Boarding school for fat kids?

[PM_Mama00]

Healthy and fit are two different things. At least the way I see it. I see healthy as no diseases, no sicknesses, etc. Fit is, obviously, being in fit shape, which yes it is hard for overweight people to achieve.

That's funny about that French "rule". In Italy or Sicily, it's an insult if you DON'T eat everything there, or if you don't take more. But those sons of bitches are still super skinny over there. WTF?

[sugar and spice]

Originally posted by CutiePie2000
I think it's best if healthy habits are ingrained from the "beginning" like putting kids in soccer at age 5, or swimming, baseball, t-ball...anything. If a kid has not done sports, I think expecting them to start at age 14 or 16 is way too late.

I'll tell you this: as a child, my parents took us hiking on the weekends. It was a good way for us to bond as a family, get some fresh air and exercise and enjoy the outdoors. The same can be done with a walk in the park or at the beach (or whatever "nature" is near where you live). My point is, parents need to start early. My nephew is 16 mos. and he is on x-country skiis already. He probably skiis for about 1/2 an hour and when he's pooped, he goes in the little backpack carrier and sleeps.

I think the assumption here is that bigger kids aren't exercising earlier, though, which isn't true. I did cross-country running, track and tennis in high school and there were chunky kids in every single one of those sports. There were even a handful of straight-up obese kids on the track & field team (mostly throwers). While exercise plays a part, researchers are quickly discovering that food plays a much, much larger role. After all, you need to spend a couple hours at the gym just to work off the calories in a muffin. Wouldn't it be easier to just not eat it in the first place?

Also, for larger kids who may be self-conscious about their bodies, getting them to exercise is tough because of that alone. I did swimming and gymnastics when I was little, but remember a time when one of the girls in my gymnastics class told me I looked pregnant in my leotard. I was not a big kid at all, just had the typical pudgy little kid tummy that stuck out a little. But did that affect me? (Obviously, if I can still remember it twelve years later.) I quit swimming pretty soon after that and always wore baggy clothes to gymnastics. And when I did sports in middle school, I always stuck to ones that allowed me to cover up more (basketball, soccer). I can understand how someone who is very self-conscious about their body and is used to getting made fun of for it could shy away from stuff like that.

I totally agree that bad eating habits often start with the parents. But the problem is that too many parents don't know what's bad for them! We think it's so obvious -- eat fruits and veggies, eat low-cal stuff, limit fats and sweets. But there are so many people who are confused by all the conflicting diet advice out there -- people who think fat counts instead of calories, people who think carbs count instead of calories, people who think that eating peaches and cottage cheese and Slimfast shakes for two weeks is a valid form of weight control. I remember watching MTV's True Life: I'm Obese and one of the guys was saying, "Hey, this is good for you, it's low-carb" -- while he fried up some kind of meat in butter! Right. That's GREAT for you.

Originally posted by Lady Pi Phi
I don't really think that's a myth. One can be on the heavier side, but still be healthy. It all depends on their lifestyle. If they exercise and eat reasonably well being a little over weight probably won't kill them.

Now you can't really say that to the person who weighs 300 pounds and sits in front of the TV eating chips all day. If you do, you're being stupid and if that person believes you they are being stupid as well.

Yes, I think the problem with this is that doctors said, "You can be overweight and still be healthy," meaning that if you're eating food that's good for you (and not too much of it) and you're exercising a lot and you're still not thin, you shouldn't stress out because your body is still probably in decent shape. But people took this phrase and changed it to mean, "If you're overweight, you ARE still healthy," which is often not the case, or in some cases even "If you're obese, you are still healthy" which is never the case. What that statement means is that if you're, like, training for a marathon and eating healthy foods, you're probably okay no matter what weight you're at. But the subsection of the population that this applies to is pretty small.

[Coramoor]

Coramoor--- plus sized clothing IS already expensive. I have two clothing places that I shop, and at each place I can get an outfit for about $100, and these aren't name brands. Is it fair to punish people who are overweight due to genetics? For something that they couldn't help?

I don't think there is anyone out there that 'can't help it'. That is just another excuse.

I have a friend that is way over weight. At least 400 lbs. He knows he is overweight and has asked various people help him come up with a work out routine and better eating habits.

He'll stick to them for about a week, then we'll catch him waking up at 7am to go to McDonalds for breakfast. Or he'll skip class and eat at the student union. And suddenly had has so much homework that he can't go to the gym anymore.

Excuses.

It's a bad cycle. People eat b/c they feel bad about themselves and they feel bad about themselves b/c they eat. Yet they don't have the will power to do anything about it.

[James]

Usually if you are 20 or more pounds overweight in body fat it starts putting stress on the body and changing certain hormone profiles.

Remember that in this country our model for "healthy" is not currently "sick".

[sugar and spice]

Originally posted by Coramoor
I don't think there is anyone out there that 'can't help it'. That is just another excuse.

I have a friend that is way over weight. At least 400 lbs. He knows he is overweight and has asked various people help him come up with a work out routine and better eating habits.

