While I am already at a healthy weight, your tips are invaluable. I would like to remain at a healthy weight for the rest of my life and your advice will help me achieve that.

Keep up the great work!

I wish that I was in California and could join you for your celebration later this month.

Looking forward to show #200.

Thank you

Will be looking forward to hearing the first show with the new format and to seeing the book.

I would like to congratulate both of you on your 100th show and wish you all the best!
You have been a great inspiration on my weigh loss journey and I am thank full to both of you.
I would like to wish you continuous success !

Do you know when this ep 100 will be available on itunes?

Many thanks and gratz!!

I also think that one of the best messages in this episode has to do with food quality. Whether you’re vegan, vegetarian, Paleo or just eating to get your prescribed 1800 calories in a good ratio, the act of CLEANING up your diet with respects to the quality of your food will go a REALLY long way to improving your overall health and lifestyle.

Whole, natural foods that come to you without a label (ie. Fruits, veggies, meat from the meat counter, nuts and seeds, etc) will have a much healthier impact on your body (in general) than highly processed “food” with large amounts of additives and other, unpronounceable ingredients. Its the difference between Food and food (or, as I like say, “The difference between Food and stuff you can eat.” ).

Keep up the great work guys, and than you for all the information.

Our only “official” F2F guidelines for eating are to start at 50% carbs, 30% protein, 20% fat and then adjust those ratios based on how your body feels. I personally eat 40-50% protein.

We also suggest that people choose foods from the highest rungs on the Michi’s ladder scale of foods which includes meats.
http://teambeachbody.com/eat-smart/michis-ladder

Our third major suggestion is to eat less processed foods.

Based on the percentage of vegetarian listeners that we have, I think it was about time that we looked into it.

I really like your guys site. However, I listened to your podcast about being a vegan and I wish you would interview some one who lost weight on a low carb. Like reporters, give both sides.

I totally disagree with your guest. Americans do not get enough protein. Americans eat too much refine carbohydrates and sugar in our diets. The research is there to support it.

Low carb dieting is not a “fad.” I lost 60 pounds eating this way and I continue to eat this way. And I have kept the weight off for three years eating this way, without killing myself with exercise. People believe that that “low carb” is just eating meat and no vegetables, which is not the case. Everyone’s body is not suited for being a vegetarian or a vegan. I am one of them.

There is a lot of information and research out there now about cholesterol not being the cause of heart disease. Whole grains are not the end all be all that most people think they are. Many people cannot digest wheat very well, especially African-Americans, and I am African-American.

So it is kind of unfair that your only promoting vegetarianism and veganism as a healthy choice choice for everyone.

I will agree that people should eat more plant based foods.

Research is now showing that soy is toxic to the human body. It damages your thyroid and soy overproduces estrogen in the human body.

Go to the weston price foundation website to educate your selves about the dangers of soy. Also, I would recommend you google information about low carb diets. Or go to my friends site, http://www.livinlavidalowcarb.com/blog. But being a vegan is not the healthiest choice for everyone think that it is.

Other than that, I love your shows. Continue to keep up the good work.

I love your podcasts for their positive encouragement and practical information. Keep up the great work!

This weeks podcast was, however, a disappointment for me. I was a practicing vegan many years ago and my health was negatively impacted by it. Thanks to the internet, I can now access the reports of research studies at PubMed and make more informed choices.

It was sad to hear from a mother who elects to feed her growing children soy products and deny them the meats and saturated fats so important to their growth and future health. Becoming vegan should be a choice left to the adults, I believe. I hope that your listeners research these things well before committing to this way of eating. There is a reason why diabetes, celiac disease and other autoimmune disorders are on the rise – Dr. Wm. Davis (of the Heart Scan Blog) has had an interesting few posts on his blog, comparing the ancient varieties of wheat with the modern versions. And there is plenty on the negative impact of soy and gluten.

