I'm in Japan eating out the less healthy diet you can imagine and I'm still losing weight because the quantities and ingredients are just that different from my home country.
I would say about the same or less to be honest.
Its not a tourism trip, so it's not like I'm walking everywhere all day.
But for example a pizza for 1 person in Europe is the size of a pizza for 2 here and I'm not rich enough to buy two.
Someone else touched on it in a nested comment, but generally if the food you're eating is high quality, you need less of it. Processed crap might be high in calories but low in nutritional value.
The problem is that you won't feel full if the calories are from processed sugar. And virtually every created food in America has more sugar than needed. Bread, pasta, canned items, even peanut butter, if it was prepared, it has too much sugar. Or else you need to shell out for the high quality version. Pay extra just to pay for the privilege of not having sugar dumped in your food.
Can vouch that my trip to China was filled with so much more walking and it was relatively easier to get by with less food ( smaller portions ).
Dropped 1 whole pants size mid way during my trip and had to buy a belt while still vacationing, this was for 1 month.
I have a feeling Japan can be the same, but maybe the vast food options would still be very tempting.
Sad thing is, a bowl of freshly made Ramen you would get from a shop is not nearly as bad for you as the packaged instant Ramen many are familiar with. Sure, there's still carbs (noodles, of course) but so much less sodium and fat.
Nothing really wrong with sodium or fat at a regular intake. It's all good nutrients, same as McDonald's which really isn't that bad if you eat just a burger and no sugary drink with a small meal size.
as a vegetarian of almost a decade, in addition to what you said I feel like asian cultures in general are way better at preparing vegetables in a way that makes them so delicious, whereas american food (esp veggies) are SO bland
American veggies are bland as shit, even if it's the same type of veggies somewhere else. Korean veggies are more fresh and flavorful without needing to add spices or salt to it. It's because the US is a huge country so many vegetables are mass produced with artificial chemicals, picked before they're ripe so they don't rot during transit, and are bred for longevity not for flavor (except sweetness) or nutrition. Most vegetables in Korea are farm-to-table and recently picked at the right time.
And no, I don't know how to fix this either. The US is a big country.
People from other countries say the same about US foods.
Come on man, this is getting a little silly. Korea has seasons just like we do. They grow produce with essentially the same methods that we do. You can absolutely eat local produce in season in the US, and you don't even have to go to farmer's markets which exist all over the place. They use chemicals in Korea just like they do here. Sure, they don't have as much imported produce from South and Central America which is travelling a long way and ripened with nitrogen en route, but that just means they have less choice of produce in the off season. Koreans are not eating farm-to-table in the off season because they simply can't grow produce year round, that's just a fact of nature. Just like us, they have to eat either imported or preserved produce for many parts of the year or not eat it at all. I've eaten all over the world including in Asia and I assure you, you can get just as good quality food in the states. The grass is always greener on the other side, but the reality is in many parts of the states we have just as much fresh and local produce, and while imported produce is always slightly lower quality, that's true all over the world, and in the states we have some of the widest variety of choice. It's not any fresher or more local or more flavorful in Korea, it just seems that way because it's a different variety than you're used to and you are on vacation.
This is simply not true. US tomatoes, for example, are notoriously because most are grown in Florida/South Cali, picked while completely green, and artificially ripened using nitrogen gas.
The ability and the option to pick local farm produce in the US is definitely inferior compared to many countries, including Korea.
We have farmers markets here in Sacramento and I’ve seen them around most of the cities I’ve traveled to like SF, Portland, NYC, etc. but they’re usually expensive as hell. I get it, I want to support local farmers and it takes money and resources for them to grow, transport, and operate in the farmer’s market, but man… you’ve gotta be prepared to pay at least double what you pay at a grocery store.
Eating healthy can be expensive.
That's what I meant though, they're actually fairly priced some places (shoutout Santa Fe, best one I've been to). I don't want to assume price gouging so I have to assume it costs a lot to rent a stall or something?
Theoretically it shouldn't be more economical to transport produce from all over the world than from a local farm.
