Facts & Figures About Dieting & Weight Loss

* The average American woman is 5'4", weighs 140 lbs, and wears a size 14 dress.
* The "ideal" woman--portrayed by models, Miss America, Barbie dolls, and screen actresses--is 5'7", weighs 100 lbs, and wears a size 8.
* One-third of all American women wear a size 16 or larger.
* 75% of American women are dissatisfied with their appearance.
* 50% of American women are on a diet at any one time.
* Between 90% and 99% of reducing diets fail to produce permanent weight loss.
* Two-thirds of dieters regain the weight within one year. Virtually all regain it within five years.
* The diet industry (diet foods, diet programs, diet drugs, etc.) takes in over $40 billion each year, and is still growing.
* Quick-weight-loss schemes are among the most common consumer frauds, and diet programs have the highest customer dissatisfaction of any service industry.
* A recent survey found only 30 percent of 250 randomly chosen women age 21 to 35 had normal bone mass--the researchers concluded women are so afraid eating dairy products will make them gain weight that they are starving themselves into osteoporosis.
* Young girls are more afraid of becoming fat than they are of nuclear war, cancer, or losing their parents.
* 50% of 9-year-old girls and 80% of 10-year-old girls have dieted.
* 90% of high school junior and senior women diet regularly, even though only between 10% and 15% are over the weight recommended by the standard height-weight charts.
* 1% of teenage girls, and 5% of college-age women become anorexic or bulimic.
* Anorexia has the highest mortality rate (up to 20%) of any psychiatric diagnosis.
* Girls develop eating and self-image problems before drug or alcohol problems; there are drug and alcohol programs in almost every school, but no eating disorder programs.



This information is a public service of Largesse, the Network for Size Esteem [http://www.largesse.net/] and may be freely copied and distributed in its entirety for non-commercial use in promoting size diversity empowerment, provided this statement is included.

Top Ten Reasons To Give Up Dieting

10. DIETS DON'T WORK. Even if you lose weight, you will probably gain it all back, and you might gain back more than you lost.

9. DIETS ARE EXPENSIVE. If you didn't buy special diet products, you could save enough to get new clothes, which would improve your outlook right now.

8. DIETS ARE BORING. People on diets talk and think about food and practically nothing else. There's a lot more to life.

7. DIETS DON'T NECESSARILY IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH. Like the weight loss, health improvement is temporary. Dieting can actually cause health problems.

6. DIETS DON'T MAKE YOU BEAUTIFUL. Very few people will ever look like models. Glamour is a look, not a size. You don't have to be thin to be attractive.

5. DIETS ARE NOT SEXY. If you want to be more attractive, take care of your body and your appearance. Feeling healthy makes you look your best.

4. DIETS CAN TURN INTO EATING DISORDERS. The obsession to be thin can lead to anorexia, bulimia, bingeing, and compulsive exercising.

3. DIETS CAN MAKE YOU AFRAID OF FOOD. Food nourishes and comforts us, and gives us pleasure. Dieting can make food seem like your enemy, and can deprive you of all the positive things about food.

2. DIETS CAN ROB YOU OF ENERGY. If you want to lead a full and active life, you need good nutrition, and enough food to meet your body's needs.

And the number one reason to give up dieting:

1. Learning to love and accept yourself just as you are will give you self-confidence, better health, and a sense of wellbeing that will last a lifetime.

(Thanks to the Council on Size & Weight Discrimination
for this list!)

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This information is a public service of Largesse, the Network for Size Esteem [http://www.largesse.net/] and may be freely copied and distributed in its entirety for non-commercial use in promoting size diversity empowerment, provided this statement is included.

TORONTO, May 5 /CNW/ - Got a pair of jeans in your closet with a four year old price tag? End the torture, donate 'em! Today is International NO DIET day - a day to celebrate healthy, natural curves without apology.

"It's scientifically proven that diets do not work over time. The result of 'yo-yo' dieting from excessive dieting is now being linked with heart disease," says Jill Andrew, women's body image workshop facilitator and founder/producer of Canada's first and only plus size fashion fundraiser Curvy Catwalk.

"Maintain regular fun exercise, eat wisely, which can include cheesecake, and don't obsess over the scale," Andrew says. Andrew recently won the national 2008 Michele Landsberg Award presented by the Canadian Women's Foundation for her work through media and activism to help empower the lives of women and girls.