I wonder if you might interview someone from the opposing camp, in order to balance things out a bit and give your listeners the tools for making the best decision for themselves? An ancestral type diet has helped a lot of people. Whether it’s a Paleolithic diet or the diet based on Weston A Price’s research, I think that it’s good to bring this to the attention of your listeners.

Love the show! I purchased the 1st season a few weeks ago. I have enjoyed hearing the show evolve to where you guys are now. You just keep getting better. Thanks for the information and inspiration.

You mentioned workout logs, which I agree are very important for tracking progress. I know that Russ, like myself, is a big fan of the iPhone, so I thought you might be interested in checking out the iFitness app. I’ve been using it to log my workouts and I find it extremely helpful. They have a bunch of pre-loaded exercises (strength training and cardio) and routines you can follow, or you can create your own custom exercises and routines. Every exercise has instructional pictures, and some even have video demonstrations. You can also use it to track your weight and body measurements. Best of all, it can chart your progress over time with any exercise. I was already carting my iPhone around at the gym to listen to music, so I don’t even have to carry anything extra, and at a mere $1.99, it’s just as cheap as a notebook and pen!

By the way, great job – I absolutely adore the show!

This interview helps me to see the benefits. I do not think I will ever be a complete Vegan, or even total Vegetarian, but I see some of the benefits. I will have to work a little harder to implement my meatless days, and see how I feel.

what are the types of resistance exercises you are referring to?, that Jeff was suggesting to his imaginary people next door

Also, very few people can sleep so little like Russ. Lucky are those who can, but for most of us we would damage our health negating any exercise benefits. The famous and successful comet hunter, Don Machholz, also attributes his success to needing only 4hrs of sleep per night. Wouldn’t that be great???!!!

Going back and listening to episode 65. Been awhile since I have listened to it.

Also I love the list on “reasons to exercise”! What I would add to it is that being fit means you are better able to save yourself (or someone else) in the event of an emergency or disaster.
Also, if you are strong and fit you will do better if you have to recover from an accident or something like that. And 3rd, if you ever have to care for someone else who is recovering from a severe health issue, you will be much more able to physically help that person. You never know when life is going to throw something like one of these scenarios at you, so keeping in shape helps you a lot when all of a sudden you need to be!
Thanks again for your podcast. I’ll be watching for your book!

And speaking of cold, I have a question for you. I’ve heard a lot on both ends of the spectrum about the health benefits, or lack thereof, of saunas. Can you guys give us the real story on saunas? I know that in the long cold days of a Minnesota winter it sure feels good to get in the sauna for a while and let that heat seep into my bones, but is there really much of a health and fitness benefit?

Thanks for your show,
Pat

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1164232/They-weigh-80-stone-claim-thousands-benefits–work-Who-blame-Anyone-themselves.html

It discusses whether it is reasonable that people should be able to claim benefits because they are too fat to work.

I think it’s fair to say that the government is actually supporting/enabling the weight problem these people have. What do you think?

I purchased a heart rate monitor(the chest strap with monitor, ~$55) because a lot of machines, I recently discovered, are compatible with them. The Polar brand seems to be the most compatible. That’s not an ad or anything, but that’s the case in the fitness room where I live.

You can “drive” the intensity of your workouts depending on your heart rate, do intervals based on heart rate training ranges, etc.

Whether or not you’re into heart rate training, it’s a good way to stay focused and interested in your indoor workouts.

It is very hard to build muscle mass, especially for a woman. It would still probably take a few years before a woman would notice a significant increase in muscle mass to be considered “bulked-up”, so there is no chance that you will accidentally all of a sudden look like a bodybuilder.

Max-OT lifting isn’t the magic solution to gain muscle because nothing works forever. You still need to change around your workout routines every once in a while so that your body doesn’t adapt. It is just another form of exercise that everyone can incorporate into their workout choices if they choose.

I wouldn’t change my cardio to always be a 16 minute workout at 100%, but I would throw it in there maybe once or twice a week for variety etc.

I hope to have a new protein pancake version to share soon, of my own design. First taste test is this week. Cross your fingers.

