Do something different this holiday season. Check out
my list of 34 great gifts you can make yourself!
The High Cost of Being Fat
Wednesday, 18th October 2006 (by J.D.)This article is about Health & Fitness, Real-Life, Self-Improvement
If you're new here, you may want to learn what this site is about. I encourage you to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
I am fat.
I am fat, but I am not obese. I do not pause to catch my breath when climbing stairs. I do not avoid hikes or sports for fear of failure. But — no mistake — I am fat. I am far above my normal weight. I carry 205 pounds on a frame built for someone forty pounds lighter. [PDF: Body mass index and health, from the USDA.]
How does this relate to personal finance? Your health is your most important asset. Not your house. Not your car. Not your job. Not your retirement account. These are secondary. Your health is your most important asset. Even someone as young as I am (37) can face serious financial repercussions from being overweight.
According to the USDA, “overweight or obese people are more likely than those at normal weight to have medical problems such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, stroke, diabetes, and heart disease.” Furthermore:
According to the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control, in 2003-2004, an estimated 66 percent of U.S. adults were overweight or obese, along with 17 percent of children and adolescents. The total annual cost of obesity was an estimated $117 billion in 2000.
Another USDA publication [PDF: "Health Insurance, Obesity, and Its Economic Costs"], breaks down the individual cost of being fat:
The lifetime medical costs related to diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, hypertension, and stroke among the obese are $10,000 higher than among the non-obese. Among the overweight, lifetime medical costs can be reduced by $2,200 to $5,300 following a 10-percent reduction in body weight.
Being fat costs money. It costs time. (Overweight people have shorter lifespans.) And it costs mental capital, too. I have experienced these costs in my own life.
- Four years ago, I destroyed the ACL in my right knee while playing city-league soccer. I was out of shape and overweight, and my body betrayed me. I spent six months hobbling around, unaware of the injury’s extent. Ultimately, after several doctor’s visits, I had an MRI, surgery, and physical therapy. Even with insurance, this was expensive, especially considering I hadn’t yet wised-up financially. (Cost: roughly $2,000, and a loss of mobility in my right knee.)
- Like many who are overweight, I suffer from sleep apnea. Last summer, I spent two nights in a sleep lab. I was given a prescription for a C-PAP machine. (Cost: $734.54, and that damned mask strapped to my face every night for the past year.)
- When overweight, I suffer from mild depression. It afflicts my self-esteem and saps my will. (Cost: more mental than financial, thus far.)
- Whenever I get heavy, I always join a gym. I pay for a year in advance, go for a couple weeks, and then gradually lose interest. Soon the guilt of having paid hundreds of dollars for a service I am not using becomes overwhelming, which makes matters worse. (Cost: Nothing out-of-pocket — paid by employer. I used to pay $300-$500/year.)
- As I get bigger, I’m forced to buy new clothes. My wardrobe increases as I do. I tell myself that I’ll have lots of clothes when I lose the weight, but so far I’m only buying new. (Cost: about $200/year.)
- Ultimately I spend more on food to subsidize my fat than I do when I eat healthfully. I’ve never examined the actual costs, but I’m sure all the candy and chips and soda are a steady drain on my funds.
In the past four years, I have paid $4500 because I am fat. And that doesn’t include food.
This post is not a pity party. It is a rallying cry for anyone who is out of shape, who has allowed their physical fitness to lapse. I know many adults who are at a healthy weight but who do not exercise. Just half an hour of exercise every day promotes better fitness. Regular physical activity reduces the risk of cancer and improves self-esteem. Just do it!
If you would like to pursue a course of fitness, here are some helpful tools.
- Joe’s Goals, a free online goal tracker.
- FitDay, a free web-based diet and weight loss journal. I’ve used this on-and-off for several years. I recommend it.
- The book that helped me defeat the fat in 1997 is Realities of Nutrition. It’s fantastic. It doesn’t try to convince you one diet is better than another. It lays out the facts about nutrition. It describes what carbohydrates are, what fat is, what protein is, and explains how they work in concert to give the body energy.
- The 29 healthiest foods on the planet
- The world’s healthiest foods
When I stood on the scales on the evening of 07 May 1997, I was horrified. I weighed 200 pounds. I was 28 years old. How had I grown so heavy? I steeled my mind. Over the course of the next six months, I dedicated myself to eating healthy and exercising daily. I lost 42 pounds before falling off the wagon on Halloween night. Despite continued battles with food, for two years I remained fit. But then the weight came back.
I am ready to lose it again.
