I finally saw Super Size Me. Good film, very interesting documentary. I guess the single most shocking thing about it is that Americans are more stupid than I thought.
Yes, McDonald's probably deserves to be vilified to a certain degree, and the corporate machines that lobby to keep their crap in front of kids should be exposed, but still I find the most striking thing to be that people don't take responsibility or exercise common sense in the decisions they make.
Being married to a vegetarian and future registered dietitian obviously has a certain influence on me. I won't pretend that's not true. However, with all of the stupid fad diets (yeah, I'm talking to you Atkins and South Beach people) and all of the people that want a magic pill, the same basic principles of a balanced diet and exercise have been known truths now for decades. Shit, even sensible portion control is a step in the right direction.
In late 2003, I virtually stopped eating fast food. With few other changes in diet, that alone allowed me to drop 16 pounds in about 12 weeks. I didn't even have to work for it. Prior to that time, I was eating that shit at least three times a week. Since that time it's still rare that I eat the stuff (it gives me cramps), and I haven't gained any of that weight back. Again, no other diet changes or significant exercise change.
I'd still like to lose a little more. I don't feel unhealthy, but I'm not getting any younger and I don't want to be one of those inactive senior citizens. I guess to do that I need to make some drastic lifestyle changes in terms of diet and exercise, and try to make some plan to do it in manageable stages. I suck at that because the ROI from change is rarely immediately apparent.
I've never been a fan of fast food, especially the burger joints. So the weight I gained over the years isn't from that, but more from pasta and breads (especially after I learned to make home made bread). Although pasta is touted as great because it's low fat, once I began eating it a couple times a week, the weight slowly built up.
Since I've cut out breads and pasta, and cutting back on the higher carbed veggies and fruits (I still eat fruit but limit it to strawberries, grapefruit and grapes), I've lost 21 pounds. I've been able to maintain my current weight for two years.
I watched Supersize me not too long ago, and loved it. While it's easy to say "it's obvious what would happen", nobody (including his own doctors) thought it would be THAT bad, and as the film points out, there really ARE people that stupid out there.
I'm all for personal responsibility, though. Darwinism at work.