an interesting piece in todays scum....

UK women are more likely than men to weigh over 30st, a study says | The Sun |News

Firstly, BMI is bullshit. I had a 6% body fat at my peak and was in the "obese" category because my muscle mass was high. Comparing countries based on that and not body composition is retarded.

But I reckon I know why this country is dead lardy. The weather (and the beaches) and generally pretty shit. That's right.

Let's say you go over to Spain, or Brazil, or somewhere where everyone is typically in pretty decent shape. What do you notice? Good weather and beaches. Now think about it. Would you be comfortable walking around in just your swimwear with a massive fat belly hanging over your shorts? Well, maybe, but you wouldn't feel as confident as you would walking like a boss down the waterfront with a sixpack of doom.

I reckon that the fact that there is such more of an opportunity for people in better climates to walk around semi-nude in public puts a higher emphasis on staying in shape. Hence why there's a lot more local cuisine and less fastfood in those kinds of places. People actually care about their appearance because of social conformity, where as in the UK

a) People are pretty tolerant / don't give a shit what people think
b) We're so surrounded by consumerism and other out of shape people that it stops the majority making an effort.

Personally, I kinda like the fatties. They generated my income for years and mean that when I walk around in the summer with no top on, I get attention in a positive way. Selfish, sure, but hey, I'm English and it's my prerogative.