4 ms·

Another aspect most of the "just exercise" folks don't get is what it feels like to be 300+ lbs and weak. Get out and walk for 30 minutes? Why, so I can expose

by xyience 10y ago

Another aspect most of the "just exercise" folks don't get is what it feels like to be 300+ lbs and weak. Get out and walk for 30 minutes? Why, so I can expose my gross body to the world? Running? Cycling? Haha, get out of here. And after exercising I'm going to come home and make up for it by eating more. Diet is more important than exercise. A 300+ lb person can lose 100 lbs in half a year just by changing their diet and doing no more exercise than they currently do. (I advocate the keto diet, especially if one has tried other diets and failed, but it's not the only way.) You can't out-train a bad diet.

mikestew 10y ago
Another aspect most of the "just exercise" folks don't get is what it feels like to be 300+ lbs. I have no idea, I can only imagine. Skinny all my life, competitive runner since I was 12, I've never once put on a pair of skimpy shorts and a singlet, and headed out the door for a run worried about my body image. But let me tell you a story... Buddy of mine on Xbox, played with him for years when we mutually worked at MSFT, but never "met" him. I remember he once mentioned that he weighed 400lbs. Well, one night we're playing Halo as we do on Friday nights, and he's cutting out early. "I've got a 5K to run tomorrow." Wait a minute, what? Hey, $GAMER_TAG, am I remembering right that you weigh about 400lbs.? "Used to. Doctor said to lose weight, so I started running. Lost 175lbs. so far, still have XX to go." I had to mute my microphone because I cried. I was so proud of this person I'd never met in person, but knew for years. No, I don't know what it's like to be 400lbs. But I can imagine. I can imagine what it's like to walk around with another me riding piggyback. And I can imagine the mental hurdles to overcome, the body image issues, and the other barriers that make it easy to just sit back down on the couch and say, "who am I kidding?". Instead, this person said one day, "today, I am a runner" and went out and did it. And then did it again, and again until the weight started to come off. Why, so I can expose my gross body to the world? Fuck 'em. Tell 'em this sub-3:00 marathoner said it's okay, and they can just look the other way if it bothers them. And if you see a skinny guy with a brindle pit bull dog running by you, don't worry about what he's thinking about you, because he's silently cheering you on.
rleigh 10y ago
On the cycling side, I'd have to disagree. It's one type of exercise you can get into while being very overweight: the gearing means you can start out really gently and very gradually work up over time. You can start out pottering around short distances at a very slow pace without it being too stressful. I have a friend who was unhealthily obese who started cycling, and in a year they were utterly transformed. To the point they could actually enter cycling races. And they were healthier in both mind and body--looked very healthy, and noticeably changed positive outlook. Diet is definitely important for sure, but so is exercise. Diet is controlling what's going into your body. Exercise will improve your body's metabolism, and have a host of other benefits.

by xyience 10y ago

mikestew 10y ago

Another aspect most of the "just exercise" folks don't get is what it feels like to be 300+ lbs. I have no idea, I can only imagine. Skinny all my life, competitive runner since I was 12, I've never once put on a pair of skimpy shorts and a singlet, and headed out the door for a run worried about my body image. But let me tell you a story... Buddy of mine on Xbox, played with him for years when we mutually worked at MSFT, but never "met" him. I remember he once mentioned that he weighed 400lbs. Well, one night we're playing Halo as we do on Friday nights, and he's cutting out early. "I've got a 5K to run tomorrow." Wait a minute, what? Hey, $GAMER_TAG, am I remembering right that you weigh about 400lbs.? "Used to. Doctor said to lose weight, so I started running. Lost 175lbs. so far, still have XX to go." I had to mute my microphone because I cried. I was so proud of this person I'd never met in person, but knew for years. No, I don't know what it's like to be 400lbs. But I can imagine. I can imagine what it's like to walk around with another me riding piggyback. And I can imagine the mental hurdles to overcome, the body image issues, and the other barriers that make it easy to just sit back down on the couch and say, "who am I kidding?". Instead, this person said one day, "today, I am a runner" and went out and did it. And then did it again, and again until the weight started to come off. Why, so I can expose my gross body to the world? Fuck 'em. Tell 'em this sub-3:00 marathoner said it's okay, and they can just look the other way if it bothers them. And if you see a skinny guy with a brindle pit bull dog running by you, don't worry about what he's thinking about you, because he's silently cheering you on.

rleigh 10y ago

On the cycling side, I'd have to disagree. It's one type of exercise you can get into while being very overweight: the gearing means you can start out really gently and very gradually work up over time. You can start out pottering around short distances at a very slow pace without it being too stressful. I have a friend who was unhealthily obese who started cycling, and in a year they were utterly transformed. To the point they could actually enter cycling races. And they were healthier in both mind and body--looked very healthy, and noticeably changed positive outlook. Diet is definitely important for sure, but so is exercise. Diet is controlling what's going into your body. Exercise will improve your body's metabolism, and have a host of other benefits.