51 Responses to “The High Cost of Being Fat”
Leave a Reply
Subscribe to comments on this post via RSS feed.
October 18th, 2006 at 5:44 am
Here’s a better tool: http://www.johnstonefitness.com
Get inspired: http://www.johnstonefitness.com/all/front/w.php
Learn: http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=19229 http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=1222
Succeed with the help of the community:
http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/
October 18th, 2006 at 6:05 am
JD - Love your website. I have lost about 40 pounds in the last four months, using some of the tools you mention above (specifically FitDay). Keep at it, it’s nothing but hard work.
I also really like the approach of the “No S Diet” (www.nosdiet.com), although it’s probably not as “hard-core” as some of us type-As would like.
October 18th, 2006 at 6:18 am
I am also Fat(but not really obese), I will join you!… I was reading an article the other day that being fat makes you dumber as well. I’m pretty sure McDonalds CheeseBurgers were invented to keep me poor, and from taking over the world…
Here’s to getting rich slowly and global domination!
Thanks for such a great website by the way, it has really helped put a lot of my poor financial planning and spending habits in perspective!
-James T
October 18th, 2006 at 6:28 am
Nice post, very personal in nature.
I think the key is to find some type of physical activity that keeps you interested, and motivated.
For me, about 5-years ago I found ultimate frisbee… ok, the sport has a silly name, but the fundemantals are amazing.
1) You can start playing at any age, and with any skill/fitness level.
2) It is a non-contact sport, so there’s minimal risk of getting injured (no more than running in most cases)
3) There is a lot of running… but in recreational leagues, there is less running, you can take what you want from the sport.
4) It’s fun, keeps you in shape, and is highly addictive.
Canadian Governing Body
USA Governing Body
NG
October 18th, 2006 at 6:30 am
The problem is that the diet industry makes 40 billion dollars on something that does not work. Show me any long term study that shows that the majority of people lose more than 10% of their body weight, and are able to keep it off. That number is very very small, yet we pay billions to fit into societies ideal weight categories.
Add to that fact that a lot of the problems “caused” by being overweight are now being attributed to other factors, namely poor diet, little exercise, and yo-yo dieting, and society has set up obese people to a lifetime of failure.
October 18th, 2006 at 6:32 am
I’ll add that another cost is the extra cost of life insurance (and probably disability insurance?). I wrote about this after finding out that if I lost 10 pounds, I would qualify for a rate that would save me $100/year.
October 18th, 2006 at 6:39 am
I didn’t realize hrefs don’t work.
The addresses are:
http://www.canadianultimate.com
http://www.upa.org
October 18th, 2006 at 6:47 am
May I also recommend Traineo. It’s starting to build itself as the Myspace of weight loss.
October 18th, 2006 at 7:10 am
Not sure where I got this link — Boingboing perhaps? — but it has some good info on tracking intake and weight loss with a lowly Excel sheet:
http://jeremy.zawodny.com/blog/archives/006836.html
Being fat myself and very much into changing that status, I hope you’ll keep us up to speed on your own progress so we can cheer you on.
October 18th, 2006 at 7:34 am
I think the intro to “The Hacker’s Diet”, which is available for free online is very relevant:
[There's an old Wall Street tale: a tyro asks an old-timer, “How do you make money in the market.” The wise man answers, “Nothing could be simpler: buy low, sell high.” The beginner asks, “How can I learn to do that?” The sage responds, “Ahhhh…that takes a lifetime.” Simple doesn't mean easy.
There is no magic secret to losing weight and keeping it off, just as there is no hidden key to instant wealth. Nonetheless, every year another crop of “magic diet” and “secrets of investing” books appear on already-creaking shelves. The human capacity to ignore inconvenient facts and avoid unpleasantness is immense. Success in any endeavour requires coming to terms with the true nature of the task at hand and, if the goal is worth the effort, getting on with it.
“How can I lose weight?” “Simple, eat less food than your body burns.” “How can I learn to do that?” Read this book.]
There is so much advice out there for dieting that it’s really easy to lose focus on the simplicity of what must be done. Check out the Hacker’s Diet here
http://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/e4/
October 18th, 2006 at 7:57 am
JD,
Your story is frighteningly like my own. I just tore my ACL last January playing soccer and had it reconstructed a few months ago. I was at 215 pounds. Since then I’ve lost 30 pounds and am playing soccer again, and am running my first 5K in a few weeks.
http://www.makelovenotdebt.com/2006/01/the_cost_of_good_health.php
http://www.makelovenotdebt.com/2006/04/recovering_from_surgery_ensure.php
I’ve tracked my calories using Fitday as well. For the excersie newbies who may also be geeks, you may want to try this neat web 2.0 program:
http://www.runfatboy.net/
October 18th, 2006 at 8:00 am
Thanks for the support, everyone.