The average North American woman is a size 14 yet according to NEDIC, 80 to 90% of women dislike their bodies. 70% of women are currently dieting although 95% of weight loss is reportedly regained within the first one to five years.

According to Andrew dieting cannot reset your genetic make-up long term unless you are willing to become a slave to calorie counting all your life. "Knowing your actual body type can save you years of low self-esteem, the risks of developing eating problems and trying to become someone you arenot. Dieting is a physically and emotionally taxing process of self-deprivation. It's much more satisfying to simply incorporate a healthy balance of healthy foods, fun foods,
regular check-ups, an active social life and exercise into your daily routine."

Andrew speaks regularly encouraging women to share stories about body image through the thick and the thin for her upcoming anthology Phat Girls in Search of a Pretty World: Hot Lil' Fat Chicks Speakin' Out! and is also at the helm of the Toronto International Body Image Festival (TIBIF) which will explore diverse bodies through film, arts, speakers series, fun and of course food.

"We spend billions annually buying new wardrobes, compiling degree after degree so that we can create an image to be competitive and 'accepted' in this world but how many of us feel as self-loved naked without all that window dressing? It all starts with a deeper positive perception of our physical bodies well beyond simple vanity. I think for most of us it's a life long journey often made more difficult thanks to stereotypes about bigger people as lazy, asexual
or unhealthy." says Andrew.

Reigning Miss Canada Plus and triple threat entertainer Stephanie Conover says INDD marks a huge gain for women. "On May 15 I perform in "Fuze" at Buddies in Bad times Theatre. It's a night of song and dance but more so another opportunity for me to express myself as a vital, self-assured curvy woman on stage owning it," says Conover.

Curvy Catwalk model, former Miss Canada Plus and regional sales manager for TD Canada Trust, Cindy Bourassa says INDD is about loving yourself unconditionally. "I've got so many accomplishments in my life to celebrate regardless of my dress size, I don't know where to
begin."

So what's your plan for International No Diet Day? Let it be sweet.

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/May2008/05/c4880.html

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INDD was started in 1992 by Mary Evans Young, the director of the British anti-diet campaign Diet Breakers and grown since then.

For more info on INDD, check out Largesse, the Network for Size Esteem where they havelots of info, a pledge and other great stuff.

I Pledge:

* That I will not diet for one day, on May 6, International No Diet Day.
* Instead of trying to change my body to fit someone else's standards, I will accept myself just as I am.
* I will feed myself if I'm hungry.
* I will feel no shame or guilt about my size or about eating.
* I will think about whether dieting has improved my health and well-being or not.
* And I will try to do at least one thing I have been putting off "until I lose weight."

Signed,

____________________________________________________

(Print out this pledge form, sign it, and post it in a place where you will see it often between now and May 6.)

(This information is a public service of Largesse, the Network for Size Esteem [http://www.largesse.net/] and may be freely copied and distributed in its entirety for non-commercial use in promoting size diversity empowerment, provided this statement is included. )

Pity it isn't sticking around, but it has been nice.

Saturday was the Moscow CommUNITY Walk and it was a wonderful day for it (tho there was enough of a breeze that in the shade I kept getting chilled). There were lots of folk there and Ms Ella of course attended:



I was able to borrow a small wagon from friends and I decked it out with some scarves and even rigged up a seat belt for her so she could ride in comfort. She brought a lot of smiles to a lot of people (and I think confusion to a few who couldn't figure out what an elephant was doing out and about LOL). One at the park we sat and watched and listened to the musical entertainment and I chatted with a few people about Ms Ella and what she does. Quite a few of the CommUNITY Walk people recognized her, Dr Ghazanfar had found her blog last year when googling the Walk and was thrilled to see it and told everyone he knew. He made sure to let me know Ms Ella was specially invited to join the walk again.

We didn't stay all afternoon as I had a coven thing that night and had to get some stuff done. But we had an enjoyable time while we were there.

The only downside of it was my knee was serously killing me. If I'd seen someone I knew and trusted, I was going to have them take Ms Ella on the walk and I would take the shuttle bus. Alas, the only person I knew I would trust had someone she was helping and had her hands full. So I did the walk with Ms Ella and managed to not be TOOO far behind the rest of the people, but my knee let me know in no uncertain terms it was NOT happy.