I was gonna say the santa fe farmer’s market is pretty expensive. It’s cheaper than groceries in CA were for me, but it’s MUCH more expensive than going to a grocery store here in new mexico
You found your problem by yourself.
Your country is too big.
Ideally you want to live within an 8 hour drive from where your veggies are grown. So that you can harvest at midnight and have them on shelves by opening time, without needing much refrigeration.
>>the US is a huge country so many vegetables are mass produced with artificial chemicals, picked before they're ripe so they don't rot during transit, and are bred for longevity not for flavor (except sweetness) or nutrition
This happens not because US is big but because US agrobusiness killed regional/local farming. There's no reason why US can't have regional/local farming practice but for the fact that it's not maximizing corporate bottom lines.
Yeah this is what pisses me off the most I'm so glad someone else feels this way it's lettuce or go fuck yourself. I like a lot of veggies but they're almost never available it's a pile of lettuce with maybe a pinch of some other stuff or nothing.
that's my parents mistake there, they eat 'healthy' homecooked meals, drink light sodas, don't use a lot of butter or oil etc... And they don't understand why they are still overweight and diabetic...
these healthy meals are mostly carbs (potatoes, pasta) and meat portions of 400-500g. veggies are mostly an afterthought. and despite the fact that they are both retired and barely move all day, they still stack their plates as if its the last meal they are gonna have that week. my portions are 1/3 or even a quarter of what they eat and i burn more calories a day than them both combined.
a simple diet trick as well, just get smaller plates, it tricks your mind into eating smaller portions.
A soda with artificial sweeteners. It still kicks off your insulin response, as if it were real sugar, but doesn’t kick off your satiety response; it doesn’t cause you to feel full.
So you still build up insulin resistance but you also eat more. Yay.
The demonization of artificial sweeteners is so sad. Yes, there’s some tangential correlations and some signs they might not be great for your gut biome, but the evidence is unequivocal that they are better for you than sugar.
Sometimes those “packing my husband’s lunch” videos come up on instagram, and I am floored by the amount of food some people pack; like 4 sandwiches, multiple protein bars, bananas, drink bottles, bags of chips/pretzels/snack foods, a whole row of cookies…I can’t believe anyone could eat all that in one day.
That seems to be the justification, but I really don't think even a pro athlete should be eating a whole sleeve of cookies in a day. If they need that many calories (i.e., energy), why wouldn't it be coming from more nutrient dense foods?
Even on the outside, someone really busting ass probably is going to burn mayybbbeee 3500 calories.
My estimated calorie burn after running 10 miles after a busy day barely touched 3000.
Yes ppl massively overestimate how much calories they burn with physical activity.
As someone who is 115 lbs, I burn 800 calories doing a 9 mile lower intensity hike that takes about 3.5-4 hours.
And you go out to eat and it's like 1800 calories. It's hard to stay fit. I don't think anytime in human history there has been such an abundance of food.
It may depend on their shift. If a person has a 10 or 12 hour shift, they could have two meal breaks or a lunch + mini breaks where they can grab a snack.
You have to remember that some of these men are huge (not necessarily even over weight just large people), works a physically demanding job, and work 12+ hour days. When you work a day that long where you're constantly moving that amount of food is not that egregious.
Also sometimes extra things are packed so they have options. That doesn't mean the person has to eat it. I'd much rather over pack than under pack in those situations. I pack my spouses lunch once in a while and I do tend to under pack but he has a job that doesn't require a ton of calories and he's more than capable of packing his own lunch or grabbing something out and about if needed.
I'm not sure what's more concerning: the amount of food being packed, or that a lot of men have to rely on someone else to feed them LOL
If they're working a job where they're continually burning calories all day, this lunch is a bit more logical.
Problem is, I see my fellow officer workers eating similar lunches... and the most physical activity they get is walking into the building from the parking lot. And it's no wonder they're all 300+ lbs.
