Many people don’t have the hunger for it, and no one can do it for them. We are a society desiring instant gratification and what feels good now (or like a long-established habit equaling comfort) isn’t always what leads to good health in the long run. It’s a complex issue involving upbringing, neural pathways (habits), social and emotional issues, lifestyle pace, and more. The punishment (the healthy behavior) comes before the reward (health benefits), so a person has to have a deep hunger for the long-term results in order to change anything now.
I, personally, don’t think the healthy behavior is a punishment, but to people who are eating fast food and sitting on the couch watching tv, the healthy behavior is too different from what they’re currently doing to just simply jump on board.
I work with people who are overweight or obese everyday who want to change and improve. The road towards change is a long one, baby steps reign supreme, and small successes are huge to us.
To experience social change, the issue of obesity has to be addressed from all angles. I don’t really know much about what to do about economic status and some of those things, but in my corner of the world, I know that there are effective strategies for people to follow in an ongoing basis that don’t just tell them to “put down the fork” and get up and move. Everyone has a different path, usually involving digging deep inside and getting to know themselves, when it comes to weight loss.
Focusing on weight and pounds generally misses the point (and weight is only a symptom)—-we need to go 3 or 4 steps back with each individual in order to help them change something. Large scale—I’m clueless about what to do, but one-on-one, there’s hope!

Honestly, I think the drive is missing from people because they don’t feel like they can take CONTROL over their health.

I know too many overweight and obese people in my own life, and what drives ME is worry that I’ll end up like them. Like my mom, who has Type 2 diabetes (as does her two sisters). Like my MIL, who lives in daily pain because she’s carrying 60lbs more than she should.

Both of these women tell me that they can’t lose weight just by watching what they eat, because the weight doesn’t come off easily. And they can’t exercise because of [insert pain here]. So they end up thinking “what’s the point of watching what I eat anyway? I can’t LOSE weight” and then they eat what they want.

It’s a dangerous spiral.

The thing that scares me most, though, isn’t the obesity rates in adults, who gain weight when they get married. For me, it’s the kids that are obese, who are NEVER taught the value of exercise and balanced eating. That’s what scares me most – we’re setting up an entire generation to fail, so early in their lives.

I think you have to want it enough, and you have to think it’s possible, and you have to know what to do (knowledge of what to eat and how to cook), and you have to have access to ways to do it (shops with affordable, healthy food that you don’t have to drive to), and you have to have time. Yadda yadda.

I’ve lost a lot of weight once, for my wedding. I am now at about the same weight I was when I started that journey. I lost just over 40 pounds in a year, the year before our wedding, through eating less and moving more. A lot on both fronts – running about 8k 5 times a week plus weights etc., and eating about 1600 calories a day. While not denying myself stuff like the occasional piece of dark chocolate.

Right now I am careful what I eat, although not that careful. But I am not exercising other than walking to the tube, taking the stairs etc., because the slots i would exercise in are when I see the children. And I work on average 14 hours a day, and I travel a lot. So I’m giving myself a pass for 2010. And we’ll see if I can fit it in when we get to 2011. I am losing about a pound every 3 weeks, so very very slow. I will get it back, but it’s going to take longer this time.

But let’s not forget I am very priviledged, and well educated, and have great support. Most people are not that lucky, and bad food is very cheap, especially in the US.

Lisa-So true. It’s not about the pounds so much as it is about what took the overweight and obese to that point. It’s such a wide-reaching problem, with so many different mitigating factors. It’s great to know that people like you are working to address such a pervasive problem for those with the strength and desire to want to change.

Serenity-The childhood obesity epidemic is seriously scary. One in four preschoolers (that’s kids who are only 3 and 4 years old) is obese. Not overweight. Obese. If they’re not taught at a young age how to properly take care of themselves, this number is only going to grow.

Thalia-You’re right. Especially for working mothers, it is incredibly difficult to find the time to exercise. I often tell my husband that my life would be perfect if there were 36 hours in every day. That said, yes, the U.S. is full of awful food, huge portion sizes, and myriad other systemic problems that make it so difficult for people to control their weight. We could learn a lot from Europe, that’s for sure.