Some people think that Chris Christie is much too out of shape to effectively hold office...

[moriah]

70. And is posting threads to make fun of him for it actually discussing the issues?

Last edited Fri Feb 24, 2012, 03:59 PM - Edit history (1)

If no one had spoken up and the thread continued with the fat jokes, it would have done nothing except let people make themselves feel better by making fun of someone and feel superior.

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Edit to add:

One other point. I'm well aware it can be done. I was morbidly obese. I'm not even medically overweight now. I did it without surgery.

But it isn't easy, and anyone who thinks it is needs to have a reality check. Our bodies were designed by evolution to hold on to body fat reserves, and my ancestors survived to reproduce because they were able to survive times of famine better than those with faster metabolisms. After a certain point, the same biochemistry goes haywire -- look up "Syndrome X". Insulin resistance develops because of obesity, but the two reinforce each other, making it where a morbidly obese person can eat the same amount as an only moderately person and walk the same distance without losing a pound, where the moderately overweight person loses.

The dieting cycle also causes problems. Our metabolisms learn to survive on less food -- it thinks we're in famine mode. People will try VLCD diets without medical supervision, and downregulate their metabolisms. It's not just calories in/calories out. Nutrisystem counselors often recommend a person INCREASE their calories when they hit a weight loss plateau -- not with ice cream, but more protein. An extra greek yogurt in my diet a day ended a plateau and started me back burning calories instead of conserving them.

Then there's exercise. It is much harder on the body for a person carrying around an extra 100 lbs to exercise. The seated elliptical was my best friend because of my bum knee. Once I lost about 40 lbs, I could incorporate walking the path around my office on my breaks into my routine without causing myself further damage from the impact of the concrete, and just that little bit of exercise three times a day helped a lot.

But just because Freepers start threads with no point but making fun of Ted Kennedy's drinking problem doesn't mean we have to start threads with no point but making fun of Chris Christie's eating problem.