Speaking of knee, I've ditched the acetaminophen and have switched to large doses of ibuprofen and that seems to be helping some, at least enough I can get some sleep without too much pain. Back to hobbling around on the cane. For the walk I took the stick I got from The Stickman in Couer D'Alene and that was nice:



Sunday was another nice day, tho not as sunny. We puttered about the house a bit, then picked up a friend to help her run some errands and then she did laundry at our place. I managed to get a bit of the house cleaned up and we cleaned out the shed. Hubby picked up some tools and solutions to finish getting the last of the paint off the car (from a few summers back when we had a friend paint the car) and there is still a shadow of the tiger on it.

Managed to get a few things listed on the local freecycle group (actually latahfreeexchange, we broke off from Freecyle) and have takers for a couple of them. Still have a few items outstanding and I noticed a few more things in the shed that could go on the list.

Was talking to the son of a friend on Sat night, he is into biking and he is willing to help me tune my bike so I can start riding it again. I started working on it last year, but couldn't quite get it tuned right. So having him help will be good. With gas prices going up the way they are, we need to cut down on how many trips hubby has to make int he car. On days when he has clients or appointments right after he drops me off it is not a problem driving me to work since he will be out and about. It is the into work, drop me off and then back home we need to cut down on. And since the trail is now paved all the way into town and campus I can commute in without having to deal with too much traffic.

Oh, and Saturday I got my very first "donot" from CafePress. I SOLD A BUTTON!!!!! Okay, it was a mini button and my mark up was only $1, BUT I SOLD A BUTTON!!!!!!!!

WOOO HOOOOO!!!!!!!!

It is referred to as a donot because you get an email that has the return addy of "donot-reply@...", so the other shopkeepers call it a donot. I am hoping for many, many more. Even tho it was only $1, that is my first ever $1 I've earned for something I've created, not from being a wage slave.

I've been glowing about it all weekend. The button by the way is "Witch with a boomstick" mini button.

Week is finally almost over. Been puttering a bit, got several more designs up in my shop and tweaking a website for someone (their previous website manager has neither the time nor means to do so and they are looking to put it elsewhere as is). I have a paper due in class on Monday, so will work on it this weekend.

Speaking of weekend, tomorrow is the Moscow CommUNITY Walk and I am taking Ms Ella (she was specially invited). I've borrowed a small kids wagon from a friend, so Ms Ella will not be subjected to the folding luggage rack for transportation. I'm going to drape it in something colorful and hubby has suggested one of the mag antennas from on top of the car, which would be good for tying bright ribbons on.

I'm just hoping my knee behaves itself. Spent half the night awake because of it (and I'd taken a sleeping pill!!!), darn thing feels like it is locked up. I've the cane today to help give it support (and I hate using the darned thing) and have decided naproxen (generic Aleve) isn't doing the trick anymore, so will just pop regular doses of acetaminophen as that seems to help a lot more. I will of course be taking a walking stick tomorrow. The one I got from The Stickman when I was up in CDA for the HBO Blogfest. It is a very nice stick and I will get lots of pics of it.

I finally got some seeds to plant, I am planting come hell or high water this weekend. I picked up some sugar snap peas,bush Blue Lake 274s, Bloomsdale long-standing spinach and a gourmet lettuce blend I like. I'm also going to seed some into containers I can keep around the yard to help expand my garden space.

Hubby drove up to Spokane today, he needed to get a few things at Harbour Freight (very dangerous store) and a friend needed to go up also, so he picked her up after dropping me off at work. Since she needed to go to a bead store, probably good I didn't go, I LOVE looking at beads (tho I'm not into beading, just love to play with the pretty pretties LOL).

Got a new gizmo for my photography, it is a Gorillapod from Joby:



I LOVE it!!! One really nice thing is since we ordered it directly from Joby, I got it with yellow and black (most of the places on the net that sell them only sell the black and white ones) AND I got it a bit cheaper since I was able to get it without all the extraneous packaging (like that &%^$ plastic shell everything seems to come in now that is impossible to cut open without risk of losing fingers). We also got a 2nd clip so I can use it for my camcorder. One really cool thing about it is I can wrap the Gorillapod onto the top of my regular tripod and not have to fuss with attaching the tripod clip to things.