I just finished listening to this podcast while on the treadmill this morning, and wanted to comment with a few points:

1) I live in Greenville, NC – home of East Carolina University, and the study you referenced!! I’m originally from Annapolis, MD, but have lived here for about 10 years. Thanks for the local reference!

2) Ironically, Greenville, NC (and the greater Eastern Carolina region) received the illustrious statistic a couple years ago of having the largest number of fast food restaurants per square mile. In my time here, I have really noticed how much fried food and BBQ is part of the staple diet in this region, and the vast number of people that are sadly overweight. It is not unusual to have places like The Olive Garden and The Super China Buffet jam packed with people on a normal evening, AND to see the people here literally spilling over their chairs because they are so obese. While I am politically conservative, I think there are a couple areas where government can help. (see points #3, #4, and #5 below)

3) It is VERY difficult to bike or walk to shopping, dining, and services in this town. There are very few “bikeways”, sidewalks, parks, and nice outdoor recreation areas. We are right here on the coast, with lots of opportunity to develop stuff like this. Let’s encourage this kind of growth.

4) While taxing unhealthy foods is minimally effective, I LOVE the idea of requiring calorie information on ALL fast food, buffet, and full service restaurant menus. Even I struggle sometimes with trying to guess which choice is in line with my daily caloric goals. (can you say 1,400 calorie salad at Chilis?) I know that some areas like NYC have instituted this for places like fast food only, but this REALLY needs to be a national requirement across the entire food service industry. 2010 should be the year knowing exactly what we are putting in our bodies.

5) Education. I am all for this. Many of the people who are obese are of lower economic status, and simply do not know what it takes to live a healthier life, and the long term effects of their bad habits. Ultimately, the responsibility is theirs to get in shape, and they should be armed with good information. If they choose to continue their bad habits (just like smoking), it should not be OUR tax dollars that pay for their bypass surgery, lung surgery, and fat person electric wheelchair.

My background: I used to be 50 pounds overweight. Over the past 2-3 years, I have worked hard to burn the fat, and constantly educate myself about nutrition and exercise. I’m happy to say that I continue to maintain a low body fat %, muscle tone, and eating habits. This has been a battle, but one that I have won through constant consumption of information such as Fat2Fit radio podcasts, magazine articles, medical studies, and nutritional analysis.

Also, You guys said there would be links for forefoot running? I’ve neer heard of that before and I have bad knees and have been training for a half marathon since January! Thanks!

<3 Ani

RE: slow weights – I’m a believer for anyone who is recovering from an injury FOR SURE. Not only is it safer, but it really allows you to consciously use the muscles that are supposed to be working for each particular exercise…especially if you’re having to re-learn how to use some part of your body. I intuitively felt this early in my rehab for my shoulder, but the PT’s said I needed to have quick motion ability. It wasn’t until nearly 3 years into my rehab that I met with a PT who took me back to the beginning, brought my weights down to practically zero and had me do slow subtle movements (which felt right intuitively) and this was when my function began to return. Now that I’ve gotten function back, I’ve progressed back to more standard weights and can feel myself getting stronger by the day! I still move slowly during my reps, otherwise I will start using the wrong muscles again, flaring them up in pain because they aren’t supposed to be doing the work!

Thanks for the podcast, We love it!

I am looking for ways to “spice up” my cardio time at the gym and 16 minutes hard and fast sounded like a good way to do that. Especially before doing some cardio/strength type moves (lunges, squats, etc).

I’m just wondering if it’s going to be as effective as 30 minutes of moderate cardio.

But, I just listened to a show today, I think it was this one, and the quote at the end really struck me. Where can I find it? David Smith? Something about being where you are b/c you want to be at that place?

I can’t recall off hand but would really like to put it on my info. tab on my wall.

Keep up the great work! I walk my 30 min. listening to your show. Thanks!