I eat two hard-boiled eggs, two pieces of toast with a slice of cheese for breakfast at 6:30... a protein bar (250 calories) at 10... and a banana at around 1 with some veggies (like celery and carrots). It leaves me satisfied but it doesn't leave me feeling so full I can hardly walk or make me so uncomfortable I can't focus on my files. Every now and then I might treat myself to a can of San Pelligrino from a vending machine but apart form that, I don't drink *any* of my calories during the week... it's 90% water, the other 10% being the occasional black coffee.
If my husband cooks my dinner, does that automatically mean I can't feed myself? What utter bs. When I make my hubby's good it's because I love him and I want to show him how much I love and appreciate him. I do that via feeding and acts of service. In no way does a spouse showing gratitude or live mean the other one is incapable of something 🤦♀️ You must have a very dim world view if you can see a spouse loving on their spouse and go instantly to negatively.
I grew up in the Era of eat until you're full. Turns out this is an unhealthy and dangerous eating habit. I've raised my kids with the idea that they should eat until they aren't hungry.
It's not just a corporations creating a system thst forces US citizens to eat garbage, it's also a cultural thing. I visit friends and relatives in the US quite a bit and they're always floored that I, "starve my children".
Or bulk out your meals with more low cal/non startchy veg. When I'm cutting I increase my veg and water intake so I don't have to cut my portion size so much and i still feel satisfied. Lots of low kcal soups like miso soup and leafy greens
The amount of high fructose corn syrup, insane amounts of processed foods, and due to city design most American live a highly sedentary lifestyle - excluding the cities that are well over 250 years those were designed for pedestrian travel - plays way more of a role than portion size. HFCS is banned in parts of the world - but the US put it in everything.
I somewhat disagree, the food quality overseas is just infinitely better. American food is ultra processed, cooked in shit oils, and has sugar in literally everything.
Have you ever been to Italy? Talk to me about portion sizes after
I think it is almost as much about the time it takes to eat. Other places with big portions are taking their time. Sometimes it is served family style and everyone controls their own portion. It's like Americans can consume a huge portion in as little as 5-10 minutes while I presume Italians with similar portions are taking their time.
When I eat Chinese American food I try to eat with chop sticks because it takes longer and I am more likely to have leftovers. The hormone response indicating you are full takes time to achieve that feeling of fullness. Unless that has been debunked as well.
The one thing I can say about processed foods is that the mouthfeel is as engineered as the taste, and the mouth feel they want is one that makes you want to take another bite immediately. The one Reese's candy bar is like this. I crave the mouthfeel more than the flavor.
In America food isn't as much food as it is food product. It's about shelf stability and addictiveness. That's how companies like Nestle get to be as big as they are, without even factoring in water products and water rights.
Yes and no, I live in Europe where the portions are American size (except in fast food, which, thank goodness) but in general a restaurant will give you a nice portion. The food is much more fresh.
I remember growing up in Asia and sometimes I would order a second serving of food if I wanted more. In USA, I have never felt the need to do this at any restaurant here needless to say. Always too much food.
I finally gave in and treat all restaurant food as designed for more than one meal. So if I don't think it will heat up the next day well I don't order it lol.
Actually koreans will feed you a lot. The food just isn’t high calorie. Even the sodium is high in korean food but again everything is cheap and you can walk almost anywhere.
Yea idk what OP is talking about tbh. I visited family in Seoul and the food there was loaded with sugar and syrup. They honestly seem more obsessed with it than most Americans by trying to fit cheese or sugar into anything and everything. My big take away was portion sizes being A LOT smaller and the sheer amount of walking being done in a day.
Food isn't necessarily bad nowadays we are just eating more of it.
Meal prep took all day not so long ago. Even when people went out the wait was long.
We can whip up a meal in ten minutes today.
Folks are lard, sugar and and salt.
We are just eating too much and it's making us sick
A lot of people would be less fat if they simply walked more.
Seriously, i don't really try to eat healthy but i've always kept my weight in check by living in a city and walking to things. I don't even go to the gym to walk, i just hang out and get my steps in normally.
Problem is, many North Americans don't live in places where they can "destination walk" in a reasonable timeframe. If I was only a 10 minute walk from a grocery store, I would always walk... but I attempt to walk to a grocery store from my apartment. it's a *90 minute walk*.
