As we all know, our country definitely doesn’t have the greatest reputation when it comes to weight. I learned this was true when I went to Europe in 2005. I went on a Cruise through Italy, Spain, and France. When I say this I really mean it, the only person I saw slightly overweight or overweight was on the ship (except for a few Italian men who had a little too much spaghetti). All the Europeans that lived there were all in great shape, some were almost too skinny. My dad had a friend who is on the larger side go to Europe, when he was walking around a European approached him, tapped his stomach, and said “Ohh, American!”. Ok America, that’s embarrassing.
When I thought about why the weight difference is so huge I thought it was most likely because of their food portions and their transportation. When my friends, family, and myself would sit down at a restaurant to eat a meal we were always shocked to see how much food they gave us. It was a very small portion compared to what we get in America. Not too small however, I though it was just right. Here in American restaurants we have all you can eat buffets for $5, supersized meals, 6 different courses, and just all around HUGE portions that always leave us feeling like we’re in a coma or like we want to explode. Eating smaller portioned meals will keep you feeling motivated, which brings me to my next point. In Europe it seems like 80% of people use walking or biking as their main transportation. The other 20% use mopeds or a small percentage use cars.
So I was convinced that these must be the reasons why we can’t keep up with their perfect figures. Until I came across an article called “4 Ways French Women Stay Thin (Without the Gym)”. These French women have the perfect solution to the people who dread going to the gym. After an 8 hour day at work, errands to run, food to cook, and kids to come home to; it can be a pain. The gym is NOT the only place to get that work out you need. Throughout your day there are plenty of things you can do. During my busy days I come up with little exercises that take just a couple minutes. This article about French women covered a few of them, so I guess we think alike! Something me and my family have always done is rather than circling parking lots looking for the closest spot, park at a farther spot and get that extra walk in. This burns a few extra calories and it isn’t hard, burning an extra 50 calories ends up being a loss of 5 pounds each year! Anytime you drive somewhere that is walking distance, walk instead if you have the time. I think its funny when I see people stopping their car on the way in the drive way to get the mail. Why? Walk down the drive way and get the mail, maybe even walk around the block once while your down their. Rollerblading is one of my favorite things to do; its fun, gets you places fast, and it’s a great workout. French women also incorporate isometric exercise into their day, using their body weight as resistance. You can contract and hold muscles, or what I like to do in class or library is sit straight up and discreetly lift my knees to work my abs. French women also take care of their core, keeping good posture and doing a small session of sit ups before work. They also use small weights and do quick and simple resistance training.
These are just some of the quick and easy exercises there are to keep in shape. A few others I have used are just stretching in front of the TV during your favorite show, calf raises in the shower, doing yard or house work in ankle weights, walking on your toes (unless it looks weird), washing your own car during the summer rather than driving through one, walking to lunch, and sitting up from your chair often. The ideas are endless. So save some money and some time and find ways to work out while you’re studying, relaxing by the TV, or commuting!
When I thought about why the weight difference is so huge I thought it was most likely because of their food portions and their transportation. When my friends, family, and myself would sit down at a restaurant to eat a meal we were always shocked to see how much food they gave us. It was a very small portion compared to what we get in America. Not too small however, I though it was just right. Here in American restaurants we have all you can eat buffets for $5, supersized meals, 6 different courses, and just all around HUGE portions that always leave us feeling like we’re in a coma or like we want to explode. Eating smaller portioned meals will keep you feeling motivated, which brings me to my next point. In Europe it seems like 80% of people use walking or biking as their main transportation. The other 20% use mopeds or a small percentage use cars.
So I was convinced that these must be the reasons why we can’t keep up with their perfect figures. Until I came across an article called “4 Ways French Women Stay Thin (Without the Gym)”. These French women have the perfect solution to the people who dread going to the gym. After an 8 hour day at work, errands to run, food to cook, and kids to come home to; it can be a pain. The gym is NOT the only place to get that work out you need. Throughout your day there are plenty of things you can do. During my busy days I come up with little exercises that take just a couple minutes. This article about French women covered a few of them, so I guess we think alike! Something me and my family have always done is rather than circling parking lots looking for the closest spot, park at a farther spot and get that extra walk in. This burns a few extra calories and it isn’t hard, burning an extra 50 calories ends up being a loss of 5 pounds each year! Anytime you drive somewhere that is walking distance, walk instead if you have the time. I think its funny when I see people stopping their car on the way in the drive way to get the mail. Why? Walk down the drive way and get the mail, maybe even walk around the block once while your down their. Rollerblading is one of my favorite things to do; its fun, gets you places fast, and it’s a great workout. French women also incorporate isometric exercise into their day, using their body weight as resistance. You can contract and hold muscles, or what I like to do in class or library is sit straight up and discreetly lift my knees to work my abs. French women also take care of their core, keeping good posture and doing a small session of sit ups before work. They also use small weights and do quick and simple resistance training.
These are just some of the quick and easy exercises there are to keep in shape. A few others I have used are just stretching in front of the TV during your favorite show, calf raises in the shower, doing yard or house work in ankle weights, walking on your toes (unless it looks weird), washing your own car during the summer rather than driving through one, walking to lunch, and sitting up from your chair often. The ideas are endless. So save some money and some time and find ways to work out while you’re studying, relaxing by the TV, or commuting!
If you want to check out the article, here's the link-
I totally agree with you about the obesity rates in America, there ridiculous. I've never been to Europe but i have heard that they don't have high obesity rates. I feel that those people can walk everywhere because of their occupations. People that live 30 or 40 miles away from work makes it hard to walk or ride a bike there but walking in small incriments over the course of the day rather than being sedentary is a good start to losing weight. I also feel most American's besides the time issues with being able to work out that a lot of people aren't educated on what to eat or how much (partly due to their upbringing) and lets face it a lot of people are just lazy. This is a good post and i like how you found evidence to support your claim.
ReplyDeleteAfter going to Argentina this past August, I totally agree that America is obese. Our team literally tried to hunt for an overweight person and it was impossible! Over there, the people exercise and walk everywhere. The parks were packed with people playing frisbee, walking dogs, and even adults were doing intense conditioning sessions in small groups (with stability balls and ladders) in the middle of the day! That would never happen in America. I also noticed that McDonald's to them was less of a fast food restaurant than here. It was more comparable to a Friendly's here in that whole families came in for dinner and not just a quick meal. I never really believed how unhealthy the USA was until I went to a different country. Good observation Erin!
ReplyDeleteYea i heard about he weight problems in America over the years however i didnt know they were that bad. It's pretty crazy that most italians are skinny especially like you said about how much spaghetti they eat.
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