If you can get a loved one to exercise they will benefit, and will likely lose some weight. If they do lose some weight then you can be there to praise and excite them into perhaps making other changes to improve their health like eating more healthy foods. Then if they are feeling good and losing some weight you can start focusing on ways to really lose some weight (like listen to Fat2Fit Radio!)

I think most people can handle hearing that their lack of exercise is bad for their health better than hearing that their weight is bad for their health. Losing weight is so overwhelming to think of…getting more exercise is a smaller step that has many benefits for them and it doesn’t have as much embarrasment impact.
-terry

I also like the spark people one too.

Our calculations are not based on BMI. BMI does not take into account your lean body mass. Our calculator does. There’s no direct relationship between the two numbers.

Also the goal weight it gave me was 173lbs and just to get to my highest BMI the BMI charts say that I should be about 146lbs, I wonder why there is such a large difference and which should I be aiming for?

Thanks for the great podcast,

Jack

After several failed attempts at weight loss, I decided to approach it like a work project. I first needed to define the task to complete (50 pounds lost). I then had to set an action plan (how to complete the task). This required research on the best methods of weight loss, reasonable weight loss goals etc., which was basically “eat less, move more”. I had to be more specific and set myself a daily goal of 1000 cal deficit, resulting in 2 lbs loss per week. This also lead to my timeline of 26 weeks (gave myself a little wiggle room). As the “project” went on I had to tweak the plan (sometimes the diet part, sometimes the exercise part).

While I lost weight for myself, approaching it like it was a work project took a lot of the negative self talk out of it for me. I went from constantly think that I couldn’t lose weight to being challenged to complete the project. I lost the 50 lbs in 26 weeks, and went on to lose another 20 lbs. I am at my goal weight, and I am 2 months into “maintenance”.

I really agree that the most important aspect of weight management is a food and exercise diary. I expect this to be the part of my new lifestyle that will keep me on track for the long term.

LL&P

What I really wanted to say was that I thought the guest did an excellent job describing yoga and how it works, especially emphasizing the importance of being where YOUR body is to get the maximum benefit from the postures – SO important.

Also, I just wanted to say that, to be honest, I think I look better with my clothes off than on. So looking good in my clothes is much more motivating for me!

At yoga studios, you are more likely to get small classes and individual attention. The instructor will walk around the room and give adjustments. That means they will help you slightly tweak your form. With a even a half-way decent instructor, this is often helpful. Right now in Chicago, classes typically run $15 each. If you like it, you can typically buy a punch card and get a discount.

At gyms (where the cost class is usually included in your membership fee) the instructors typically give verbal instruction only. This is a great way to be introduced to yoga.

I urge people to try different instructors. If there’s something that you don’t like about an instructor, stop going to the class and try a different instructor. Ask around at classes and see which instructors people like.

I get a parsing error when I try to use the link to the US Gov Food Encyclopedia link.
Any other people have this problem?
Laura

you dont have to be a runner to enjoy this book

I listened to this podcast about a month and a half ago, and I’ve used it to cling on to that bandwagon a few times now.

Thank you so much!!

Thank you for a wonderful podcast, it helps me to stay motivated when I feel like everything I do doesn’t seem to work – I just have to persevere and I know that sometime soon my efforts will be realised.

Adriana

There is another book that is coming out on January 6, 2010 by Richard Wiseman that is challenging many widely held beliefs about goal setting, self-help etc. It’s called “59 Seconds: Think a Little, Change a Lot”.

http://www.amazon.com/59-Seconds-Think-Little-Change/dp/0307273407/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262667811&sr=8-1

Hopefully this will provide some better science to goal setting as well.

Just thought you’d like to know that the Harvard study (asking the class who had (written) goals and then tracking their success) doesn’t seem to have actually existed.

http://sidsavara.com/personal-productivity/fact-or-fiction-the-truth-about-the-harvard-written-goal-study

From Sid Savara’s article it seems there has been only one actual study done looking at written goals. It supports the notion that you will be more successful if you write your goals down rather than just thinking about them.

http://sidsavara.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/researchsummary2.pdf

All the best for 2010,
Fitz

Not sure if you know of a website called: mapmywalk.com. I love that site, and you can also connect it to Facebook.

