Many people I know are on a diet and watch what they eat and are still struggling to get in shape. Some people just gave up and they accept themselves for the shape they are in. It seems as if the whole world is on a diet and it isn't helping. The weight loss industry is booming! (billions of $$) I know people that watch what they eat, work full time jobs (labor work) and still can't lose weight. With all the items on the market none of them seem to help. It has to be more than just metabolism and lack of motivation. Why is it so hard for people to lose weight and get in shape? Even when I did work out I still didn't have a flat stomach. Maybe it is just people give up if they don't get the results. I will never have a flat stomach. (I've even tried the Jeannie blinking with my arms crossed and that just doesn't work ) What do you think? Why is losing weight and staying in shape so difficult? Doesn't it seem like the whole world is on a diet and it just isn't helping? Why?

Note: I am NOT talking about people who can't lose weight or exercise because of health conditions. I am talking about relatively healthy people just not in shape.

A lot of it's probably because you've got to be your own drill sergeant. You've got to go the extra mile. Make a schedule to work out and stick by it consistently. Perhaps some people just can't be that strict. Also, you have to change your eating habits as well. You have to make sure you eat enough carbohydrates. Only working out, and not eating right to help it out, won't do it. You've got to do both together. If you can do all that, something should happen.

No you don't have to be a drill sergeant.

The facts are this, the human body is geared at survival. Fat fills several duties in the survival processes.

Not too long ago (just a couple of generations) we in the Western World suffered from famine and poor quality food just like they do in Africa today. Starvation was a way of life for millions of years. Our bodies which are driven by the sole commandment to survive are designed to convert as much food as possible into energy, either energy used right now or energy for future use during the famine.

Food has changed. We have bred and changed our food faster than we ourselves have adapted to the new age of plenty where famine and starvation never strike. Wheat and Corn (the mainstays of our diet even today) have changed. The corn and wheat of 100 years ago was smaller, less chock full of good stuff. We changed all that, we have bred huge kernels which contain more energy (sugar) and fats. Not only do we incorporate those super grains in just about everything we eat, we also feed it to other food sources like chickens, pigs and cows who in turn are bigger, juicier, and fatter.

Even the tomatoes, the lettuce the celery we have on store shelves and grow in gardens are vastly different than a few generations ago. In our drive to make enough food to feed our ever growing population we have created food which is de-constructive on the individual basis and is counter evolutionary to the processes which insured our survival for millions of years. Gardeners who grow old fashioned varieties of food will tell you that they are smaller, less sweet and tend to be less colorful. Hybrid seeds produce super foods which are brighter, fatter, sweeter and in theory contain more nutrition than their ancestors - that is dependent on how rich the soil is, unfortunately most soil is stripped off all trace elements and minerals and most fertilizers do not put those back in the ground.

Our healthy diet is in reality too healthy. Many obese people are obese even though they are eating eating right. Seriously they can't figure out what is wrong and they end up trying all sorts of things which leads to a more serious problem as the body attempts to over compensate for famine (starvation diets) and leads to a series of weight gain periods.

The Atkins diet works simply because we are starving the body of carb sources which we have genetically altered to make richer. This will have side effects, mark my words on that, in a few years we will start hearing of health issues brought on by the atkins diet being used for years and years. Each diet to date has had that happen, even the low fat diet has turned around a bit a few butts as we discovered that fats are essential and needed to preserve the health of the human body.

Being fat is a good thing, in evolutionary terms. It insured that our species made it through long lean winters and through millions of years of competition with other species. Humans are naturally fat. Of all the primates humans are more prone to a lyer of blubber than other primates. But then too we have less hair - we exchanged a fur coat for a layer of blubber. And we also decided to leave our tropical paradise for colder climates that needed more insulation for us to survive.

Body builders, Calvin Klein models, are the abnormal ones. They are beyond average and are not the typical specimen of humanity that we are programmed to believe. Indeed they are so abby normal that given the natural order of things they would not survive "nominal" stress parameters - famine. Their genetic code is such to preclude them from having higher body fat percentages, they are usually the ones who can eat just about anything they want and not gain fat, or they are genetically capable of adding weight and dropping weight at the drop of a hat. This last group is most likely to discover that come fall they star gaining weight rapidly - it is a condition keyed into light and survival through what used to be the lean times.

Most body builders have to go on a super restrictive diet a month or so before competition in order to get that 6 pack and deep lines between each muscle. Normally they have a layer of fat over all of that lean muscle mass. Again what is normal is not being shown. Most body builders are on a permanment diet, a diet which is abnormal and which is questioned by doctors today as to the long term health issues that can result from that diet.

Unfortunately some sick @#$! decided to plaster the fringe types and delude us into believing that these are the norm and that all humans can attain that look of perfection. This is just like the idea of binding girls feet to keep the feet small - some sick and perverted sense of beauty which has no grounding in reality since feet are supposed to be fairly large to support us.