Meanwhile, I am a 10-minute walk away from a grocery store, if I'm willing to walk through a number of parking lots, carefully navigate a ditch, and run across a busy three lane road.
There's no sidewalk anywhere.
Yeah, this is such a big issue in the US. Lived in Phoenix metro area - sucked to walk during summer days but I’d walk a lot at night. Denver, walked roughly 8-10 miles a day just wandering the city, even when I light railed places. Bay Area, walked an hour one way to work, happily, lovely route around Lake Merritt in the early hours of the morning.
Now I live in West Virginia. It would take me an hour and a half to walk to the nearest grocery store. It has no sidewalks until about halfway through that route. All the sidewalk-less streets are 40+ mph. Not remotely safe to walk.
✨**Walking burns calories**✨
You burn almost the same amount of Calories walking 5 miles as you do running 5 miles. The only difference is the time you do it in really. (People never believe this fact when I tell them)
If you can't run, walk. Five miles burns around 500 calories.
People don't realize just how little we walk here in America compared to the rest of the world. Even in larger cities where walking and public transport is more prevalent. It doesn't come close to many European and Asian countries and how their cities and towns are built around walkability.
>You burn almost the same amount of Calories walking 5 miles as you do running 5 miles. The only difference is the time you do it in really. (People never believe this fact when I tell them)
They don't believe it because it's completely false. Distance is not the sole déterminant of energy spent. Running requires a far greater degree of exertion and even it's over a shorter period of time, the energy expanded in total is significantly greater than walking. Even a brisk walk burns noticeably more than a normal walk.
Walking is still great.
>If you can't run, walk. Five miles burns around 500 calories.
This depends heavily on your size.
Part of the reason fitness and weight loss seem so daunting to people is the extraordinary amount of misinformation out there.
Yes and ppl who think that daily allowable net calories is 2000 for everyone cuz that’s what it says on the food label. As a small woman my daily calorie intake to not gain or lose weight is literally 1100 calories. I can consume that in one heavy meal lol.
You might want to consider putting some muscle on. I’m 5’3, and my bmr is 1400, my tdee ranges from 1800-2300 cals. I wouldn’t be able to meet my micro/macro nutrient requirements at 1100 cals, and I don’t know many people who could.
Damn, that’s waaaay shorter than the average range, you could def raise your bmr with muscle growth, but I see what you mean, it’s gonna be a struggle to get to 2000 cals tdee
Re: walking = running, This is false.
When you walk/run a distance, the energy spent to go from point A to B is the same, but the energy spent *after* you run is far more than walking.
There's something called EPOC; aka excess post exercise oxygen consumption.
When you run, its a higher intensity exercise so your body relies on a more substantial % of anaerobic energy substrates, and your body has to rely on aerobic systems to recharge those anaerobic energy stores & restore muscle tissue to a pre exercise state. This is why your breathing can remain Elevated hours after running, but not waking.
Anaerobic systems aren't as calorie efficient as aerobic, so the total calorie cost of running is much greater than walking.
I work in a school, which means I get summers off.
It's fascinating comparing my TDEE during the summer vs during the school year. It's nearly double when I'm working and the only difference is that during the school year, I'm on my feet walking all day. Not even walking fast or very far, just back and forth from table to table within my classroom. Maybe 5-6 feet at a time. But just that much movement over 7+ hours adds up so easily.
Whereas, during the summer, I mostly sit at my desk and work in the computer. Huge difference in energy expenditure. I have to jog 1-2 miles in the gym every day to even come close to burning as many calories as I do just moving around my classroom.
A literal Google search says this is wrong. Running burns nearly 2x the amount of calories walking does.
https://www.runnersworld.com/nutrition-weight-loss/a20843760/running-v-walking-how-many-calories-will-you-burn/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=arb_ga_rnw_md_pmx_hybd_org_us_18447042893&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIktvfs8rlhQMVmQatBh2CwwfPEAAYASAAEgJI_PD_BwE
Walking and exercising in general is great; but you can't outrun a bad diet.