The hardest thing for me is that — as with my finances before — I know what I should be doing, but often consciously choose the opposite. I understand sound nutrition, but I mostly choose to ignore it.
This was the same with my finances at one time.
Maybe I need to start a weblog called “Get Fit Slowly”. HA!
October 18th, 2006 at 10:02 am
Getting in shape is the same thing as getting wealthy- it takes self discpline and hard work- but most people don’t want to hear that. It really is that easy- even if it isn’t that easy! JD- how about your train for something? You are good at working towards goals. Right now, I am training to run the PF Chang half marathon in Phz in January. I have a goal I’m working consistently towards, I have a couple friends running with me to keep me on track, and it helps all other areas of my life. Wanna run with us? (wink)
October 18th, 2006 at 10:23 am
““How can I lose weight?” “Simple, eat less food than your body burns.” “How can I learn to do that?” Read this book.”
Or ‘try my diet’ which you can learn about by buying my book.
Lots of people think the answer is ‘eat less food than your body burns’. That is not *quite* the answer, although it may work for you if you are more overweight. Its a good place to start, but the *real* answer is ‘diet and exercise’.
And by diet I don’t mean the Atkins/southbeach/flavor-of-the-week, I mean diet in the sense of *the sum total of what you eat*. I find that for me personally, the deprivation of sweets method mentioned above does nothing but make me want to eat more sweets. My approach is to ‘be sensible’ about what I eat, and drink mostly water or unsweetened tea. ‘be sensible’ means eating smaller portions, eating food that I grew up eating (ie. food mom used to make), ***hardly ever eating fast food*** (this one is important), and drinking soda only occasionally (even ‘diet’ soda).
Exercise means learning what your weight loss ‘zone’ is, and being ‘in the zone’ for at least 12 minutes each time I exercise (but preferably more). THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. If you go above the zone, you will build stamina and make your heart stronger, but will burn way less fat.
Your estimated weight loss zone is found by subtracting your age from 220, and then taking 50-60% of that number. What happens when you exercise in your zone is it takes your body about 12 minutes to burn through the various sugars that it keeps around, then it starts producing the fat burning enzymes. These enzymes remain active for anywhere from 6-12 hours after exercising. The longer you stay ‘in the zone’ beyond 12 minutes, the more fat you will burn all night long after exercising.
Finally, this is a long term plan for weight loss. What you are doing is trying to increase your metabolism over the long term, not just burn fat. You should expect to lose no more than 2-3 pounds per month using this method, and that is about the results I am seeing. I have gone from a 36-38 waist size to a 33-34 in about 6 months. My only complaint now is that my clothes are too baggy
October 18th, 2006 at 10:32 am
The first part of my comment is that I was very much like yourself, though I haven’t quite started noticing the cost of being overweight. Since I met my fiance I’ve managed to go from 235-240 to weighing 205 this morning. I’m still a bit overweight but what helped me more than going to the gym semi-regularily is the fact that my gym included a nutritionist. The simple facts that he imparted have definitely spurned my weight loss. At the beginning of the summer I weighed 220 and I haven’t gone on a gym craze or done anything drastic, just changed some habits and started exercising a bit more.
I know your pain, I’m a smoker and I’ve been ‘quitting’ for years with some minor success here and there but nothing concrete. It’s a constant struggle but the very first step is is realizing you want to make the change. Then set some realistic goals… and then pretend its a money issue and become hell bent on achieving it. I’ll be attempting something similar with my smoking.
Good Luck!!
October 18th, 2006 at 11:04 am
GAAAAAAH! Read my post icup!!!
The Hacker’s Diet is available for FREE. It was written by the founder of AutoDesk, best known for AutoCAD and has been available completely free since the early 1990’s.
Diet and exercise are the only natural ways to ‘eat less food than your body burns’…so, yeah, that’s the answer. Just hit the link and see what the guy has to say before you say it’s just like everything else…and before I have an aneurism…
October 18th, 2006 at 11:33 am
Don, I thought I was agreeing with your post…
October 18th, 2006 at 11:41 am
For me the key to losing weight is “getting on the bandwagon”. Once I develop a work out routine I find it much easier to eat healthier and do other small things - it helps with my overall motivation. Gym buddies are also great, sometimes you need someone to drag you there!