It is also a matter of age:

Young Jusork, being in his early 20's is more prone to be able to have less body fat than me, the guy reaching for 40. But between you and I when he reaches mid 30 he will discover that all of that mentality of being on top of his "program" and being his own personal drill sergeant will amount to a hill of beans as his mid line begins to spread and fat begins to take over and hide all of those wonderful muscles of his youth. By that time, I will be pushing 50 and will start finding that keeping weight on is becoming a problem for as my body starts slowing down and shutting down it will lose its tendency to retain fat as readily as his does. However I will start losing that fat around my arms and legs while maintaining it around the middle. When Young Jusork is pushing 45, I will be fast approaching 60 and it can fall either way, I will either swell up like a balloon, or if genetics hold true (as my family demonstrates) I will be come thinner and thinner as my body loses interest in maintaining body fat (a secondary fuel source) Jusork will be approaching that time of life when body fat is gaining on him.

By the Time Jusork reaches my age he will have figured out that the battle of the Bulge is a no win battle, that it is a natural part of age and that in reality humans are prone to blubber and that Arnold Schwarzenegger and Cher and all of those skinny "beautiful people" are either genetically wired for abnormal low body fat, or have enough money to get lipo-suction on a regular basis.

Which brings me to another interesting fact. Even though Arnold was considered "in shape" which is an understatement, he ended up having severe health heart issues requiring by-pass operation. No matter how well he ate, how much cardio he took in, how much of a drill sergeant he was he still had a heart condition. I on the other hand can take it easy, eating all of those no-no foods I want and I have a very high chance of never having so much as a missed heart beat - why? because my family line is not prone to heart conditions, indeed only one member of my family line had heart problems and that was due to other medical conditions which were set through injury, not through genetics.

The reason why so many people are on diet and straining to lose weight is because they are straining to attain a goal which is genetically impossible.

I seriously doubt that a flat stomach is in your cards, I am even willing to bet that if you went to your doctor and had a body fat percentage measurement done that you fall well within the average or healthy range.

9 years ago I was brought to the hard cold fact that a 6-pack was beyond my genetics to reach. My doctor delivered a devastating blow to my reality when she told me that no matter how hard I crunched, no matter how restrictive I was with diet I would not form clearly defined abdominal muscles. Though I have strong abdominal muscles, there is forever a layer of fat and skin which will hide them.

Even in my mid twenties, when I was on speed for years, standing in at 6'1" tall weighing in at 128# with a waist of 28 inches I still had a layer of fat around the stomach area. I was emaciated, but still had that darn layer of fat - it is in the genes not in the diet or exercise program.

Most people are prone to that, it is natural and normal. Our society does not accept fat as normal, which betrays the reality of being human.

Heh. I'm far from being a drill sergeant or at the top of my program. Although I am almost underweight. I just eat lots of apples and green beans. And don't worry, I I'm totally prepared to be significantly flabbier in my 40s.

That was a great response David.

How interesting!!!

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Gardeners who grow old fashioned varieties of food will tell you that they are smaller, less sweet and tend to be less colorful.

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So THAT is why organic foods never look that good on the shelf. They are always smaller and less colorful. (much more money too!)

I don't think a flat stomach is in my cards either. *sigh*

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Originally posted by clarebear:
How interesting!!!

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Gardeners who grow old fashioned varieties of food will tell you that they are smaller, less sweet and tend to be less colorful.

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So THAT is why organic foods never look that good on the shelf. They are always smaller and less colorful. (much more money too!)

I don't think a flat stomach is in my cards either. *sigh*

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That and lack of food coloring, you know Red number 12 and yellow number 5 - and preservatives like Flavorcarbanoratoics and no added sugars.

Canning my own foods I discovered that green beans and peas turn a brownish green color they are not the vibrant green of the processed foods we are used too.

Even my homemade pumpkin pies from whole pumpkins do not turn that lovely orange colour, instead they turn a deep brown orange - mostly brown.

Strangest of all is that meat has to be lit so that it looks bright red. Nobody who wants tender meat would buy a joint that is bright red, but that is what innocent consumers imagine good meat looks like.The rest of us want it blueish and certainly not looking as though the animal was slaughtered that afternoon !

Personal history counts, too. If you've ever lost weight, then there will be a certain stretch-and-sag factor at work, and you cannot regain that perfect shape of limb and feature that is characteristic of a healthy, light-weight young person.

I remember a woman I worked with. She was on the far side of forty and decided to do a blitz to get into shape again. She joined an aerobics class and a swimming class, took up jogging, dieted, quit drinking, and went on some kind of manic 'high' such that her 'programs' were all she ever talked about. She went out and bought a new wardrobe including all the latest peekaboo styles suitable for teens -- slender teens.

One day she said that her daughter's boyfriend said to her 'You look like your daughter's younger sister, not her mother!'

I looked at her creases and crow's feet, the little knotty muscles in her calves, the skinny little forearms with the loose flesh hanging off, and I thought, yeah, if your daughter is fifty years old!