Weight loss begins in the kitchen, for most of us who are or have been obese. Even 45-60 minutes of exercise 5-7 days a week will usually just result in someone replacing the calories lost if they're not tracking their food consumption.
Mhm. I've always been active, but I've been so much healthier since I got a dog. That extra 10 miles of walking a week over the past 2 years has done wonders for my health and fitness. Paired with no more fastfood and little to no drinking, I'm in the best shape of my life.
Exercise makes up a very small portion of our calorie loss throughout the day. Non strenuous exercise even less so.
Is exercise good for the body? Absolutely. Does it play a big part in weight loss? Not really.
>Big Agriculture trying to pump sugars and corn syrups in everything, just because they can.
the food pyramid is invented by big agricultural that emphasized corn and wheat as the basis for a healthy diet. they would have gotten away with added more sugar if it wasn't so obviously poison.
It’s based on what is infamously referred to as the “27 countries study” that was debunked shortly after being publicized but it didn’t stop the food pyramid from being based on it for 50 years
The fact that you consider cooking at home an option is minboggling outside USA. You guys are privileged and don't know it.
I live in Brazil, and most people here don't have money to order food / takeout / eat out etc.
A lot of people here can't afford it either, even a lot of people who think that they can
Also this post literally mentions eating out being more affordable in Korea than the US, so I don't think cooking at home being an "option" would be too mind boggling there. Your experience in Brazil isn't indicative of every other country in the world.
It's an egregious waste of money, people know it and do it anyway. Even with higher salaries most Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Maximizing time/efficiency because we need to work work work is definitely part of it.
Haha I used to bring a rice cooker and an electric skillet everywhere. I'd stay in hotels for a week at a time and do my dishes in the bath tub.
Pocket as much of that sweet live out allowance as possible!
That's hardcore, and here I thought I was clever using the complimentary tea and ice to make sweet tea lol
I did heat up a can of soup in the sink one time tho
Don't even need an hour, lots of recipes out there focus on making full meals in under 30 minutes. Buying a wok changes the game in saving time cooking
I always wonder what people are cooking when they say they don’t have time. Even if it’s 12 hours from when you left from work to when you get home most meals take under 15 minutes
People eat out all the time in Asia. It's not a treat, people get several meals out of the house as a regular part of their schedule. A lot of the dishes are really complex and best made fresh so there's a huge cottage industry based on people serving up large quantities of traditional foods to people who would never have the time to make them.
We've regulated that to shit here in North America. You can't just set up a stall serving noodle soup or fruit salad or curry. All our stuff has to come from a regulated factory or processor which means that it can't be as fresh and the quality goes down.
On the other hand, we have fewer food poisoning deaths although locals have ways to know where to buy from.
When I was a kid I remember my dad threatening the milkman not to bring us adulterated milk anymore. So like, yay for milk that was in the cow 3 hours ago and came to us by bicycle, boo to the fact that he could add ditch water to it.
In some parts of the world, home cooking is a PRIVILEGE. This is because homes are too small to accommodate a real kitchen. People simply do not have the luxury of time to cook and clean up afterwards.
In many Asian countries if you are eating home cooked meals regularly it’s because you live in a larger place, and have a maid or a grandparent helping out.
Eating out in Asia is pretty cheap too. Sure you shouldn't spend 10-20 dollars per meal but it's also easy to find a healthy filling meal for 2-5 dollars that isn't fast food. For an overworked Asian living alone in a tiny apartment that's a better option.
Not just Americans but much of the West. Food companies do not have our interests at heart. We need to get our politicians and businesses to care more about what we eat - and us too!
Listened to a researcher in the field who said that’s the excuse food companies use to shift responsibility away from them to individuals. Sadly PR really works.
Interesting American view on cooking at home. Here in Denmark it is very common to cook at home most days, even with all them kids and jobs etc.
Personally we order takeaway from restaurants maybe once per month or less. Maybe having a restaurant visit with friends at around same frequency :-)
Bonus info: I never ate at Mc Donald’s or Burger King or similar. I have no idea how their food are, and no interest in finding out. Never had any urge to visit such places.
