Why Women Lose Weight—or Don’t

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU PUT TOO MUCH WATER ON A PLANT? IT DIES. BUT IF YOU USE WATER IN MODERATION IT GROWS BEAUTIFUL. ANY HUMAN BODY OR MIND THAT IS NOT IN EQUILIBRIUM WILL CAUSE DISEASE AT THE LONG TERM. ANY EXCESS WILL CAUSE DESEASE. WAKE UP AND ASK TO YOUR SELF WHAT IS RIGHT OR WRONG INSTEAD OF LISTENING TO CORRUPT SCIENTIST PAID BY BIG CORPORATION THAT SUPPORT THEIR HORMONES JUNK GARBAGE FOOD AND CHEMICALS

Weight is such a personal and sensitive issue. We need to not only look at the number on the scale but the whole picture, such as body fat percentage, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, etc. I am 5'6" and weigh 175 lbs. I wear anything between a 12 and 16 and sometimes have to venture into the plus sizes for shirts. I excercise daily ( about 60 minutes of walking/running/weights depending on my mood), my body fat percentage is about 22%, my lab work is all in normal range and my blood pressure is never over 128/72. Yet, if you were to look at the number on the scale or my BMI, I am considered overweight. My point is we are all different shapes and body compositions. I think we need to focus on the individual and doctors/researchers should help set a standard on an individual basis and not spread it like a blanket to all of us. We need to focus more on good nutrition, ensuring blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, etc. are under control, and the root issues of being overweight, (depression, abuse, low self-esteem). And this study needs to include men as a lot of them are overweight too!

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU PUT TOO MUCH WATER ON A PLANT? IT DIES. BUT IF YOU USE WATER IN MODERATION IT GROWS BEAUTIFUL. ANY HUMAN BODY OR MIND THAT IS NOT IN EQUILIBRIUM WILL CAUSE DISEASE AT THE LONG TERM. ANY EXCESS WILL CAUSE DESEASE. WAKE UP AND ASK TO YOUR SELF WHAT IS RIGHT OR WRONG INSTEAD OF LISTENING TO CORRUPT SCIENTIST PAID BY BIG CORPORATION THAT SUPPORT THEIR HORMONES JUNK GARBAGE FOOD AND CHEMICALS

Back in the 80s there was this mantra about weight; It's not what your eating, but whats eating you. There is alot of emotional eating done in this country. That said I do have a thyroid disease and yet I don't want to let my thyroid control my desire to have a healthy weight and have good health. What I got out of this article, was like so much of everything in life; it all starts with your thoughts. Where your mind goes your behind follows! So at the end of the day what matters most is; Are you happy in your own skin? Cheers to being the best you can be!!!

Congratulations on the weightloss MsMA!! I too cut out wheat and corn. And it is amazing how much cornsyrup is in everything. And how that stuff just packs on the weight.

I do discriminate against overweight men as well.. I won't date a guy that is over weight.. I totally get the few pounds here and there but when that goes over 15-20.. I prefer them physically fit. And I have had a lot of guys that were over weight ask me out and I do tell them that they are great guys, but that health and fitness are very important to me. And while I get that it is not all about looks.. but to me it is about physical activity. I want to go out and roller skate in the parks, and exercise at the gym together and do physical activities together. Not sit on the couch eatting chips. It comes down to a lifestyle.. And I am not going to go date a guy in hopes that he will catch on and loose weight sometime down the road.

i dont know why people are settling for less then there best its sad to see people lower there standerds it shows a decline in socity today.

Being overweight does not only affect the overweight individual. They have increased health risks. They might be hospitalized for a simple procedure, but due to their size they suffer complications and remain hospitalized longer often at the cost of the taxpayers. You can actually measure the costs of obesity in dollars that our nation has to absorb. Second, as a nurse, I have suffered SEVERAL back injuries from caring for overweight people in the hospital. In order to turn them in bed we have to gather up four people to help us move them - just to prevent us from hurting ourselves while hefting their bodies around. It doesn't only affect them: when I have to take time off work or collect worker's compensation due to an injury resulting from another person's obesity, it affects my ability to provide for my family and jeopardizes my job.