You don’t have to use your car any more to drive the distance you walked. It’s connected, possibly, to Google Earth and you can mark the streets you walked and put in all the pertinent information. I love it and tell all my friends about it.

LOVE LOVE LOVE the podcasts. Thanks again!

I did lose a fair amount of weight but understood even at the time that it was water weight. What do you think about cleanses, for the health reasons separate from weight loss?

Keep up the great work. TY TY TY for the show.

Good show boys!

Alas, I’ve just now listened to this podcast and talked to my doctor. While I totally agree the Time article was sensationalized out of proportion, it does have some redeeming qualities. The first is something I’m guilty of, overcompensation in eating for the amount of exercise. Something else my doctor and I talked about is exercise won’t help you lose weight if you’re inert otherwise. At some point, people will have to put down the computer mouse and television remote. By people, I mean me.

Finally, a lot of women’s magazines have completely inflated cover blurbs, especially concerning weight loss. Very often, the article bears no resemblance to the cover’s allusion to it. Sad to add Time to the list of unreliable reporting.

Even the worst-written anti-drug PSA explains or at least alludes that drugs are harmful. Would any kid deduce that excessive condiments and dressing are unhealthy form this PSA alone.

I want to thank you for the light you shed on ‘The Biggest Loser’ and how unrealistic their style of weight-loss is for real people. I wish that they had a season where all of the contestants were within 50 pounds of their goal weight and were already living active, healthy lives.

I believe then we would learn something about real weight loss and not so much about how quickly water and junk food pounds come off.

Listening forward for more to come!

“He has to be eating something like 4,000 calories to maintain that size. Take responsibility for stuffing your own face, that’s what I did.”

I can assure you I’m not eating 4k calories, but have had problems with overeating in a single sitting and eating the wrong foods.

I started at ~450 lbs and have lost over 150 lbs. It just takes work.

Like Russ said, it’s a cautionary tale, nothing more.

A few things:

“I can’t believe your opinions on this flying issue. If you are 5′ 10” 370 you need to buy an extra ticket. How the heck does the logic of ‘I’m fat and if you sit next to me it was your choice’ work?”

I tried to explain my particular dimensions on the show and it sounds like I wasn’t very successful. I’m not wide enough to “spill over” into someone else’s seat. I fit nicely into one seat, arm rests down. If I ended at the waist the person next to me would never know I was there. My mid-section extends out, not to the sides. I have to ask for a seat belt extender, but again, the person next to me isn’t affected.

Here’s the problem – my shoulders. If I sit with my arms alongside, I’m into the next person’s space. If I cross my arms, we’re back to zero involvement with the person next to me–but there’s also zero clearance between us.

If someone wants to sit there, I’ll do my best to make them comfortable, but my weight has nothing to do with the width of my shoulders. I carry my excess fat in my upper thighs and belly and most of my muscle in my arms and shoulders.

“Because the person was late to the plane they should penalized?? They didn’t pay a ’sit next to a fat person’ price.”

That was an unfair dig on my part–I have a pet peeve when it comes to punctuality. I’m always early, so I feel a twinge of “you deserve it” whenever I see someone running late enough to delay a plane. We didn’t do the show with a script, so candid responses are strewn throughout.

Thanks, as always, for the show. It is an absolute pleasure to listen to, and I am always excited for the next installment to arrive.

I just had a question for you about body fat measurement methods. The personal trainers at my gym insist on only using one of the electronic, handheld devices to do body fat assessments, even though I have often read that they are some of the least reliable tools (often underestimating body fat percentage by up to 40%). Did you guys run in to any information about these measurement devices and their relative accuracy?

1. Is having more than recommended amounts of body fat really, REALLY that bad? I remember growing up with some people who LOOKED fat, but were actually quite athletic. They exercised regularly, but had this extra weight because they ate more than they burned. But they were still strong and healthy, despite being overweight. So is it critically important that we focus efforts on losing body fat, even though some overweight people can be healthy and happy?

