According to an article I read recently
in Time magazine anyone about to pledge
to have and to hold should think carefull
about "in sickness and in health."

New research apparently shows that within
a few short years of getting hitched,
married individuals are twice as likely
to become obese as those who are merely
dating.

Have you gained weight
since being married or moving in with someone?

Does being in a permanent relationship mean
you're happier, more relaxed, therefore
prone to putting on weight?

Your thoughts please?

Thank you for your post foxy.

Married or single, there seems to be many factors to weight gain and I believe monitoring one,s self is the key to good health. Me, my DNA wont allow for a chunky butt or beer gut no matter how hard I try. ( fast metabolism ) but those home cooked meals, mmmmmmm, and since we don't have to hunt anything any-more ( fast food the new pray ) all leads to watch what and how we eat.

Burn as much as you can, even have more sex can help all those lumpy bits ( first thing in the morning before work, and brightens your day as well ) and take turns when riding the horse so to speak. smile.

Which ever how you balance your life, just keep on moving.

Do the norm TV character, and those pants sizes will just keep on growing.

Dear walk with me,

Good advice. I fully agree.
That's why I go to the gym three days a week
and run regularly around a
local park.
I'm also very conscious about eating the right
foods - my dad died of a massive coronary
at the age of 52. So I've been very health
conscious as a result. If anything was to
happen to my husband - I'd be devastated.

Also, my husband has an office staff of
gorgeous females - which keeps me on my toes.

The study that I was referring to in my opening
post set out to determine how romantic relationships
affect the tell-no-lies number on the scale.
Researchers tracked changes over a handful of years
in the weight and relationship status of 6,949
individuals, and their findings didn't bode well
for commitment.

According to the study -
Not only are married people more likely to become
obese than those who are just dating, but they
found that young people who move in with a boyfriend
or girlfriend tend to pack on the pounds as well.

It's par for the course that once a woman has attracted a mate she let's herself go.
Look at all those petite Italian signorinas and their big fat mamas.

Foxy, I'd say that would be a correct observation. Once people are
married, they have snared their partner etc, so time to relax.

But more and more, I blame the processed food industry for a large
part of our weight problems.

They really are sneaky buggers and will use every trick in the book,
to load product with salt, sugar and fat.

To give you an example, some months ago I tried a breakfast cereal
from Uncle Toby's, which has now been bought by Nestle. It was
their "Plus - Fibre Lift" with all sorts of claims on the box about
high fibre, low fat, whole grains, fruit included etc.

One day I opened a box and it looked like they had changed the
ingredients a bit, the grain flakes looked whitish, like a coating
of sugar. So I checked the box, to find out how much sugar was
in there. It was well hidden, in terms of the colour of the background,
quotes of daily needs, rather then per 100gm, but I
eventually found it. 26% Sugar!

So I found the Nestle website and wrote them a dirty email, pointing
out that I was disgusted with their product and that they could fool
some of the people, some of the time etc.

Surprisingly enough, they wrote back and have sent me a cheque for
10$ :) It seems that they do actually take notice of consumer
comments, so if more consumers would complain when companies
market crappy products disguised as healthy, food companies might
do something about it.

According to the study -
Not only are married people more likely to become
obese than those who are just dating, but they
found that young people who move in with a boyfriend
or girlfriend tend to pack on the pounds as well.Posted by Foxy, Thursday, 17 December 2009 7:32:56 PM

You are so right. My daughter has just returned from her love nest affair, and has packed on the pounds to where I nearly didn't recognized her, and as we discussed, sometimes the good life can catch up with you.
And now thankfully she has seen the light and has started to get back in shape. She made a joke about her weight and said, " Iam so big, If I was sun-baking on the beach, I think greenpeace might of tried to push me back in. But like you said, being over weight can be so dangerous.

merry Xmas to you and your family.

having fought the battle of the bulge all my life I know a little about it. Have a plan for your life and write it down. Include a health plan. You MUST KNOW that God the creator of the universe loves YOU so it is ok to love your self. Love is a decision not a feeling so do not follow your feelings for you can get off track so follow the roadmap you have set for your life. Get to know God through his word in the good times so they are your anchor in the tuff times. It is no good trying to build spiritual muscle when you are in a life and death strugle cos it don't work. Build muscle in the good times and they will sustain you in the tuff times. Jesus said "My word is spirit and it is life to them that find it". Become an encourager and encourage yourself for an aginners atract depresion not positive atitudes. eg I can do All things through Christ WHO strengthens me for with God nothing is impossible, never ever say "I can't" for that word kills.
How do you eat an elephant "one bite at a time" . Rome wasn't built in a day. A holistic aproach to life works diets don't. Unless God builds our life we labour in vain. Old habits die hard and lead to death, balance in all areas of life is esential. People perish from lack of knowledge so get educated in life skills. Religion is not life. Jesus is life and he called the religious white washed walls. Pretty on the outside but rotten inside. It is not to run fastest that counts but finishing the race. Your final destination is who YOU chose to follow so don't Blame God develop a thankfull heart in all things.

