(Alaska Railroad, they made him buy a full aisle). He died from heart failure after being unable to lose his weight. I still miss him.

"Eat less and exercise.”

That’s what some of you are saying right now. That’s what some of you have said the whole time you’ve been reading. That’s what some of you say—maybe not out loud, but you say it—every time you see a fat person downing fried eggs in a diner, or overstuffing a bathing suit on the beach, or staring out from one of those good-lord-what-happened-to-her? stories in the gossip magazines.

“Eat less and exercise.”

What I want you to understand, more than anything else, is that telling a fat person “Eat less and exercise” is like telling a boxer “Don’t get hit.”

You act as if there’s not an opponent.

Losing weight is a fucking rock fight. The enemies come from all sides: The deluge of marketing telling us to eat worse and eat more. The culture that has turned food into one of the last acceptable vices. Our families and friends, who want us to share in their pleasure. Our own body chemistry, dragging us back to the table out of fear that we’ll starve.

I was wishing (as I usually do when I see an unhealthy overweight person) that he would find out that becoming healthy is easier than he thinks.

Whole foods plant based (WFPB). It can save your life.

Yes, it is definitely a helluva difficult mountain to climb, but countless people have done it.

In the end, though, it is each individual's choice. If the person decides that chronic over-eating is worth the inevitable diabetes/heart disease/early death that will surely accompany it, then we have to accept that.

keeping it off .

The literature suggests the number of people who lose weight and keep it off is extraordinarily low:

https://www.thrillist.com/health/nation/reasons-for-weight-gain-even-after-losing-weight

Nobody is suggesting overweight people shouldn't try to lose weight. What some of us are suggesting is we appreciate their burden.

WFPB requires no calorie counting. Eat until satiated. Good, satisfying comfort foods like whole wheat pasta, brown rice, and potatoes.

https://www.forksoverknives.com/our-story/#gs.9yLDUrm3

https://www.drmcdougall.com/health/shopping/books/starch-solution/


The same corporate influence controls the food and diet industry as everything else. Popular culture is filled with myths and inaccuracies about what makes us healthy. "Carbs bad!!!1" "Fat is a miracle cure!!1" Learning that what we've been taught is wrong is the first step to getting well.

fat salty food

unfortunately, medical necessity can push your hand, but some people even don't heed drastic warnings.

Stupid diets can be very harmful. Drives me crazy when people yap about potatoes and bread being bad, and recommend an idiotic all-protein (all meat) diet.

The hardest part for me is having to keep my mouth shut when I see friends and family members making themselves ill/killing themselves. I allow myself to give my speech once per person and no more. Then try to lead by example only to keep the peace. lol

Tougher than people think. I eat a lot less now than I did in my teens and 20s when I was skinny.

I have great willpower in general, but the people around me and the social requirements of food are the real enemy. Someone is always asking you or even pressuring you to eat something. Every time there is a birthday I have to say I don't want the cake and deal with the offerer's reactions. Are you sure? You have to, it's X.s birthday. I can't believe what people will do. And they can see that I need to not eat the damn stuff. I don't even like it that much at this point.

I eat salads at a particular restaurant to the point they know me and what I will order, and they still ask if I want dessert. I have no problem saying no, but don't they know by now I don't want dessert the same way they know what salad I will order? In a new one I always wonder if they see a fat person who eats salad thinking they are saving the calories for dessert.

telling a person with depression all they need to do is "cheer up."

If a one-size-fits-all solution actually worked, we'd all be one sized and use the same eyeglass prescription. I have to constantly examine new products in the "healthy" category to make sure it doesn't have something I'm allergic to. And, personally I think gluten makes the product better.

While some people are trying to figure out where their next meal is coming from...

we are shutting down the government (and not paying dedicated employees) to protect us from refugees.

I want to see how his story progresses. Thanks for posting.

They are incredibly smart, good hearted people. Tommy is a great writer, genuine to the core.

This piece is so well-written, and truly speaks to those of us who have struggled with weight/eating issues. I wish him the best in his efforts.

Thank you.

love the way he writes.

Or patients that had to lose weight to be eligible for a life saving transplant. Patients on dialysis. Patients with out of control blood sugars. Or patients who had some complication from weight loss surgery (The life of a Med-surg nurse is called variety)

Every word this man wrote is reflected in the eyes of so many patients I had.

