Spot on.
However, most people have a weakness and the "eat what you like and still lose weight" idea catches tens of thousands every time someone comes up with a new "diet".

But Mintball has a point too, which I think is that diet should not be faddy ... a balanced diet including some appetite-sating saturated fat is preferable to "Only carbs and protein".

To add to that, 'low fat' alternatives of regular foods are a massive rip off. Nine times out of ten, they replace the fat that they've stripped away with sugar or artificial additives. How is that better?



I wouldn't argue with that. In fact, I didn't! Fats are extremely important for things like nervous system function, vitamin absorption etc, as well as helping you to feel full.

Speaking personally, I'm a fat bastad. I have no idea what I weigh but I now have a 38" waist when it wasn't that long ago I had a 32" waist. When I was refereeing, I exercised regularly, running approximately 25 miles per week, along with local and regional training sessions. I was careful about what I ate: no cooked in sauces, avoiding most dairy products and simple carbs.

As soon as I finished refereeing, I started becoming the fat, lazy, happy fooker that I am today. I could eat good butter by the handfull and often do. I love bread, so if I can't find a decent baker, I bake my own, it's not difficult or really time-consuming. I drink too but only to excess.

Basically I've put it in, I want some out now.

Indeed. I don't see the problem with obesity tbh (in adults anyway, childhood obesity is a whole other arguement). There is tonnes of information out there and I'm sure the majority of fat people know the risks associated with being overweight, so if they are happy to be, as you put it, a fat , then who is anyone to tell them to change?

I went to the gym for about 2 years somewhere between 2008 and 2011 and although i looked a little trimmer i didn't lose much weight, now i have psoriasis and i was told i could shift it with a better diet, i (for a time) cut out sugar, yeast and wheat from my diet and only ate organic and WOW i dropped 3 stone and felt better for it, i almost completely cleared bar for a bit on my left leg my psoriasis and felt more alert and was able to think so clearly.

I'm now a little overweight, 6ft 1 and 15.5 stone and that's because i went back on my lazy diet.

Bar certain conditions and sometimes forced (rather than personal choice) steriod use most overweight people are that because they are lazy or weak willed and all the apologists in the world won't change my mind.

Personally i feel not enough food education is to blame.

I feel we need to blame someone.
Supermarkets ... they're getting fat on people getting fat.

And yet...

They sell loads of fresh product


Its consumer choice and accurate marketing by the food manufacturing companies, you never see the word "manufacturer" used in conjunction with the businesses who pick produce from the field, wash it and bag it, they aren't manufacturing anything, adding nothing, you can argue that they don't need to bag it at all but at least its still the natural product when you pick it up out of the chiller, there's a slightly different argument for the meat market in that you could confidently argue that most of the meat we buy has been manufactured before it gets to the shelf, but that is nothing compared to what goes into everything else that is contained in a tin or a box.

I am surprised you posted that after my opening line ... which was ''I feel we need to blame someone.''
That was a sprat to catch a mackerel ... knowing how hated supermarkets are by certain people.
I'd got my stirring spoon out.

Fair point.
They also have aisle upon aisle of things that should be only an occasional treat but these things are now seen as staples by many (most?) customers.

Why are so many people fat?
I put it down to the convenience of crap... or the crap of convenience ...
i.e. Bought sandwiches now routinely contain mayo (which is largely fat and extra to what to you would have eaten otherwise), workplaces and schools have confectionery-vending machines, many ready-meals are fat-laden (again extra), portion sizes in general are larger, fast-food is gulped down quicker than the appetite satiation sensors can tell you you've had enough, people take the bus to go one stop or drive when they are only going half a mile, etc etc.
It's just so eeeaaasy to get fat.

It only takes an extra Snickers bar 5 days out of 7 and, inside a year, you'll be 24 pounds heavier, unless you run for 2.5 hours per week to use it up.

I've been getting 4 a day down, for a quid, from my local corner shop.



Usually stick them in the freezer for an hour first to stiffen them up.

It's not just the mayo, the sandwich bread itself is a major problem. Bread made by the Chorleywood process will fill you up at first but is digested so quickly, the satisfaction rarely lasts long. Even wholemeal and granary slices aren't filling, that's why I often see people eating a couple of store-bought sandwiches then looking to suuplement them with crisps or "chocolate" bars. If they made a sandwich from proper bread, they'd have no need for the "extras"

Aye, I had some [iVillage Bakery White Sliced[/i cr@p, this morning with bacon and egg in a triple decker sarnie. Wasn't good. Hopefully it'll break up and be untasteable in my lunch of[iHeinz Tomato Soup[/i. (I'll use a couple of slices for filling). I'll wash that down with a large Brandy in a white coffee, then I'm off down the local for some Stella. Perhaps a delivered takeaway later because I doubt I'll be @rsed to cook.

If only I was joking.

The Chorleywood process is vile.
I'm not sure that Chorleywood-bread is digested quickly but it does take very little chewing and it's in your stomach before you have chance to feel satisfied.
It also lacks flavour so isn't satisfying in that sense either.
Not only that but they don't have to tell you what (possibly GM) enzymes are in it, as they claim that the enzymes are killed by the baking.

But, basically, I agree with your post.

Village Bakery (i.e. as in Village Bakery, Melmerby) is good bread and actually tastes of bread.
That's where I learned to make proper bread when Andrew Whitley owned and ran it.

Therefore if I were a laydeeeeeeeeeeee, I'd be sooooooooo thin.

What do we feel about the current rash of cheap to make cookery programmes at a time of obesity?
Now I know they often serve to promote healthy and interesting eating, but does it really work that way?
Such as Minty might put some of the advice to good use, but the vast majority won't.
The programmes only serve (no pun honest) to make us feel hungry and go to the fridge.
Hence counterproductive.

Speak for yourself.

The only time they'd make me go to the fridge is to check whether I had the ingredients to rustle up something similar

But then you're in the 'such as Minty' camp ... did you miss that bit?
And that is a small minority ... I am asserting.
And further to that might I suggest that the contents of the average person's fridge would not support the recipe, so they will scoff what they have instead.

Village Bakery White Sliced Batch Loaf.

Bought it Mon afty / Use by Thurs 1st.

Only any good for toasting come Tues morning.

There is too much boredom eating.

There you go, y'see, proper bread goes stale.
Have you never wondered about bread that stays "fresh" for a week?

Not since I watched Jimmy's Food Factory, no. Quite the eye opener.

I'm sure he has, but I'd reckon the vast majority of working families (or not working) would only be able to afford to buy daily fresh real bread loaves in their dreams, nor would have the time or inclination for a daily bake, so Rathbones @ 60p or Aldi special it is for them.

The problem with those gorgeous fresh bread loaves is that they are often too large unless you are part of a tribe.
So rather than waste it you have a couple of slices too many.
Counterproductive again.
Although a trick for reviving bread that has gone hard, not blue with mould may I add, is to put it into the microwave and zap it for 10 seconds.
You can then have it warm or let it cool and it's pliable again.

Unfortunately, it does often seem to be a binary choice, either buy rubbish or pay through the nose for so-called Artisan bread.
Why can't decent bread be priced lower than the fortune that is often charged for it?
I can't see that the extra proving-time should double the price.