Foxy,
Are you boasting you foxy thing you? ;-)
I seem to remember you telling us you go running every day and were, well, foxy. :-\

As for me I'm not that sure that it's all that simple as your head line suggests.
I agree that is the sequence but is it cause and effect?

when I got married I was indeed thinner, however, there were a number of evens that may also be described as causal factors.

Life style changes;
- regular meals, 3 squares instead of perhaps 3 in two days.
- throw in birthday cakes, deserts etc for the children's benefit.
- stopping of bar being a fly less vitamin Chivas Regal (scotch)
- Financial responsibility/set backs.
*7 yrs in - Giving up smoking for the benefit of the family (me incl.)
*12 years in - Greater business pressures
*16 years in - on going Medical issues
- sea change 10 years ago. PS I now drink my own German style beer. beer
*2years ago- finally cancer and arthritis meant limited physical activity.

My weight gains were incremental and can be correlated to about the '*' timings.
As stated I'm about 7KG overweight! :-(

I guess my point is that I seen many people put on pounds after marriage, but, on closer examination the causal factors are lifestyle changes and other issues.

I'm not saying that the findings are incorrect, just that they are statistical and in my demented mind, not necessarily bullet proof.
Or am I just....a......denialist? (yuk) Oh the shame! Woe is me! ;-)

Thanks for your excellent inputs.

Dear Herman,

When you mentioned Italian women - I immediately
thought of the beauties of the past eras - women
like Gina Lollobrigida, Sophia Loren, Isabella
Rossellini to mention just three.

However, you've got the current bevy of beauties -
the exquisite Monica Bellucci (Mary Magdalene in
Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ."). She's
also the face of "Dior." Then there's the magnificent
Elisabetta Canalis - who's captured the heart of
George Clooney. Of course there's Carla Bruni Sarkozy -
wife of the French President. And we have our very own -
Carla Zampatti, Tina Arena, Natalie Imbruglia ...

I guess it's in the genes perhaps?
Not everyone inherits from their mamas.

Dear Yabster,

I've been reading Labels for quite some time -
checking the ingredient list and the fat, sugar,
and salt contents. I haven't actually written to
anyone yet - but it's an excellent idea.

Dear walk with me,

It sounds as though your daughter has things
under control. Merry Christmas to you and your family,
and may the New Year bring you many Happy Days!

Dear Richie,

Thank You for sharing your thoughts. A health plan
is the best of all concepts - all we need is the
will to succeed.

Dear Examinator,

Of course I'm boasting... got your attention didn't it?
(giggle).

Seriously though, you're right (as always, damn it!). Lifestyle
changes do have a tremendous impact on a person's weight
and well being. I remember when we sailed to the US - those
weeks at sea had devastating results.

Frankly I wouldn't want to be too thin - I notice when visiting
relatives in Aged Care Facilities - the people that are very
fragile are the very thin ones - they tend to become almost
bird-like and very frail. The ones with a bit of weight tend
to have a softness about them and they also look healthier.

With eating and life-style - I guess its the old adage -
"Everything in Moderation!" (well, nearly everything, -
it's good to indulge in some things - sometimes - right?) ;-)

Dear Foxy,
That is where Jesus comes in for he is the saviour of our soul which is our mind, will, Interlect and emotions for in our weekness we have access to his strength. That is why he taught us to pray "not my will but thine be done help us to resist temptation" It has taken me 30 years to get a rudamentry grasp of Gods word even with the Holy Spirits help. I was a loner and didn't trust so as a result I was a slow learner. After 2 strokes I now have a health plan . I guess I am a bit slow but better late than never.

Thank you Richie, your time is always valued. The world as one, we will wait for commonsense for all concerned, religious or not. Foxy. The elderly also must keep health in check, and Xmas is a great time to go and see your grandmother and father in this time of all you can eat, and your post is of great reality in any-ones sense of joyful times and I share them with you.
So after the peaceful time has past, back to the tread-mill for all of us.