Great writing

Tommy has a great gift and that genuineness combined with his solid reporting skills may make this book a lifesaver for those engaged with similar struggles, both physically and mentally.

People struggling with weight have little advocacy from people who not only struggle, but continue to struggle and can express the pain so eloquently. They may have a barrage of diets, “life coaches” advice or direction from health care professionals, maybe if they are lucky strong support from family and friends.

It s such a intimate journey, weight loss. Ultimately a lonely one I think. I never watch “Biggest Loser” because I found exploitative. We tell people “it’s the inside that counts” while side-eyeing what we consider flaws, secretly glad it’s not us.

.

I have three obese daughters. We tried to do everything right when they were growing up (I wasn't obese until after childbirth, when I had to lose a huge amount of weight, more and more after each pregnancy). All three daughters were active in sports - two were phenomenal soccer players. We limited snacks and had good meals. One can per day of DIET SODA once they became teens (and I could kick myself for letting that crap in the house, but what did I know?)

Our middle daughter just had weight loss surgery. She's lost 60 pounds since the end of September. I was so against her doing it, afraid for her long-term health, when she responded, "I may not have a future if I continue at this weight." Another daughter is considering it. The last one is a bit smaller than I am, no need for surgery at this time.

As a mother, as a person, I'm just horrified that this happened to my family. A niece on my husband's side is as big, as is his cousin's daughter. No one in my family, other than me, is big. It just makes you wonder.

This gentleman has all my compassion and good wishes.

I know his struggle intimately. While admittedly not at his weight, I was topping the scales at 275lbs and felt grossly overweight. I traveled in Europe and had a miserable time. I was tired, I was uncomfortable, I couldn't walk anywhere, and I felt, the whole time, like I was missing out.

I came back from that trip with a mission to lose 20lbs. Surprisingly, once I started, I kept going, and now have lost 120 lbs. My goal now is to keep it off.

Let me tell you, eat less and exercise actually does work, but damn is it hard work. Every day is a war with myself. Get up and work out or lie around and watch TV. Eat healthy or eat salty fatty food. I scour the grocery store for low calorie snacks to eat, when it would be so easy to just buy a bag of chips. It is an ongoing struggle against my cravings for food that I know is going to put that weight back on, and finding healthy alternatives.

But, I love how I look and feel now. But no, it was not and will never be easy. I will work at this for the rest of my life.

But I am big.


It's hard. Really hard. And I've tried everything except surgery (and I will not do that, short of emergency).

I try to focus on eating healthy foods and getting daily activity. I try to NOT focus on the weight. I haven;t had a ton of luck losing weight, but I have improved my health overall, so I'll call it a victory, at least so far.

Anyone who has any amount of weight to use should look into intermittent fasting and specifically the work of Dr. Jason Fung. He is a nephrologist who has made weight loss, ie fat loss, his life’s work. The Obesity Code goes deeply into the science of obesity, and how to counteract these problems. He also wrote a very good book specifically about fasting. Before anyone decides they can’t do that, please check out the science and some case histories. There are many before after accounts on YouTube and several Facebook groups. It is easier than dieting and more effective, and has other healthy benefits. There are other good short info videos; Dr Berg is a popular one on YouTube. I only had about 30 lbs to lose and am about 2/3 of the way there; it has never been so easy to lose weight. I don’t follow a Keto diet, too restrictive, but many people have had success combining this with IF. I hope this is helpful.

My BMI was 52.

Never mind the subway, or getting on a plane.

It hurt to make the bed.

It hurt to make dinner.

It hurt to stand at the sink and do dishes.


Almost everything I did made me hurt.


And so many people think fat people are lazy. Well, if you're thin and someone wrapped an extra 100 lbs. (or 200 lbs.) you might change your mind.

Tax cuts have ruined this country. There's no money for healthy school lunches (oh hell, there's no minimm wage for people to buy good food for their families), there's no money for mental health care (including food addiction), there's no money for education, there's no money to save the environment.

I'm sick of it. If there's no money for any of that stuff, than there is no money for tax cuts. AND THERE IS CERTAINLY NO MONEY for any TAX CUTS.

There is plenty of money out there and every time we give it to big business, it's crazy.

So... how do we beat Faux News to make people to believe that.

There are many more of us than them.

What is it about them that makes us not belive us?