2. You distinguished between visceral and adipose/subcutaneous fat and say that visceral fat is the more “dangerous” type. I assume that when you use body fat measuring-instruments such as body fat scales and body fat calipers, the number you get tells you the amount of subcutaneous fat, not visceral fat. So would the body fat % reading you get be an accurate indicator of your “total body fat”(perhaps the scale tells you both subq and visceral fat?) and is there a way to get a reliable measure of just your visceral body fat?

Also I am a consultant that make 1K status on United in 6 1/2 months.

Travelling full time is not easy to control your diet and exercise but it can be done.

A couple of years ago I was sitting next to a man that was morbidly obese (I am not being mean, by clinical definition that is what he was), I can’t venture to guess how much he weighted but it was pretty substantial. He could not put the arm rest down and he couldn’t contain himself in his seat. He ended up body pressing me from knee to shoulder. I couldn’t move over anymore … it was a nightmare. Within 10 minutes I went from being of a comfortable body temperature to sweating because he was hot and sweating … gross.

Frankly, I don’t really mind if people over-eat … it is their body and their life however, I do feel any encroachment that imposses on someone else is substantially rude.

The first commentor is correct. First class has wider seats both in the butt and in the shoulder area, it can be verified here at seatguru.com. And yes, I believe that man sitting next to me should have bought another seat.

I frequently have guys (not so much girls) touch a shoulder or bump me quite often but I am okay with that. We are in close quarters. But I vowed I would never sit next to a man / woman that could not put down that arm rest and contain themselves in their seat again.

Any why should the airlines charge everyone more for a ticket when those few should just get charged? Fair is fair, why would I pay for someone else’s problem? By the way, the infrequent time I do fly SWA … the big burly overweight guy always wants to sit next to me. Presumably to get the extra seat room that I am not using. Yes, I have tons of stories about this too. Life of a road warrior.

I am sorry Steve felt put out, especially since he can fit into his seat and is not that guy. But there are more people out there that are that guy and less considerate that Steve.

Thanks.

Thanks for all you do.

Jen

BTW: the airlines are trying to fit more people in each flight, because we all want low fares.

Overall I was not sympathetic to Steve. Sorry.

Sue L.

The article or another linked in it, also mentions that all the snacks in the park are carbohydrates laden. Churros, popcorn, ice cream, cotton candy, etc. I have to say that while that’s true, they do offer healthy snacks, if you want to pay $3.00 for an apple.

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/weight-loss/disney-small-world-ride-a-casualty-of-the-obesity-epidemic/

I have a non-biased, 100% consistent analytical way to approach the travelers of size issue.

Prior to boarding, have all passengers walk through a doorway that is the same width of the airplane seats. If they can’t easily fit through the doorway, then they have to pay for two seats.

The airlines have measuring devices for carry on luggage, so they should apply the same logic here.

This obese airline passenger issue is very symbolic of a MUCH MUCH bigger issue in our society when it comes to obesity, its cost, and how it affects everyone.

In the very rare event that I go to a place like Olive Garden, I just cringe, as the majority of the people in that restaurant are obese, to morbidly obese. They come in, and consume huge 1,800 calorie meals, loaded with sodium and saturated fat. I know that it will be my tax dollars that end up paying for their joint replacements, and artery bypasses. I know that when they fly, they will either spill way over into my personal space, or that part of my ticket cost could end up covering their extra seat.

Sure, I want to eat those same bad meals too, but I have the restraint, self control, knowledge, and long term vision to know that this will ultimately lead me down a wildly unhealthy path.

So why should part of my tax dollars pay for someone who has no self control when it comes to food, and the health issues they will face? Why should that person spill into my personal space on an airplane? Why shouldn’t an airline charge for an extra seat for this person?

In your podcast, we saw the affect it had on your caller. It became the catalyst needed for him to lose more weight.