But she was no doubt better off for the exercise. She looked better than someone in her own ago group who did not exercise. She made herself absurd because she was unrealistic about what the dieting and exercise could do for her. I left that company shortly after, so I don't know if she kept up her programs or not. If she did, I'm sure in time her self-image would have become more realistic, and she could enjoy the health benefits without driving herself too hard or remaining the office bore on the subject: it would become a lifestyle. Too many people go on a blitz, lose the weight, buy all new clothes, then regain the weight because they have returned to their old habits.

Dvd's right about our ancestors and our genetics. They were perpetually hungry not by choice. I think modern people would need to accept that they will be perpetually hungry for the rest of their lives if they want to be slender.

Our staple foods these days are high in fat and sugar, and over-processed because we don't want to cook. I saw a woman in the supermarket recently. I noticed her because she had a very cute but very fat child in her shopping cart. The child would point to items and the mother would put them in her cart. The mother was obese, too. Every item in her cart (that I could see without giving my snoopy behavior away, anyhow) was high in fat or sugar or both; none required cooking. (Some required microwaving but the food was pre-mixed and just needed heating, e.g. frozen macaroni and cheese.) There were no fresh fruits or vegetables, no whole-grain products. In fact there were no fruits or vegetables at all, unless you count fruit-flavored drinks or ketchup. This woman was making her decisions for both herself and her child in the supermarket. Once that type of food was in the home, of course, no attempt to restrain appetite would make any difference.

Personally I walk very fast every day, and do some exercises that Mike121 recommended that are good for people with a tendency toward a bad back. These exercises have helped a lot, both for strength and flexibility, and my back problems have disappeared.

We eat disgustingly healthy food, cooked at home, home-made lentil soups, fresh cabbage slaw (dressing thinned by half with 2% yogurt), fresh fruit (and what we don't grow ourselves I peel to get rid of some of the pesticides). But nothing will make us look like young folks again.

But that's okay. At our age, you have to consider the alternative.

Thanks for all the great responses (I'm learning stuff here! )

I think one of my problems is the clothes they sell in the stores. The shirts are getting shorter/tighter and the jeans are getting way too low. I am used to wearing normal low rise junior jeans (right below the belly button) and a cute shirt that comes right to the top button of my jeans. That is my style and it always has been. I just can't wear the new super ultra low low rise C-Section clothing line. LOL That is all I seem to see in the stores. I tried on a pair of jeans and there was like a 1/2 inch zipper. NO WAY! I left feeling horrible.

I don't think a diet is going to help me.

That was a very comprehensive answer from DvdGStwrt, but I disagree with parts of it. He's spot on the bit about the Atkins Diet though!

If you follow the right diet and exercise regime, any physically able, healthy person can obtain a six pack. Yes, genetics do come into it without a doubt, but mainly as regards how you muscle responds to exercises rather than your body fat percentage. Granted, to get a six pack, you have to be ultra strict with your diet and exercise and have to have massive amounts of willpower, but it is possible. This is certainly not the norm though. In fact to get your body fat below 10% is generally thought to be unhealthy, even though you may look toned and defined. Taking this to an extreme, bodybuilders diet and exercise to the ultimate extremes and as a consequence in many instances, damage their bodies beyond repair. Some even pay the ultimate price: their quest for the 'perfect physique' has cost numerous bodybuilders their life. This however, is mainly due to the extremes of their diet (dehydration etc.) and the use of drugs. There is speculation that Arnie's heart problem was a result of long term steroid usage. I ain't going there though!

A healthy lifestyle is the key: a sensible balanced diet and and plenty of exercise. Eat crap and don't exercise and you are increasing your chances of a whole host of medical problems. Having a high body fat percentage is not a good thing just as getting it too low is unhealthy.

TheBigGfella

You have some great thoughts. Thanks for answering.

Welcome to the pool!

clarebear,

Thank you very much. As you can see from my post, I registered ages ago, but for some reason forgot that I had until I recently tried to register only to find that I had already registered in October 2003. I hope that make sense! There's some very interesting stuff here.

The amount of responses her, and there length, show how this issue is so important to us!!

I can´t add too much, other than to agree that our food supply has alot to do with it! Mass produced food, especially animal products are loaded with stuff that is bad for us - and the psticides used on produced isn´t much better. Add the processed food industry, and we are eating food that is very far from what we were designed to eat! ( Since we are omnivores, we can survive on just about anything)

One of the results of all this unnatural food is a slowed up digestive process. The liver and intestine are overworked, slowed down, inefficient, etc. Sometimes this results in vitamin deficiencies we dont´t even know we have, like B12 or vitamin D, until we are very weak, or get sick when we are older.

In my experience ( I am not a medical practioner of any kind, just a regular person!), how our digestive system works seems to be the key to weight maintenance.

The other important side to the story is constant changing is diet - going on many diets over the years can set up sluggish metabolism.

I could write on and on, but then I would never get any work done today!:::)

LindaB

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Silja,

I'm gonna start my diet today. I better do some situps quick. Summer is here and my shorts are a little snug!



For those of you who don't know me... I've been whining about my stomach for the past 3 years. LOL