To healthy4evr: I found your comments very helpful this particular day, I am going to print them up and paste them into my notebook that I am keeping for my weight and health. My BMI today is 31.7, and my age is 68. I don't feel it is ever too late to work toward a healthier version of yourself. I have arthritis, High Blood pressure, I can't walk any distance without being in pain. I woke up and realized I want to healthy, so I am working toward that goal. Thanks,healthy4evr.

MOando:

Being overweight does not only affect the overweight individual. They have increased health risks. They might be hospitalized for a simple procedure, but due to their size they suffer complications and remain hospitalized longer often at the cost of the taxpayers. You can actually measure the costs of obesity in dollars that our nation has to absorb. Second, as a nurse, I have suffered SEVERAL back injuries from caring for overweight people in the hospital. In order to turn them in bed we have to gather up four people to help us move them - just to prevent us from hurting ourselves while hefting their bodies around. It doesn't only affect them: when I have to take time off work or collect worker's compensation due to an injury resulting from another person's obesity, it affects my ability to provide for my family and jeopardizes my job.

Perhaps if we used our bodies the way in which evolution has fashioned them to be used, we would not have this obesity problem. Look at your body and think about it: It is obviously made to walk, run, leap, twist, reach, crouch and jump. In a natural environment we would spend a large part of our time running from predators, hunting for food, running after game and migrating on foot to new locations with seasonal changes. Instead, many if not most of us spend our days working at sedentary jobs where we never challenge our bodies and in fact never even break a sweat. No doubt sitting in a car every day during our ever-lengthening commutes between home and work adds to the problem. And life seems to get busier and busier for people, cutting more and more into time that might otherwise be used for exercise. Where food is concerned, in a natural environment we would be eating nothing but real, unadulterated, organic food instead of subsisting on the horrific diet of the average American...processed food stripped of nutrients, foods grown on mineral-depleted soils and laden with pesticide residues, and food laced with unnatural, non-food additives never found in nature, Our bodies are wonderfully resilient and adaptable, but abused in these ways day after day, should we be surprised that the eventual result is a degeneration into imbalance, toxicity, disease...and yes, obesity?

I'm just curious why it is only women's weight that matters. Is it possible that the double standard is alive and well in this supposedly enlighted age?? Where is the study telling us that men who are overweight by 50 pounds are not trying to lose more than a few pounds. Oh, wait, that's not news, that's normal. Men have had this attitude for years, and we women are now just catching up.

Just so you all know, I am in my 50s and have been overweight most of my adult life. I found the cause of my weight problem in a food allergy. I wonder how many other people out there have food allergies that are not addressed because doctors are only given 16 hours of nutrition study in their long schooling. If you can't lose weight no matter what you do, try this diet: give up everything that has wheat or corn in it for a month... eat rice instead. Wheat is a really bad allergy for me and many others, and corn though not as much, but hey, they use corn to fatten cattle for market- and they don't butter it for them either- so I can't see how they tout it as a good diet food! I gave up wheat the first time when I tried the Atkins diet, which worked until I started adding whole wheat bread back into my diet. I have found that avoiding wheat is the key to my health... no bread, no pasta, no gravy made with normal flour. Since so much of our food has either wheat or corn in it, this has been quite a challenge, but one well worth it. I have lost about 30 pounds this last year, and my food cravings are under control for the first time in my lie... sometimes I even forget to eat when I am busy. If you do try this, be sure to read the labels on everything that goes into your mouth! They put corn syrup in *everything* including packaged drinks and even some supposed health foods.

For Sunnyk- forgive me for being rude to you.

You are scared.......

Now we are getting somewhere. Your weight loss attempts have been a failure for whatever reason. Now, it is time to try again. I will assume you are about 5 feet-seven and now weigh 210 pounds. That's husky, I believe. Remember, it took you 15 years to get to your present weight. Assuming that 135 pounds would be a reasonable goal- that means you are 75 pounds away.