JD, I read this article recently that many Americans chose not to act on nutritional information (http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=71361&m=1FNUO17&c=tqxekbtsdixmbvv)
which was a real eye opener. A lot of times we need more than just knowing something is bad to help is avoid it!
I try to stay pretty even keel by eating in moderation, portion control and not cutting myself off totally from things I like, just eating less of them.
October 18th, 2006 at 11:55 am
The best thing I’ve found for fitness is to not engage in pointless exercise during what should be your leisure–just exert more effort doing things you would otherwise:
1. Go to work, but walk or bike instead of driving.
2. Go to the mall, but park at the far end of the lot and walk to the doors.
3. Visit your allergist on the 12th floor of the medical building, but take the stairs instead of the elevator.
October 18th, 2006 at 11:56 am
P.S. If you use the personalized Google homepage, check out “the Google 15″ module.
October 18th, 2006 at 12:03 pm
Hehe…sorry…I got bent out of shape. I just don’t think the Hacker’s Diet falls into the whole “buy my book–try my diet” money-making scheme. It explains dieting and exercise in a thoughtful way, which was very helpful to me. So I got defensive…
I also find the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines helpful:
http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines/
I’d subscribe to “Get Fit Slowly”, JD…there’s plent of material to cover there.
October 18th, 2006 at 12:22 pm
Ouch! That hits home! Thanks!
October 18th, 2006 at 12:22 pm
oh, i see what you mean. I originally read that as the Hacker’s Diet book was an alternative to the whole “try-my-diet-buy-my-book mentality”, and I clumsily tried to add my two cents about the mentality, not that book. totally my bad.
Also, to the person who mentioned having a ‘gym buddy’. I think this is ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL to a gym membership. You don’t even have to do the same things at the gym. You just have to have somebody who drags you there when you don’t feel like going and vice -versa
October 18th, 2006 at 12:29 pm
I’ve been using
http://www.thedailyplate.com
to track calories and fitness stuff. 6 months ago, I was an overweight 210 - now I’m around 180 - in the normal zone, but borderline.
October 18th, 2006 at 1:55 pm
I think overweight, especially obese, people need to pay higher health insurance (I live in Canada). It might be enough to make at least some of them change their expensive habits (making it more expensive).
October 18th, 2006 at 3:51 pm
I’ve been going to a gym for exactly two months and have made a lot of progress. It really helps that the gym is two blocks from my house, it’s easy to go. My husband is also going to a gym near his work and doing very well. Having a spouse go on a weight loss program at the same time is a huge motivator.
I agree that spending/saving habits and eating/exercise habits are closely related. They say you shouldn’t check your investments too often so you won’t obsess on the day to day fluxuations, and the same for weighing yourself.
October 18th, 2006 at 4:42 pm
On the other side of the coin however…
“Thin people are beautiful, but fat people are adorable.”
– Jackie Gleason
Cheers,
Marcus
October 18th, 2006 at 7:24 pm
[...] I really liked this post from the Get Rich Slowly blog. It’s a finance blog but J.D has written a posting that I believe may be of interest to many of our readers. [...]
October 19th, 2006 at 6:56 am
Thanks for the post! It inspired me to ride my bike in today.
October 19th, 2006 at 4:23 pm
[...] J.D. has a great article up at Get Rich Slowly talking about the high cost of being fat. He really digs into the experiences of his own life and how being overweight has impacted his mental sharpness, happiness, and productivity. Not to mention the shorter average life span that comes with the extra pounds. It is a great post and the quote above is from his article. [...]
October 19th, 2006 at 4:56 pm
I am riding my bike to downtown on T-R each week, where I put it on the bus for the rest of the trip to work. Then I ride the whole trip home (which is mostly downhill, but still about 12 miles). I have also stopped drinking more than one beer per day. If I have a second glass, it’s wine. Now we eat out once per week instead of 3-4, like we did this past summer. I have gone in one month from 195 to 188 and I feel so much better! I have about 20 lbs. to go. Good luck to all of us!
October 21st, 2006 at 12:18 pm
[...] Walking two miles helped me get some exercise as I move toward better fitness. [...]
October 23rd, 2006 at 8:36 am
Screw gyms! too expensive and inconvenient.
Buy some basic exercise equipment (exercise ball, exercise step, resistance bands, a pair of 5 pound weights). Buy 4 or 5 exercise vids (see my own recommendations . With all that, you’re talking about about $100 investment–for a cardio/strength solution that you can do anywhere–with instructions from a highly qualified trainer.
