Originally Posted by ninja_please

I agree, American women really let themselves go!

Wow, speak for yourself. That's quite a generalization you've made.

Originally Posted by exotikittenx

Wow, speak for yourself. That's quite a generalization you've made.

I think this thread is a generalization...not every French woman has style and not every American woman wears a fanny pack while on vacation.

Originally Posted by Julide

I think this thread is a generalization...not every French woman has style and not every American woman wears a fanny pack while on vacation.

Lol. I agree!

Originally Posted by exotikittenx

Wow, speak for yourself. That's quite a generalization you've made.

I don't mean all American women are like this. My opinion is based on my experiences and interactions, and it seems like many American women do not exercise after high school or college and they have many misconceptions about eating healthy (i.e. some people don't realize that low fat foods are not a healthier option because they can actually have more sugar in them to make them tastier). I did not mean that all American women let themselves go.

I think it's less a choice for Americans than what our food systems are like. There's a lot of processed stuff and there's corn syrup in all of it, even stuff that does not taste anything near sweet. I read somewhere that the average American ears 90 lbs of sugar a year. That's like three times more than the next country on the list. That's insane! The average American is indeed heavier than the average French person. That's just hard stats!

As for style, personally I think their idea of beauty is a bit more natural and they seem more at ease with masculine cuts and oversize clothing. I'm sure part of it is genetics too. That said, personally I find their style a bit boring. Everyone in neutrals? Yikes.

Originally Posted by Suzie

I disagree with the comment that French woman take care of their health as I have never seen so many woman smoke in all of my life. I was in Paris again just last week and from young teenagers to older ladies they all have a cigarette in their mouth, it is quite astounding actually as they are so stylish in every other aspect yet they are very heavy smokers.

Oof. Yes. I have noticed this while in Paris as well. Your weight is a piece of your overall health, but it is by no means the only piece.

Originally Posted by hexomega

It's not genetics, either. People try to use that as a cop-out but I know many people who were genetically pre-disposed to weight gain who eat clean diets and maintain a more athletic figure than I have while bein nearly twice my age. I'm naturally lean (size 2-4 or at my usual weight, 0-2) and I eat like garbage. Pasta every night, fast food like pizza or chinese once a week, etc. I am trying to eat healthier now, though, because my cholesterol took a hit. :(

I feel like you're contradicting yourself here - your genetics are what is helping you maintain a thin body, and not healthy/eating exercise/whatever. So what makes it okay for you to slag on women who are genetically inclined to be heavier? You apparently have all sorts of natural advantages... it seems really mean of you to say nasty things about women who don't have these same advantages.

You can have a genetic predisposition that is enhanced by environmental factors / behavior.

I don't think it's that American women let themselves go. Statistically speaking we have to work more and thus have less time to work out and our country is more car dependent so we walk less. Our food is more sugary and our health system is of geared toward prevention. It makes it hard to stay healthy if you don't make every effort to try.

Originally Posted by ninja_please

It's not genetics, either. People try to use that as a cop-out but I know many people who were genetically pre-disposed to weight gain who eat clean diets and maintain a more athletic figure :(

Originally Posted by ninja_please

I agree, American women really let themselves go! But San Franciscans are very health conscious; we're really into biking, yoga, rock climbing, and eating organic. But because of this lifestyle, I also feel it's why San Franciscans and Seattleites dress terribly! We're always in luluemon and North Face because we're training for the next marathon after work! While Parisians walk everywhere and eat better than most Americans, practically all of them smoke! When I was in Paris, I only saw a handful of gyms

I agree with everything you said. There may be a genetic predisposition but lifestyle choices, self discipline and moderation make all the difference. For example true Parisian women, practically NEVER snack. They may eat 3-course meals with with a glass of wine or two, but the concept of snacking is alien to them.

Parisien women do keep themselves up much better than American women all the whole.

The number one reason is a huge amount of societal pressure for women to look good.

You should see the men after 30.

Originally Posted by ladysarah

I agree with everything you said. There may be a genetic predisposition but lifestyle choices, self discipline and moderation make all the difference. For example true Parisian women, practically NEVER snack. They may eat 3-course meals with with a glass of wine or two, but the concept of snacking is alien to them.

I agree with this. All my relatives and boyfriends relatives in Europe only eat when it is time for breakfast lunch and dinner, with an occasional evening desert after dinner, but never during lunch. And it is all fresh food made specific for the meal we will be eating, hardly anything comes from a package. Noodles and such are also homemade.