This will be your plan. Over the next five years, lose 15 pounds per year. When you are twenty, you will have reached your goal. Staying there will require discipline. Don't get pregnant too soon in your twenties.

Did you ever hear about a man named Gandhi? He would fast for weeks. He was very skinny. Fasting one day per week may work for you. Just don't double up on day three.

Oh, there is no evidence that "over-weight" people have a "reserve" when they get sick or need surgery. Starving during an illness is common, but muscle mass goes first, then organs are damaged, and finally the fat is metabolized.

I just wanted to jump on and say something about the "ideal weight" of women in America.
I am wondering where they get these numbers from? I think I know maybe 5 women that fall into their ideal weight and they are the kind of people that can eat whatever they want and never gain a pound!
At 5'3" I am 220 pounds. overweight, sure I am! BUT I have zero cholesteral issues, not a lick or hint of diabetes, heart disease, anything except I am fat. Now, what size clothing do you think I would wear? A 22/24 according to the "size charts. SOME charts say even bigger. In reality, I wear a 16/18 and sometimes a 20 in tops.....depends on the designer. Recently I visited my physician 3 times in the past month. NOTHING weight related, a recurring infrection. On ALL 3 occasions, the dr set the scale at 150 believing my weight to be around 170-180. My point is, at 220 I do not look like it as do MANY other owmen in this country. So WHY burden us down with these arbitrary numbers? If doctors/researchers truly cared about our "health" then why not keep the focus on EATING healthy foods. I many eat more food than some, and I do have snacks, BUT for the most part, I eat home made whole wheat breads, Barilla PLus pastas, LOTS of salads and veggies, Lots of fryuits. I drink 3-4 quarts of water a day and I am extremely OBESE according to some "charts". Eat healthy ladies!! Enjoy a snack here and there. think about the choices and do NOTY kill yourself over what "they" say you should weigh. When is it ever going to be enough?

I just wanted to jump on and say something about the "ideal weight" of women in America.
I am wondering where they get these numbers from? I think I know maybe 5 women that fall into their ideal weight and they are the kind of people that can eat whatever they want and never gain a pound!
At 5'3" I am 220 pounds. overweight, sure I am! BUT I have zero cholesteral issues, not a lick or hint of diabetes, heart disease, anything except I am fat. Now, what size clothing do you think I would wear? A 22/24 according to the "size charts. SOME charts say even bigger. In reality, I wear a 16/18 and sometimes a 20 in tops.....depends on the designer. Recently I visited my physician 3 times in the past month. NOTHING weight related, a recurring infrection. On ALL 3 occasions, the dr set the scale at 150 believing my weight to be around 170-180. My point is, at 220 I do not look like it as do MANY other owmen in this country. So WHY burden us down with these arbitrary numbers? If doctors/researchers truly cared about our "health" then why not keep the focus on EATING healthy foods. I many eat more food than some, and I do have snacks, BUT for the most part, I eat home made whole wheat breads, Barilla PLus pastas, LOTS of salads and veggies, Lots of fryuits. I drink 3-4 quarts of water a day and I am extremely OBESE according to some "charts". Eat healthy ladies!! Enjoy a snack here and there. think about the choices and do NOTY kill yourself over what "they" say you should weigh. When is it ever going to be enough?

I would first like to say that I have had a weight issue since the teens . I travel in and out of our country USA and every time I return I see more and more people with weight problems. It would seem that we eat out more in our country and perhaps it is the way the food is processed . High salt and other chemicals. I know there is a group that will say push away from the table good solution I suppose, but not always successful. I think that everyone has to deal with it in their own way, I am very happy that I have finally reached a point in my life that the Joebruins of the world can go look in their own mirror and try to figure out why they feel like they do about people. I love my job, husband, son and my family. I have lots of friends and travel a great deal. Yes joe bruins you are right my body does work hard to keep me going but I have decided that I am going to enjoy life no matter what they outer shell. Also the people that I truly care about their opinions are the ones that I know love me and care about my welfare not as a judgement, but as a concern. Have agreat day. It's already SUnday where I am living at this present time