THURSDAY,SEPTEMBER5.2002
HEALTH
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 13
Stop obsessing over eating
HEALTH
Fat. Chub. Big-boned. It leaks into so many conversations, usually followed by how to get rid of it all. I've heard so much about it that it makes me sick.
Leslie Kimmel
lkimmel@kansan.com
The topic of weight and how to lose it came up between a few girlfriends and me just a few days ago. It was assumed that we were all trying to shed "excess" pounds in some way or another. When I mentioned that I didn't think I needed to lose weight and was exercising for other health reasons, I got a unique reaction.
"That's really refreshing," a friend said. "to hear a girl say that."
The constant worry over body image is nothing new to me. Maybe it was being raised in a certain kind of household, or maybe it was because I spent most of high school staring into dance studio mirrors, but I have always been very self-conscious of my weight. I often went to extremes to make sure that I could eat a healthy meal that didn't include any of the extras.
My eating habits carried over into my freshman year of college. I envied my
friends who would grab a hamburger for lunch, eat it, and say nothing about the fat content or calorie intake at all. But even after all this calorie-counting, portion rationing, and feeling guilty after eating anything "unhealthy," I still emerged from my first year of college just five pounds shy of the freshman 15.
It was then that I realized that my efforts were wasted. No matter how much I thought about it, my body just wouldn't go away. And I gave up.
When I was asked if I wanted dessert, I didn't say no. I helped myself to seconds every once in a while. And I went through the Burger King drive-through a little bit more often. Of course, calories and fat and
all those things still guide my food choices, but I don't let it stress me anymore.
And now I'm a happier — and thus, more healthy — person. I've learned that food is something that is to be enjoyed with others instead of debated.
Live a little. Have a beer. If you're up late studying, order a pizza. Make a Dr. Pepper your mid-day pick me up. It's OK! Worrying about what you put into your mouth won't make you as happy as putting your energy into something you love.
Concentrate on things you like to do. Now, scoring an A on my Bio test can be much more rewarding to me than losing a few pounds.
And please, find something else to talk to your best friend about. Here's a topic that cutie in your English class. Discuss.
Now if you already have your priorities straight, keep up the good example. If it weren't for people like you, then people like me would still be eating themselves up instead of chowing down.
Top Five
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Food concerns? For information about nutrition, healthy habits, eating disorders and more, go to www.ku.edu/-shs for help from Ann Chapman, a registered dietitian at Watkins Memorial Health Center.
I had to stick a side scroller in here, because we all played them. Castlevania was close, Contra closer, but they lost out to the Blue-Armed Man. Longetivity is the word here — this game keeps getting sequels cranked out, and people keep buying 'em.
Smoking a boss, getting his power (Hey man, "there can be only one"), and continuing on never gets old. "Yamato Man ain't got nothin'. Nothin'!"
LEGEND OF ZELDA II — ADVENTURES OF LINK for Nintendo (Nintendo, 1987)
Okay, EVERYBODY played this one. Yes, ladies, you too. Take the traditional, three-quarters view RPG, stick in some side-scrolling, add a then innovative inventory, battery backup, and the unforgettable gold cartridge and you've got the finest of the old school RPGs. Not too long, not too short.
And Gannon didn't lose that strange pig head from the first one. This was probably the first game that led me to stay up illegally past my bed time and make calls to the Nintendo Power line. Ah, those were the days.
Now, if only I could find me some Silver Arrows...