Meanwhile my Canadian mother has to make herself and her husband 2 bags of popcorn an a frozen pizza for the 2.5 hour drive to out cottage. I just don't get it! Lol

Originally Posted by Aurify

I feel like you're contradicting yourself here - your genetics are what is helping you maintain a thin body, and not healthy/eating exercise/whatever. So what makes it okay for you to slag on women who are genetically inclined to be heavier? You apparently have all sorts of natural advantages... it seems really mean of you to say nasty things about women who don't have these same advantages.

Did you even read my post? Because you completely missed the part where I said "I know people who are genetically inclined to be heavier but they maintain a better figure than I do with proper exercise and diet". Then I went on to say that while I am naturally thin, my health isn't that great and I need to eat better. It's what you eat, not what your genetics give you. Now obviously there is the exception where no matter how healthy you eat you will never be a certain size, but I've seen people who were overweight their entire lives (without even eating that badly) turn their lives around and maintain a size 2 at 40. So no, I don't believe genetics are an excuse.

Originally Posted by ladysarah

I agree with everything you said. There may be a genetic predisposition but lifestyle choices, self discipline and moderation make all the difference. For example true Parisian women, practically NEVER snack. They may eat 3-course meals with with a glass of wine or two, but the concept of snacking is alien to them.

Exactly. It's the same in Japan. I live in an area that has a high asian population (20%) and one of my friends moved over here from Japan. She was 5'2 and 100lbs when she moved, but within a couple of months was 120lbs (and she never even touched fast food). The general lifestyle and way Americans eat/pressure each other to eat leads to weight gain. She eventually cleaned up her diet and forced herself to eat the way she used to in Japan and lost all the weight. I've heard the same thing from many other immigrants--that it's very easy to gain weight if you don't watch yourself in this country.

Most "skinny" people I know, including myself, WILL gain weight if they eat poorly enough. There are a select few who are naturally extremely skinny and cannot gain weight without eating 6000+ calories a day, but those are rare. And just because you're skinny and can eat pasta all day doesn't mean you should. I know I shouldn't.

Originally Posted by exotikittenx

Wow, speak for yourself. That's quite a generalization you've made.

Is it?

Originally Posted by Facts

Two-third of adults and nearly one in three children are overweight or obese. Since 1980, the number of overweight/obese adults has over doubled and the number of obese children has tripled. Only 35% of American adults over the age of 18 engage in regular physical activity and 33% of adults participate in no activity at all. 53% of men report participating in moderate physical activity, while only 32% of women engage in regular exercise.

Sources:
http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/initia...vision2010.pdf
http://www.livestrong.com/article/34...al-activities/

I have to disagree about the snacking. I think it's more about portion control than how frequently you eat. The ideal is actually that you eat a little bit constantly because that keeps your metabolism up and your blood sugar stable. Obviously, we're not cows and we have other things to do than eat so this is not possible, but I've heard from many nutritionists that having 5 smaller meals a day or three meals and two snacks is optimal.

That way you don't ever really get hungry and over compensate during meals by overeating. This means that your regular meals have to be smaller though.

The thing is most Americans do not eating balanced meals. Either they eat dairy and carb heavy foods or they just diet by not eating much. But that actually slows your metabolism and makes your body try to retain pounds because it thinks you're starving. I think it says a lot that grains were the biggest portion in he food pyramid up til a few years ago. Now it's veggies and fruits as it should be. I'm Asian and after eating homemade food that's a tiny bowl of rice and lots of vegetable dishes, I was really confused to go over to a friend's house and see that spaghetti and meatballs is an actual meal. That's the definition of unbalanced!

Interestingly though, apparently obesity rates in China have doubled in the last decade or so as fast food is being imported from the US and more people can afford meat. It's ironic because over there to some people KFC or McDonalds is kind of a treat, considered "better" because it's western.

How my French friends stay thin:
- never eat breakfast
- eat lunch during lunch break
- go for drinks at 8
- don't eat anything with drinks because of limited income (people under 35)
- get home around 10 and eat a tiny snack before bed

Originally Posted by plain jane doe

How my French friends stay thin: - never eat breakfast - eat lunch during lunch break - go for drinks at 8 - don't eat anything with drinks because of limited income (people under 35) - get home around 10 and eat a tiny snack before bed

+ they smoke about 30 cigarettes a day! By the way breakfast it the most important meal of the day.