To Eat Or Not To Eat ... ?

Still-life with Parrot
Georg Flegel
ca. 1600

Like many people, I sometimes often struggle with my weight. It wasn't a problem for me until a few years ago, and then *poof*.  I began to wonder why, and one thing I have noticed is that portion sizes are much larger than they were 10 or even 20 years ago.  The theory in gaining or losing weight is quite simple -- not to sound too simplistic.  Too many calories in, not enough calories out, folks will gain weight.  Fewer calories in, more calories burned, folks will lose weight.  It is the whole basis of any weight loss program.  It's the same theory that applies to weight loss surgery -- stomachs are surgically reduced in size so a person cannot eat food in anything but tiny portions.  They lose weight immediately.  Just eat less -- it's really easy, right?  No, it isn't.

Most of us live fairly sedentary lives in the 21st Century.  We spend several hours a day in front of either the television or the computer. Even in the blogging community, I see folks who are posting on almost every blog in the blogosphere -- every day -- and I wonder how they have the time to do it. They must be nailed to their chairs. Blogging takes a lot of time, and it's a very sedentary activity. I can't do it every day; it starts to become a chore rather than a pleasure.  I am parked in front of my computer all day at work, and often the very last thing I want to do when I come home is to park myself in front of my computer, but unfortunately I often park myself in front of my television.  It would be interesting to find out how many people take an hour in the evening to dance -- rather than sitting and watching "Dancing with the Stars" or -- even worse -- "Losing it with Jillian..."

Vancouver, fortunately, is a city of sidewalks and parks, but most North American neighbourhoods no longer have sidewalks.  Hardly anyone walks anymore; our cities are geared towards cars.  Most North Americans drive their cars, because in many of our cities there is nowhere to walk.   We spend many of our work hours and our leisure hours in sedentary activities.  I think if future anthropologists and sociologists were to look back at our civilization, they would learn a lot about us from our television commercials -- food, cars, weight loss programs and pharmaceuticals.  The whole story of our society is encompassed in those four words.  Are the cards stacked against us?  Obesity in children is becoming a problem in North America, and for the first time, the future generation has a shorter life expectancy than their parents.  That's frightening.

It's a beautiful summer day.  Let's all go for a walk.  I'll see you at the park.