Again. Your heart is always something special. And yes, you too.

Dear Ritchie,

I agree - prayer is a gracious act - it honours not
only those that pray but also those that you pray for.
As the writer Marianne Williamson said,
"No conventional therapy can release us from a deep
and abiding psychic pain. Through prayer we find what
we cannot find elsewhere, a peace that is not of this
world."

Our family recently suffered the pain of
the death of a family member. Prayer certainly helped
us to cope.

Dear walk with me,

At our home - the feast of Christmas
is always preceded by four weeks
of Advent, a period of "fasting and contemplation."
"Kucios" or Christmas Eve, is the last day of fasting,
followed by a sumptuous meal.

No less that 12 dishes must be served at this special
Christmas Eve meal (predominantly sea-food)
beginning with the recitation of
Grace and the breaking of a special unleavened wafer,
called "Plotkele." This wafer, blessed by the Parish
Priest, (Lithuanian), is shared by all at the table
signifying a spirit of unity.

I'll have my mother and my mother-in-law (ages - 8os and
90s) say Grace. I do all the cooking Christmas Eve, as well
as for the Traditional
Christmas Day Lunch (again at our home).
I'll keep up this tradition for as long as
I'm able.

I'm sorry to hear about your strokes - but very glad that
you've survived them. My step-father wasn't as lucky.
He lost his power of speech and was partially paralysed
down his right side after one of his strokes - then he
continued to have seizures - until he finally passed
away in September of this year.

A health plan is an excellent idea.

<< Have you gained weight since being married or moving in with someone?

Foxy, I’ve not gained a gram in a couple of decades of being entirely single! But yes I bet I would have gained a fair bit had I been in a ‘lationship!

I do recall gaining something when I moved in with someone and then married it, back in the 80s – stress!! And I lost something too – freedom!

I can’t imagine that I could have been happier over the last 21 years in a relationship than I’ve been in blissful singleness!

<< Does being in a permanent relationship mean you're happier, more relaxed, therefore prone to putting on weight? >>

No, I think it means that you are unhappier, less relaxed and therefore prone to putting on weight!

Dear Ludwig,

There are certain benefits to being married,
couples don't have to live chubbily ever
after. If one spouse participates in a
weight-loss program, according to surveys
done, the unenrolled spouse tends to lose
about 5lb. Studies also show that marriage
conveys some health benefits, like living
longer and being more likely to quit smoking.
Eating better, less stress, laughing more
often, having someone to talk to, share things
with, companionship, and so on.

However, I guess its to each his own - whatever
rocks your boat. If you find single life bliss -
That's great. I used to be a bit of a loner,
my parents used to worry about me - because
I seemed to enjoy my own company too much.
That changed when I met my husband.
Now I prefer having someone to share
things with. But, that's not to say that I don't
still do some things on my own -
we all need our own space from time to time.

Do you have any pets?

<< Do you have any pets? >>

No dog or cat. But a family of curlews that live in the back yard which we know as Fred and Maud and the kids Pixie and Waggletooche. Waggletooche appears to be gay! And a butcherbird that comes in and looks forlornly at me through the window for a feed each morning and then taps on the glass if I ignore him. Sometimes he brings the whole family in.

Also a dozen plumed whistling ducks that were here last wet season and have returned to idle their days away just out the back close to the house… & bowerbirds, lorikeets and all sorts of other birds that come in for a bath every day.

Oh and a retired friend as a tenant who looks after the watering of my newly planted native garden through the very long and dry dry season…and um drives me mad every evening ( :>|

He reads OLO voraciously and knows every poster intimately. He worships CJ Morgan and gives Ludwig heaps of flack! Dear o dear!!

Also, good entertaining people at work & friendly neighbours.

Yair so, life’s pretty good, all told.

No need to go hunt for a female of the species. But if she comes along, well good. I’m happy to take it as it comes.

Dear Ludwig,

Your place sounds like the Garden of Eden.
I envy you the range of birdlife.
In my suburban garden - we're somewhat limited -
however there's a park nearby which I frequent
and enjoy.

It sounds like you've found the perfect balance
in your life. I'm happy for you.

Dear dree23,

Psoriasis can make anyone miserable.
I've seen small children suffering from it dreadfully.
They say that sometimes Chinese Herbal Medicine can
help - but I'd go to my GP and get a referral to a
good dermatologist