For most people the answer is simple: eat fewer calories than you expend if you want to lose weight and eat the same number of calories you expend if you want to maintain (i.e., not gain) weight.

All the other stuff (fancy diets, fancy workout programs) are just too complicated for most people to want to deal with, and are on the whole unnecessary to maintaining a healthy weight.

Walk the dog for at least 30 minutes every day (even if you don't have a dog), and stay away from processed food, high-sugar food, and food with saturated fat. Eat lots of natural foods (fruit, veg), drink water instead of soda, and eat "treats" (candy, ice cream, fast food) only occasionally.

Other than people with metabolic disorders, most other people who say they "can't understand" why they have put on weight are being disingenuous, IMHO.

I am in CA and all I seem to see are grossly overweight people?

Sure, the image portrayed of CA is of gorgeous women and muscle bound men who all eat healthy and work out! But the reality seems to be way too many people eating vast quantities of food, with the only exercise being in lifting the huge take outs into their mouth!

Got on the scales yesterday, lost 6 pounds in 2 weeks, on the "Yosser, run yer ass off diet"... feeling better now!

Started paying attention to labels on food again, worked out what was doing it...About once a week the Mrs was making one of those marble chocolate cakes (Betty crocker or something)....just a generous slab on the plate was 44grams of carbs....and that wasn't including the icing

I've got a bugger of a sweet tooth though...got to keep going, flying back to Blighty next month, can't have the American lard ass look

IMHO you are absolutely correct!

I remember reading the Atkins diet book more than twenty years ago and I thought it was nothing other than another fad diet. Today, everywhere you go there seems to be an obsession with carbs and yet the majority of people are not getting any slimmer!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Obviously you haven't been to Cali have you??

Don't believe what Hollywood throws at you. The typical californian you see on the street is hispanic, female, and 145-160lbs with 3 kids. 80% of the population here is overweight. FAR from whatever misconstrued notion you have in your mind!

-= nav =-

My waistline has grown from a 34 to a 36 or even 38 in some trousers/jeans. I've probably gained about 25 pounds in the year and a bit I've been here. I thought I'd start losing it once I got back to work, but I have reached a steady level of fatness.

Well now you've got your drivers license you can expect another couple of inches and a few more pounds.

Yes, but my brother in law just got me a snazzy new mountain bike to replace the one I had stolen. If it wasn't 114 outside today, I might be tempted to ride it.

Isn't it amazing also, the people who just can't shift the weight normally, as soon as they are physically stopped from eating too much through gastric bypass, can lose a 100lbs in a year. Obese people may like to think that maybe it's a metabolism thing, but it's plainly obvious they just eat too much.

Oh My God...

we'll all be wearing make up and having periods next.

http://www.malespecies.com/

That's the biggest load of shite I've ever read.

How come?

I agree with Mancster...you are somewhat underinformed here, you need to read up on Cortisol, and its stress related synthesis, basically, cortisol is a steroid hormone created by the body inn the adrenal cortex in response to stress, the cortisol is essential for carbohydrate metabolism so is directly linked (not only) to the weight gain but also an individual’s ability to actually lose the weight safely.

We are only recently becoming fully aware of the full implications of cortisol regulation.

Ah right, so eating less has nothing to do with it, it's all because they're less stressed. Got it.