Not been too creative cooking of late, mostly the old standbys.Did pan fried chicken last night with fettuccine noodle stuff for a side. Make hush puppies (not real hush puppies, I didn't use cornmeal in the dredge, but they were still tasty) from the leftover dredge and had leftover fried chicken and hush puppies for lunch.

It's just not fair, they can stretch and twist like then and if I tried it, I'd wind up in the hospital.

Found via fat fu, Stacy Bias, of Fat Girl Speaks has a new project, Bellies are Beautiful and is looking for photo submissions. I'll send one in as soon as I get a good pic of my belly.

She is organizing an event in Portland, where they will have photographers on hand to take pictures and everyone can have some fun dancing, enjoying music and refreshments.

A friend gave him to me last night and I had to bring him to work, he's going to be our enforcer bunny LOL

For Purple Ducky Designs:



Not quite the final design, but it will do for now. I still need to tweak it a bit, but this is pretty much how it will look. Having lots of fun figuring out Inkscape.

LOL Have to see what I can come up with.

So the cold is slowly receding, not coughing as much and my sinuses have been better behaved. Appetite is slowly coming back. Didn't feel like much for dinner, but did make up some tacos for me, hubby got burgers and fries. I really needed something spicy, crunchy and cheesy, so the taco fit the bill quite nicely. Made the filling with some of the precooked ground beef I had stashed in the freezer, a bit of frozen tomato paste and some powdered tomato paste. Add taco spices, some minced garlic and a bit of water and it came out perfectly. Tummy was very happy.

Had some blood drawn Monday morning and then saw my doc yesterday. Everything looks good, including the girly hormones. They show I am midrange for perimenopause, so poor hubby has to suffer for quite a while yet LOL. My overall cholesterol is down a bit, from 140 to 126. Bad cholesterol is in the good range, the good cholesterol is low, just gotta get more active and that should come up.

I also got some exercises to help strengthen my knee muscles to help with the pain. One is an exercise I can do at my desk, so it is an easy one to do. Thyroid levels say they are good, but I think I have a very narrow range for what is good for me, so I think I am a bit off which is why I have been feeling crappy outside of the flu and cold. Nothing I can't work around. Just need to adjust some of the things I eat to bring those numbers into true midrange and that should help normalize things for me.

Finally got a successful upload of the stuff in my shop into Google Base and have been getting a few hits on my shop. Funny thing is, Google Base told me my first upload wasn't successful, yet all the stuff I uploaded showed up anyways and was being found on search. I currently have 1190 items in my shop with 22 designs. Getting up there, YAY!!!!!! The more experienced shopkeepers on CP have pointed out to newbies that the more designs you have the better, which is why I decided to get the premium account so I can do that easily. Speaking of which, I think I need to come up with an actual purple ducky design to attach to my shop.

I've been checking out the calenders CP offers and I want to get lots of good pics to make several. Kitty cats, flowers and whatever I can think of. They make it pretty easy to do. Even cooler is I can buy my own stuff at cost, so if I can finally get ahead I can design things and have neat gifts to give to family.

Found a really cool book on the new book shelf. Living like Ed by Ed Begley, Jr. It is a spin off of his show Living with Ed which is very entertaining, informative and I just realized I haven't seen it in a while. Have to see if it is in re-runs or will have new episodes soon.

FINALLY got most of the pipes on the kitchen sink glued together and locked down. Now I just need to figure out how to seal the one pipe immediately below the left sink so the water pouring thru doesn't back up and overflow. The person at the hardware store sent hubby home with the wrong part, she apparently couldn't grasp what he was trying to explain. So I made do with what she sold him and packed the gap with plumbers putty. Not enough I find, since we still have a serious leak when I dump a large amount of water (as in a pot or just taking the plug out after I am done with the dishes), so have to get that figured out somehow. But it is nice not to have a backed up sink and not worry about pipes giving way underneath from all the water that goes down.

Toasted cheese sammies for lunch today (and I could kill for some nice ripe homegrown tomatoes to put on them), have to get more sliced cheese from Costco when we pop in this weekend. Dinner tonight is chicken baked with Tom Yum and coconut milk. Nice thing about baking it is I don't have to fuss over it. I should have enough leftover for a nice lunch tomorrow.