He'll stick to them for about a week, then we'll catch him waking up at 7am to go to McDonalds for breakfast. Or he'll skip class and eat at the student union. And suddenly had has so much homework that he can't go to the gym anymore.

Excuses.

It's a bad cycle. People eat b/c they feel bad about themselves and they feel bad about themselves b/c they eat. Yet they don't have the will power to do anything about it.

But it's NOT just willpower. The idea that skinny people have more willpower than fat people is ridiculous. Even the idea that people who eat well have more willpower than those who eat junk is stupid. The problem with Americans is that most of us don't see food as nourishment -- we have too many psychological issues tied to it. We see it as reward and the lack of it as punishment, we see it as something to comfort us, we see it as a way to quell feelings we don't want to deal with, we get food confused with our mama -- whatever. People who don't understand the emotional factors involved in eating will not usually be able to change their eating habits. I see food as a reward, which is why I learned to starve myself when I was unhappy. I'm damn good at starving myself but that doesn't mean I have ANY self-control when it comes to food. In fact, people telling me that they could never become anorexic because they didn't have enough willpower always threw me -- anorexia isn't ABOUT self-control. It was so easy for me to starve myself. What's hard is understanding the relationship I have with food and trying to be normal about it. The same goes for the other end of the spectrum -- eating too much. Until you understand what causes you to sneak out to McDonald's at 7 in the morning (hint: not a lack of willpower), you're not going to be able to lose weight.

[BirthaBlue4]

Originally posted by PM_Mama00

That's funny about that French "rule". In Italy or Sicily, it's an insult if you DON'T eat everything there, or if you don't take more. But those sons of bitches are still super skinny over there. WTF?

Now see, that is something that I've always wondered about. What is it about other countries that doesn't make them gain as much weight as we do? I tend to believe its because they're more active on a regular basis. They walk everywhere, and there's more physical labor (or so it seems).

I can't put all the thoughts I've had reading all this into one nice little response, so I'll do bullets.

**I agree that this school will place a lifelong stigma on a child. "Oh, you had to go to the fat school *snicker*". Some people won't care, butlets be serious here, you all know good and well there are a plethora of assholes in the world who will do this, and each of those kids will more than likely run into a few in their lifetime.

**I don't know that this school will really help. If camp and all that didn't, then why should this? Change has to come from within. Even if you make them do all those things, if they don't want to change themselves, it won't last when they leave. So the counseling part is good and necessary. Separating them from a home they have to go back to that ISN'T like the school is not gonna work. For all that damn money, there needs to be a home component included to ensure that the change is FAMILYWIDE, not just the kid.

**Being big costs in a million ways. Clothes, shoes, everything.

**Different things work for different people. Different people have differnet issues. There are technically obese people that play sports, run and all that, and do not eat like a hog, and still do not loe weight. There are people that do not eat all day and don't eat junk and still don't lose weight. Its a combination of things. Some people just do not know what to do. You can't just say, "Get your fat ass up and move" because that's not the total answer. There has to be a combination of diet (eating three small meals and 2 snacks a day) and exercise (cardio and weights) in order for it to work. But since people are all different with different needs, most don't do the right combination of whatever for them.

**Getting fit is expensive. I, for one, cannot walk long distances because of other issues. I can do dance type activity and some machines. I know for me going to an outside place to workout (a gym) would work fo rme, because I wouldn't want to fail in front of people (my own personal motivation). But the gym costs more than I can afford (not to mention its geared towards people small people trying to maintain, not big people trying toget right). Also, the healthiest foods cost the most. You an get more junk or less than healthy food from the store than you can produce and real breads and such. That sucks, but its true.

**I don't say any of this to make excuses, because there's no excuse for it. But no one needs to be belittled or "punished" because of a "disease". People who don't fit this category are quick to point fingers and blame. I think all of the hard nosed approaches people take make big people say, "Forget it". Then when they try to workout, folks STILL clown. Its like, damned if you do damned if you don't.

**I don't think people who are big should be proud of the fact. It kills me when someone says I'm a BBW and I'm proud of myself. No you shouldn't be belittled, but its not something we should wear as a badge of honor. Its NOT good. I'm not proud of my weight, but I'm fine with myself until I make changes that WILL be made, that's shouldn't be an option.


I hope all that made sense lol.

[Coramoor]

You don't need to follow the Men's Health abe diet of $25 a lb lean meat to stay fit. You don't have to eat organic either.

Just eat with some sense. Someone else metioned that portion control is another problem. I for one was always made to clean my plate as a kid, and that kind of sticks with you when you grow up. Now I go to a Steakhouse or something and they give you enough food for three people, but I clean my plate.

Surgar and Spice,

I totally agree that a lot of people see food as a reward/punishment. However, we are all intelligent beings. We know that food isn't a reward. We need it to live and be active. That is just one more excuse.

I certainly don't think that skinny people have more will power either. Some people are lucky and don't have to watch what they eat-but other people have to work at it, they can still maintain a healthy weight though.