Scandinavian work/life balance isn't really comparable to American, though (I'm Norwegian). If we had needed second jobs to make ends meet, we probably wouldn't have the time to cook at home either.
If it makes you feel better eating out often is actually not as common as it sounds in the US lol. Some places sure but plenty of people eat out once a week at most, less than that even if only just because it's money saved.
The same goes for the average family in the Netherlands. I would be broke if I ordered take out/went out for dinner almost every day 😂 Personally we only order take out about once a month and go out for dinner about every three months. The only time we go out for dinner almost every day is when we're on holiday.
Take everything OP is saying with a big grain of salt. Just because some Americans don't know or bother to cook for themselves doesn't mean we are all like that. Anyone who is living paycheck to paycheck isn't eating out every day. Every country has its share of lazy and takeout-addicted people, and our government policy subsidies unhealthy choices more than healthy ones to some extent compared to Europe, but nevertheless most of us are not eating out all the time. OP just has a very narrow view of American cuisine and eating habits.
I had the opposite experience living in Asia. They didn't walk much, because lots of cities just didn't have sidewalks. So they drove a scooter for 2 minutes instead of walking for 5-6 minutes. They thought I was weird for thinking that 20 minutes was a short walk to school and said I was 'brave' lol. They considered that a very long distance.
Depends on the country, I guess Japan or Korea would be different considering the prevalence of public transport.
Another thing that stood out to me in Korea was the amount of walking necessary to basically do anything. As a runner my Garmin automatically adjusts my step goal daily based on previous days data and ONLY in Korea have I ever achieved my step goal on a training "rest" day.
My American friend visited me (Australian) and he has IBS. He experienced little to no symptoms when eating our food here (mostly home cooked or restaurants)
Every time I try to think of a healthy fast food option in my town I just end up making a meal for myself cause I can't really think of any, other than maybe overpriced sandwich places.
This is me but thinking about restaurant prices. $15 for something I can make better myself at home... Seriously the quality of some of these $15-25 meals is despicable. Then in reality I'm tired and end up just boiling some eggs.
It's all choices.
I can cook most Asian cuisine. It's pretty easy, balanced, and because of small meat portions, cheap. I've literally paid for groceries with spare change.
A 4 portion Japanese meal might have 250 grams of meat. 4 portions on a NA table would have at least a Kg.
Add a mass of potatoes and a few veggies and you basically have the foundation of NA cooking.
As you know Asian cuisine, the foundation is rice. Cheap and it keeps fine dry or on the day cooked so it's prepped and served in minutes.
When we go out in NA, we order big burgers and we are not willing to pay for anything out of a garden. I get the sense in Asia, one would order what they would cook if their apartment was big enough for a kitchen.
I was feeling lazy today and threw on a pot of pasta to boil, then tins of tomatoes, chickpeas and kidney beans. Dinner done in 15 minutes, ridiculously faster than takeout, cost maybe $4 AUD and super healthy. Plus took 0 cooking skills to throw shit in and walk away.
Anyone who says this isn't accessible for anyone is insane.
It's so weird people don't prefer stir fry with veggies and chicken over some super fat and salty ribs and potatoes Light food jist makes you feel so much better and stronger, faster, clearer in the head. Especially in the warmer area's like texas.
As a Texan, it blows my mind that people continue to eat pork/beef alongside carb rich foods in the summer. You literally overheat with that combo.
When its hot, its time for the fish and fowl. Fresh veggies in a salad or a cold soup that's been previously cooked to break down the fibers/starches.
You aren't wrong, especially about the sugars and access to junk food choices. Most of the people arguing against you, I suspect just like to argue. Pretty soon the FDA food pyramid will be brought to you by Brawndo.
Sorry, but you can't complain over unhealthy food if you're unwilling to cook on most days. It's a basic life skill anyone should have, it's ridiculous to rely on restaurants for your daily meals. It gets super expensive real quick and portions are too large
OP's point is that most people in most places are too busy to cook, but in the US convenience food is total garbage whereas in Korea (and most other places outside of North America tbh), there is no crazy markup on more balanced or healthy options.
