn’t really a one-size-fits-all anymore than clothes with that designation, lolol.
These are some great points, the nutritional science in this country is absolutely terrible. Bought and paid for by big ag, same as we saw for covid and big pharma.
For me things that have helped, paleo/keto, time restricted eating, one meal a day mostly for me for a while, 2 meals maybe. Lots of great authors and books.
Dr. Jason Fung, Mark Sissom, Nina Teicholz, Gary Taubes, Robb Wolf, etc.