October 23rd, 2006 at 9:48 am
[...] High cost of being fat. See also this outdated-but-persuasive denunciation of milk and vegetarian recipes online Found on a digg comment: Rule #1 of the Internets : Anyone claiming to be a girl IRL, isn’t. [...]
October 24th, 2006 at 6:09 am
“Four years ago, I destroyed the ACL in my right knee while playing city-league soccer. I was out of shape and overweight, and my body betrayed me.”
Like no skinny person has ever injured their knees… How many times has it been said that exercise- even just 1/2 hour of walking per day- is the biggest indicator of health?!? Sporadic weekend warrior activity is the surest way to injury.
“When overweight, I suffer from mild depression. It afflicts my self-esteem and saps my will.”
This is from lack of exercise- not size. Get off your duff and into the sunshine. Fresh air and exercise will make you feel better. Self esteem and its ties to size are societal- own your body. It’s how you interface with the world- love it at any size and accept it for what it is.
“Ultimately I spend more on food to subsidize my fat than I do when I eat healthfully. I’ve never examined the actual costs, but I’m sure all the candy and chips and soda are a steady drain on my funds.”
Junk is junk. Don’t even THINK about switching to diet sodas or crutch foods if you are cutting the junk out. Study after study has revealed that people who drink one or more diet sodas per day are likely to continue to GAIN weight. The current thought behind this is that you still have the taste for sweet and junky- so one is more apt to cheat, thinking “oh well at least I’m drinking diet soda.”
Before others start flaming me back- I am a large person (5′9″- 250 lbs of fun) who eats right and exercises daily. My life partner had a gastric bypass 2 years ago and is half my overall volume— and strength. She is unable to keep up with the kids as well as I do and needs rest several times a day. To me, the old axiom of move it or lose it is the most believable!
October 27th, 2006 at 9:12 am
I am fat too, and your post has inspired me to do something about it. Thanks, J.D.!
November 1st, 2006 at 4:15 pm
I’m with you, JD.
I joined Weight Watchers 3 weeks ago (-7 lbs). I enjoy it and am more apt to follow that than something online - though I do use their online tools.
I prefer to work out at home (every other day) with my DVDs, weights, etc. The cost of the gym is just not something I’m interested in taking on right now. Also, I’m walking 3 or 4 miles on the non DVD days. This is a good fit for me right now as I work back into shape.
Also, I played in a softball tournament a few weekends ago and it’s easy to see how being out of shape is a danger. Trying to “sprint” to first base was a joke!
I wish you luck and I’ll keep you posted on my progress.
November 1st, 2006 at 4:16 pm
PS, My mom read somewhere that overweight people cause their car to get worse gas mileage! EGADS!
November 1st, 2006 at 4:54 pm
I hope you loose weight and reading the whole article i agree perfectly that it is a mental thing more of than a physical thing and its that thing that stops you in your path not now and then but everytime, i want to say more but i would just say that thankyou for sharing.
Adeel
November 13th, 2006 at 12:12 pm
And while you may not want to believe it the medical care you get is actually WORSE the fatter you are. A doctor cannot feel your liver or spleen if you are fat, a breast lump (for women) is more difficult to pick-up on manual exam and subtle heart sounds can be muffled. Medical doses are all calculated for “normal” weight people and often don’t get corrected for the obese. Some tests aren’t even available to patients who are very obese: for example breast MRI (a very sensitive imaging technique) is not offered at our hospital to women over 300 pounds. So not only is your health worse off, but so is your health care.
November 27th, 2006 at 10:15 pm
JD,
Losing weight is a wonderful goal and it happens most easily when one makes slow and gradual healthful lifestyle changes.
It’s important to transition from the Standard American Diet to eating whole food, to be more healthful, decrease cravings and create options, yet not become obsessive about food, because losing weight involves more than the food one eats. It’s important to look at all areas of one’s life and how that person nurtures themself, because when one doesn’t feel nurtured (poor quality relationships, unhappy with the job, high stress, etc) one may use food to fill in the gaps to provide comfort.
It’s also really important to discover healthy feel good self-care, because when one enjoys self-care, their personal value increases, they are attracted to healthy living and their body will naturally becomes an appropriate weight - no deprivation or scare tactics necessary, just the desire to continue feeling good!
Losing weight and creating lifestyle changes may involve looking at limiting beliefs and how these things affect the person and holds them back from achieving their goal.
Losing weight can not be resolved by any sort of quick fix, but through lifestyle changes that continues throughout a person’s lifetime.
