So, a couple of days ago, I read an article about "gainers". Then, one of the blogs I follow, Obesity Panacea gave some more information about the culture that surrounds this insanity. There is a whole group of people out there who's goal it is to gain weight. Yeah, that's right, they want to be 400, 500, 1,000 pounds. And there are plenty of people out there who want to enable these people; and even some others who pay to watch these people eat. It's hard. I want to have compassion for everyone, but it's so difficult. All of us in this community are struggling to lose each and every 1/10 of a pund, and here are people who enjoy the feeling of getting fat. Who are actually sexually aroused touching someone's rolls of fat. I mean everyone is beautiful in his/her own way, but this is ridiculous. And I'm not trying to get on my soapbox.
I spent some time earlier today looking at some of the blogs in this world here and here and here. And wanted to be mad. I wanted to comment and tell them the mistake they were making. But really, I just got sad. And then I got mad. There were people who were complaining that they couldn't reproduce because this quest for obesity had robbed them of their ability to procreate. So sad. But then they started complaning that the medication it would take to be able to have kids wasn't covered my health insurance or medicare. I'm sorry, but my sympathy ended there. They can gain all the weight they want, but when we have to pay for the results of their choices, that's a different matter. Not to mention that some of these "gainers" have kids. What does that say to them? Will they grow up thinking that obesity is good or cool? Or will they even have parents for long? As someone who lost a parent recently--along with many others--I get really mad at the selfishness; think about your kids, think about yourself! For crying out loud. So sad.
Here are some comments from the blogs:
Did anyone else read about this sad situation? What were your thoughts?
Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), anyone else?
Total Miles: 7
Total money raised: $108.75
Wednesday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
walked 2 miles
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
Total:
36 minutes on elliptical
36 minutes on exercise bike
36 minutes on stair stepper
36 minutes on treadmill
ran/walked 10 miles
150 situps
75 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna
Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx (never counting Sundays again)
Monday: 2,050 Calories
Tuesday: 2,225 Calories
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:
Daily Average: 2,157 Calories.
Back to twEATing here.
Posts
6 comments:
April 22, 2010 at 6:10 AM
Ugh, Beej, I'm totally with you on the gainer phenom - it's sad, and perhaps, maybe not too far from a mental illness or disorder, I think. Those who enable this I find plain creepy -- that comment from someone saying they would love to be a "feeder someday"....too awful.
I'll pledge .25 for your spilling hope campaign. Keep rocking your runs!
April 22, 2010 at 8:26 AM
This made me nauseous! UGH!
I don't understand how someone can WANT to become dangerously overweight.
Sure, you can carry extra weight and be healthy, but eventually that extra weight will become a detriment won't it?
ICK! ICK! ICK!
You're kinder and more compassionate than I am. It is sad but I just want to yell at them and smack them into some sense!
April 22, 2010 at 1:14 PM
"What is so unhealthy about being fat?"
Erm. Heart disease. Diabetes. Kidney failure. Stroke. List goes on and on and on.
Are these people living in a hole? Probably. That, or they don't want to take the hard road to fix their problems so they go down the destructive path. But, you know, there will always be people out there like that. I believe they are in the minority though, because most of us want to live long enough to see our kids grow up and be able to play with them instead of keeling over after 2 seconds of running.
I don't know how I feel about enablers, because at some point, I feel like everything in the world can be your enabler (for good or bad) and it's up to the person to choose the road they want to take. So mostly, I blame the person.
It's really sad to see this but like us weight losers trying to get healthy, it's out of desperation. We want to live, they don't. That's the difference.
April 22, 2010 at 1:42 PM
Sad indeed. I also agree that all sympathy is out the window when they complain about not being able to get pregnant or how expensive their drugs are.
Currently getting ready for fertility treatments, I worked my a$$ off (literally) to get down to a weight that would enhance my chances of success, this was far more important to me than the fleeting feel good feeling of a good meal.
Obesity sucks, it is a drain on resources. I don't think we can tell anyone what to do with their bodies, if they want to be fat so be it, but I do think that they lose the right to bitch about expenses or prejudice when they are *trying* to be this way. It also upsets me because those of us trying to be healthy get lumped in with these crazies.
You are far kinder than I am, I just want to smack them and say wake up. One quote really resonated “I’ve been eating so much the past week, my body feels stuffed … like some sort of overstuffed teddy bear. Just moving around, I feel like I’m softer, bigger, less responsive. … I’m really quite enjoying the feeling.” How very sad to want to be less responsive...
Sorry this is such a long response but it got me riled up :P
April 22, 2010 at 5:22 PM
Those blogs are really, really sad. Especially those who are enabling it. I have been there (weight-wise), done that (just being fat, not intentionally though), it is lame.
April 22, 2010 at 7:12 PM
I haven't heard of such a thing until now. Very strange indeed...but to each their own.
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