With the state of our healthcare in this country today, and where it could be going, the healthy end up paying for the choices of the unhealthy. If all overweight people had to pay more for healthcare, or pay higher health care taxes, I can guarantee you we will see more obese people working to become healthy.

Volumes have already been written on this, and I could certainly go into more detail, but this is just my $.02.

For some background, I am a 30 year old IT professional, who travels quite frequently for work. I lost 50 pounds over a 1.5 year period, and have spent the past 2 years maintaining my body weight and shape. I live here in Eastern North Carolina, where you see a ton of barbeque, french fry, and hush puppy eating overweight people, so I’m probably more sensitive to these issues than someone who has always been thin and lives in an area like California.

In closing, as Andrew mentioned in his post, it is about taking personal responsibility. The lazy and mediocre love programs like Welfare, and organizations that “fight for the rights of fat people”. Why? Because it means you can keep eating what you want, or not working, and be taken care of.

Bottom line = If the obese have to pay more for certain things because they are obese, they will work to NOT be obese.

I can’t believe your opinions on this flying issue. If you are 5′ 10” 370 you need to buy an extra ticket. How the heck does the logic of ‘I’m fat and if you sit next to me it was your choice’ work? Because the person was late to the plane they should penalized?? They didn’t pay a ‘sit next to a fat person’ price. And you never once mentioned when you were feeling sorry for him that THIS IS ALL HIS FAULT. He has to be eating something like 4,000 calories to maintain that size. Take responsibility for stuffing your own face, that’s what I did.

And by the way, I had the same opinions when I was 310. When I would travel it would be with at least another person and I would make sure that I got the aisle or the window and the person I was traveling with was in the middle. And you could argue that this guy is traveling alone, that’s fine, it just means he needs to buy another ticket.

Another thing, you mentioned that people are getting larger and so they are making furniture larger etc. so they need to make the seats in planes larger. Flying is a choice in this country. You do not have to fly, you don’t even have to fly a certain airline, and you can even buy first class (btw, he was wrong about Delta first class. It is different on different types of aircraft and on the majority of aircraft the seat is much wider). My point is because you got so fat you can’t fit in a seat doesn’t mean the airline should fix that problem, IT MEANS YOU SHOULD FIX THAT PROBLEM. Take some responsibility for own actions, it seems like this entire country doesn’t want to do that. And if the country does get so fat that there is enough demand then there would be a discount airline called XL Air or something like that. It will form to service the demand of all the obese people.

Just downloaded this podcast but before I listened, I checked out the links listed here and could not get the “Weight Loss Simulator” link to work…says invalid URL. Will do a google search anyhow!

Also, I wanted to tell you that I have a background in holistic nutrition and have studied the subjects of health and food for the past five years, and still learn so much from your podcast.

For example, while watching episode 1 of the new season of The Biggest Loser with my husband, a guilty pleasure I guess, I explained to him the whole theory behind starvation diets and why their extreme weight-loss will be almost impossible to maintain once they go back to regular life. I understand this better because of how you guys explained it to me, and now he understands it, too.

Keep up the great work – it’s really appreciated.

Diane from NYC

I actually started listening to that podcast probably back around episode #8. Half the stuff that I see about fitness is full of half/truths and logical fallacies. I’m thinking of doing a show on how to evaluate weight loss/fitness product ads and the common ways that they try to sell to people.

The cast of the Skeptics Guide to the Universe podcast would love this episode. They’re always talking about the problems with the media in covering science stories of any sort! The Skeptics Guide website has a list of their top 20 logical fallacies in case anyone who’s interested in becoming familiar with them.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

That was a great podcast (they all are) but your analysis and rebuttal about the Time Mag. article was awesome.

Good job to both of you. I certainly hope that we never see such horrible journalism from what I thought was a respectable publication again! What a disservice they have done and we can only hope that the world of blogs and podcasts and fitness institutions can correct the damage.

Keep up the great podcasts and I hope you never tire of doing them!

Miriam