Each persons path to health and wellness is uniquely their own, but it can be a challenge to see the forrest from the trees, so why go it alone? Your health is your most important asset - but so is your happiness, and studies show that there is a strong link between health and happiness. So, invest in yourself! Partner with a good coach to help you achieve your weight loss goal in a supportive and fun way!
Anne Trauben, RN, RYT
Lifestyle Wellness & Life Balance Coach & Consultant
Whole Food Nutritionist, Culinary Instructor
Registered Yoga Teacher
WHOLE HEALTH
A Holistic Approach To Making Healthy Lifestyle Changes & Creating Life Balance
http://www.wholehealth.net
917-523-5168
——————————
Fall In Love With The Art Of Self-Care
December 2nd, 2006 at 10:03 am
[...] Several weeks ago I wrote about the high cost of being fat. I shared how I’ve spent $4500 over the past four years because I’m overweight. Since that post, I’ve been working with Lauren Muney, a wellness coach (about which more later). This morning, Muney sent me a New York Times article by Damon Darlin which describes how extra weight leads to higher costs. Being fat costs money — tens of thousands of dollars over a lifetime. Heavy people do not spend more than normal-size people on food, but their life insurance premiums are two to four times as large. They can expect higher medical expenses, and they tend to make less money and accumulate less wealth in their shortened lifetimes. They can have a harder time being hired, and then a harder time winning plum assignments and promotions. [...]
December 2nd, 2006 at 2:03 pm
Awesome post; I lost 60 pounds over 6 months about 5 years ago, and have managed to keep it off without draconian diets with regular exercise (cycling).
This aspect of personal finance is too commonly overlooked. The financial costs (short-term and long-term) are very real.
December 2nd, 2006 at 2:38 pm
[...] JD at GetRichSlowly has a great post on the costs of being overweight, with some personal insights. Someday I’ll write about my personal struggle with weight; I’ve spent much of my life being overweight, including a few years as borderline obese (right now I’m at a “healthy” weight). [...]
December 22nd, 2006 at 6:04 am
I am researching the cost of being obese now (thanks for all the great info in this forum), it’s amazing. We haven’t even touched on the big stuff like scooters ($5,000), special furniture, bigger vehicles, the airlines trying to charge for an extra seat.
I’m with the commenters who say “choose an activity you enjoy and you will stick to it”. Mine is cycling, I just love it.
December 30th, 2006 at 1:17 pm
As an RN in the operating room, I’d like to thank those posters who are trying to lose weight. As the American population has “blossomed”, surgery has become much more risky for the patient and the health care worker. Necessary steps such as starting an IV, inserting an endotrachial tube, and moving patients from stretcher to OR table are all infinitely more difficult with an overweight or obese patient. We have OR tables in our facility that will accomodate people weighing 1000 lbs! And we use them! In addition, fatty tissue doesn’t heal as well as lean muscle, possibly leading to wound problems and infection. So please, think of your health and my back, take good care of yourself.
January 24th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
[...] Again chips not only cost money, they cost your waistline. J.D. has an interesting post at Get Rich Slowly about the cost of being fat. [...]
January 18th, 2008 at 9:53 am
JD, I agree with you that your health is your most important asset. I decided to take control of my body on 9/19/07. In just 4 months, I have gone from 28% body fat to 11% body fat and look and feel great.
I have chronicled my weight loss with weekly pics, food logs, etc. Check it out here…
http://www.scottysbody.com
February 17th, 2008 at 4:56 am
Read this, there are many good ideas how to lose unwanted weight:
http://healtyblog.blogspot.com/
April 7th, 2008 at 7:32 am
I am fat too… and guess what, I’ll be fat for the rest of my life. My fat doesn’t cost me. Not anymore. I stopped yo-yo dieting, and stopped believing the lies of a 43 billion dollar industry. When I dieted, I did have to constantly buy clothes, I was forever sick, and I was forever stressed. I’ve maintained my weight consistently for 7 years. I still wear the same size. I keep active and I eat heart-healthy foods, and on occasion, I lose some, and on occasion, I gain some, but I don’t stress over my weight. Doctors seem to be dumb-struck with my health as it seems to be the same as a thin person. Fat doesn’t equal death; inactivity and stress do.
We have one life, and worrying about our clothes size is a great way to waste it.
There are worst things in this world than being fat.
August 5th, 2008 at 5:43 am
[...] long known that being overweight does end up costing more. The cost of food aside, clothes are more expensive and harder to find, automobiles may not get [...]