[OT] Why are so many Americans "overweight"

[Harlock]

And now for a little humor to break up all these numbers you guys and gals are throwing around. The following are the lyrics to a song by the Punk band the "Descendents".

"I Like Food"

I like food, food tastes good!
I like food, food tastes good!
Juicy burgers, greasy fries
Turkey legs and raw fish eyes
Teenage girls, with ketchup too!
Get out of my way, or I'll eat you
I like food, food tastes good!
I like food, food tastes good!
I'm going to turn dining back into eating.

I believe it was written by the drummer, Bill Stevenson. The LP is in the storage room, but that's a walk of at least 40 feet, and after that supersize cheeseburger and half gallon of Ben and Jerry's I just ate, I don't think I should get up off of my chair. I'll just have to ask my wife to bring me another 20 oz. Coke so I can wash this all down.

Cheers!

 

[Agback]

I'm 17, 5,9, and about 220lbs.

1.75 m tall and 100 kg. Your body mass index is 32.5.

People with BMIs over 25 tend to have lifespans diminished by heart disease, atherosclerosis, and diabetes. You are headed for a heart attack in your early fifties.

Lose fifty pounds.

Most of the fat is on my stomach with the rest of my body being fairly trim.

Unfortunately that is not a good sign for cardiovascular health. Especially at your age.

It's annoying but what can you do?

Changes to diet alone do not produce good results for many people. Reduce you food intake and eat more sensibly, of course, but you are going to have to take regular exercise as well.

You should do something that gets your pulse up to 100 beats per minute for ten minutes twice a day (or for twenty minute once a day), at least four days a week. And it is a good idea to wear a pedometer and make sure that you take at least ten thousand steps a day, six days a week.

Keep a notebook in which you write down everything you eat. That alone will force you to think about what you eat, and that is probably enough. Weigh yourself every day, and write the weights in your notebook too. But don't try to lose more than about a pound a week. Regimes that produce such rapid weight loss are often unhealthy, and besides, the weight loss is usually not sustainable.

Regards,


Agback

 

[Liminal Syzygy]

How does that work out when you correct for the size of your population? How many world-class athletes do you produce per ten million population? More than Australia? More than Kenya?

Do we get to hear some aussie chest-beating about "most olympic medals per capita" now?

 

[Wormwood]

For those of you not paying attention, the sucking sound you hear is this thread shifting from signal to noise.

 

[Heretic Apostate]

Wonderful.

I need to lose 100 lbs to get my BMI to the top end of the average weight category.

Time for liposuction.

 

[Zigmutt]

agback:
How does that work out when you correct for the size of your population? How many world-class athletes do you produce per ten million population? More than Australia? More than Kenya?

well- we usually let the other countries do all the work, and then once the pople hav eproven themselves worthy- we will buy them from their gov't or maybe just bribe them to movin to America- where they can get paid lots of money for what they can do...

Seems to be working thus far in history, why change?

No- seriously- every country turns out their fair share of great athletes. America just seems to have more because we have sucha huge spotlight shined on people with talent AND the people that come into greatness through adversity that the media blows things way out of proportion. The only people from other countries you ever hear about are the ones that beat americans at a global event. If not- who really cares (in the eyes of American media)

 

[Zigmutt]

i just did my BMI- and i don't think it is anywhere near accurate to gauge a person's health by just a mere simple mathematical equation (just as intelligence cannot be gauged by the SATs);

I am 6 ft 180 lbs (you may remember me saying otherwise- but remember- i was previously speaking of me in high school) and i consider myself pretty healthy- kinda mushy around the mid section- but nothing i would be ashamed of at the beach. I play BBall three times a week (for about 2-3 hours- full court) and I jog every now and then. I have a nephew that keeps me on my toes for the weekends.

But my BMI was 24.1- the high end of healthy. I don't know about you- but 6ft 180 pounds is pretty "average" to me. I am barely squeaking by healthy- just think how everyone else is feeling...? i did my roomie- and he is way obese- but by who's standards...?

 

[Heap Thaumaturgist]

I lose my computer for a week and this thread turns into the Agback Pimps Australia Thread.

*clap clap*

We're very proud of your former penal colony, some of my favorite people are Australian.

This was a chancey thread from the begining, but reviewing the last few days of posts it's turned into: "America sucks." "No we don't." "Maybe, but we're still better." "Nuh uh." "Are so."

Woo yay, we're all happy for everybody's respective country. Now that we all know our countries rock, back to why my a$# became too large for half my jeans over the summer.

--HT

 

[LostSoul]

I don't know about the rest of you, but I put on weight when I get depressed. I think weight gain has a lot to do with mental health.

As far as BMI goes... I was on the very edge of healthy even when "ripped". I don't think it works for everyone.

 

[LostSoul]

I'm not sure that kicking Axis arse had much to do with making the USA rich. I believe that the USA took over as the richest country in the world (on a per capita basis) about 1910. American wealth brought about Allied victory in 1945, not the other way around.

America (and Canada; not too sure about Australia) was incredibly rich after WW2. It was the only industrialized country left with any infrastructure.

I remember something from a prof. One third of Italy's GDP in the late forties was due to American-Italians sending money back home.