health risks

Okay and something else that has definately been on my mind lately.. obesity that causes sleep disorders. I am interning at a med center this summer and you would not believe the people that come in who had sleep apnea and need breathing epuipment at night. I guess i am not suprised that having excess weight on your stomach and chest can cause you to not breath as well when sleeping but i am also suprised at how relaxed the people are that come in with this problem. I've notices its mostly men who come in and think its funny. They joke about their size and what its doing to their health. Omg. My own dad should probably check with his doctor to make sure he isnt have moments at night when he is not breathing due to his excess weight. I certainly do not think it is something to joke about though. There are SO many health risks associated with obesity that i cant imagine why some of these patients arent doing anything to help themselves. They get mad at the doctors for putting them on special diets (fat free or low sodium for example). UM seriously these people are just trying to help you LIVE longer. Trust me, i would be mad too if someone told me i had to lay off the junk food and go cold turky to fruits and veggie snacks everyday. But given that choice or death... pass the celery, please.

easy plan

I just heard about a great new 'diet' technique thats not really a diet but more like a eating schedule. I've been doing this (or trying to) for the past few days and its really pretty easy. Basically each three major meal gets a calorie amount - 300, 400, 500 for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you throw in three 200 calorie snacks throughout the day, you are only eating 1600 calories a day. I'm a strong believer that the way to lose weight is to have less calories in and more calories burned. So team this method up with everyday exercise and wa-la..results. Not that i follow it strickly and measure out each meal. But i am suprised at how much you can actually eat if you load up with 'healthy' choices versus fast food or potato chips.
Last night my mom had mentioned having ice cream after dinner which of course sounded like a fabulous idea. She buys the 'lite' kind so i thought i was being good by eating that kind. Then she brought out the chocolate shell stuff you put on top so of course we loaded our ice cream with it. Just out of curiousity i checked what the calories were in it... omg.. 210 for TWO tablespoons. I'm guessing i had about ten tablespoons which when i caculate with the ice cream.. was a disgusting after dinner choice. So whoops. Next time i will have to pay more attention to the labels.

This assignment was supposed to be about a current issue we are interested in. I am definately always thinking about the obesity epidemic in the world, esp. in the US. It really bothers me that guys aren't look down upon with as much criticism as women are. A college aged guy with a monster beer gut is fine, but a girl with a gut.. watch out. It's so lame. I never hear guys complaining about needing to go on diets (when plenty of them do) while I think about my own weight everyday. I think my worrying about becoming obese started when i watched a family member of mine actually die from her weight. It was so sad and the worst part is that it could have been prevented.

The other day my family and I were out to eat. We sat down next to a family of five (mom, dad, three kids). The parents were very overweight. The children were well on their way and were obviously heavy for their age and size. What suprised me the most was the the parents were letting the kids drink pop. I mean, these kids are no older than 7 or 8. The kids even ordered off of the adult menus. Are you kidding me? I feel so sorry for these children because they don't stand a chance in this world. I wanted to go scream in their parents face for not caring enough about what type of food goes into their children's bodies. It was obvious that they were not just splurging because they were out at a resturant either. How are these children ever going to learn healthy eating and lifestyle choices if their parents dont care enough about it to teach them. It's a really sad cycle of unhealthy habits being passed down from generation to generation.

losing my freshmen weight

Everyone knows that overweight people have increased risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, and countless other illnesses. But there are so many things a person can do to lose a few pounds. After my weight gain freshmen year I tried this whole lifestyle change and only eating 'good' things and cutting out all the junk food. This would never work for me though, as I found out about 2 days in. From what I have experienced, the best way to lose a few pounds is seriously to just get up and exercise for 30 minutes or so everyday and eat sensibly. Cutting out pop and sugar filled juice drinks helps a lot too (plus there are no more caffeine headaches in the morning). When I didn't want to actually have to work out or eat right I used to take these ridiculous green tea pills that were supposed to boost your metabolism and help you lose weight faster. Needless to say, they did not work. I think I'll just stick to a little exercise and eating better and save my money for things I can really use instead of wasting it on weight loss pills.

Freshman Fifteen

Before beginning college I had heard a rumor about the 'freshman fifteen' that I was about to pack on as I left for school in the fall, but completely dismissed it. In May, as the school year was coming to an end, my mom came down to the dorms to visit me. I had asked her to bring me my favorite pair of capris that I had bought my senior year of high school because the weather was getting nice and I wanted to show them off. That evening after she left I went over to a girlfriend's dorm room to get ready for the evening. As I was changing into my capris I realized something absolutely horrible. They did not fit like they used to. Sure I was able to squeeze into them, however, my legs were smooshed and and I could definitely see my stomach hanging over the top of the pants. I had not realized that I had actually put on any weight until this moment. And at that moment, I wanted to kick myself. I knew I had been eating terribly for the past year, but I had always maintained a thin physique in high school and didn't think that the extra calories would catch up to me. Needless to say, I made a mission the following summer to lose those extra pounds. Although the research I have done on this myth has shown that it is more like the 'freshmen 6-7 pounds' rather than fifteen, I would strongly encourage students entering college to watch what they eat and continue to be active. It is not a pleasant surprise when you can't fit into your pants.