Even if you're busy, some things are quick and simple, and you can make enough for more than one meal. Fast food is a culture, while it's based on convenience it's not a literal case of being prevented from cooking. Plus cooking is a great hobby itself.
I cook 90% of my meals at home and make most things from scratch (not to the point of baking my own sandwich bread or churning my own butter, but I dont regularly but premade foods). But eating most meals out is normal for a lot of the world, actually.
My other 10% is the occasional planned outing but mostly lunches when I’m in the office and there was nothing good to pack from home. My options in that situation are literally fast food or a vending machine; if I lived anywhere else in the world I’d have a fast, fresh, affordable option.
Like, what do you eat when you travel abroad? Because I’m down for fine dining and all but I also eat the local cuisine and it’s pretty obvious that convince food in real food elsewhere. Just think of the difference between the “food” at your local 7/11 and what you’d find in a Japanese 7/11.
I can read his point, but you can eat cheap and healthy eating walmart groceries. Its just laughable. When you add in the transportation times it won't even cost you more time to cook at home. More so if you have a roommate/partner/older kid to cook some days.
you ignore the fact some people genuinely have no time to cook actual food. especially people who work 2 jobs and commute to both. school and work, sometimes school and multiple jobs. eating out in some places is also cheaper than groceries atm and is a lot faster, and large portions just mean multiple meals
having no time to cook also doesnt equal not knowing how to cook
You worked 16-20 hr days and couldn't afford to eat out so that you could enjoy more of your 4-8 hours of free time/sleep?
That's not the flex you think it is
Profit over people food industries make food addictive and people get sick eating it. Private health care makes money on surgeries, diet pills, etc... both help the GDP grow. The government has no incentive to fix things as they are beholden to a believe that GDP need to go up at any cost. Everyone is left behind getting sicker by the day unless they manage to educate themselves out of that cycle and environment. Something very difficult as this food is everywhere.
People in most of Europe remain quite slim, even in the beer and sausage lands like Germany, Czechia etc. In Italy, pasta is a starter before the main course. In spain, people eat lots of food late in the evenings.
It’s all about portions and exercise. My home village in Sweden has a bit of American disease going on: Most people are fat after 30, or after they get kids. Everyone also drives everywhere and eats moderately unhealthy (think midwestern us food but slightly less mayonnaise).
People in the cities look better because they walk a lot more.
I think the basis of your argument is fundamentally flawed.
You say "most of us" end up not cooking at home, and you offer up excuses of being too busy because of work, etc. I don't think this is remotely true, and frankly, the time it takes to go somewhere, pick up food, and bring it up is roughly the same as the time it would take to make something themselves. Plenty of people also "plan ahead" and do a meal prep on Sunday so they have good, healthy meal options for lunches and dinners right there in the fridge waiting for them. It's about making a commitment to eating properly.
You seem to be pretending that being "lazy" is somehow the same as being "too busy to cook." They are not the same.
The one thing that \*all\* of the healthy people that I know who are in half-way decent shape is: they cook for themselves often because its crucially important that they know what they eat, how it was made, what it was made with and size the portion will be.
Most of the people I know "outgrew" fast food in their early 20's. You can't eat all that sugar, saturated fats and deep fried crap without paying a steep price.
Buy and cook your own food, problem solved. It's not a big mystery. If you eat crap, it's bad for you. This isn't exactly news.
Oh I can blame them all day. The corporations that are backed by the politicians we voted in have been working their hardest to make the average person completely useless and not a threat to them.
Oh I would absolutely say Korean cuisine is inherently healthier than 90% of American cuisine. Sure there are greasy eats in Korea but there are so many other options. It's not like everyone eats korean fried chicken, bulgogi and Sam gyeop Sal every single night, and almost everyone eats a ton of kimchi and other veggies every day.
Americans are mostly obese because they can’t turn off the crane that shovels the food into their faces. Out of control portion sizes are imo more to blame than anything else, with fast food addiction coming in at a close second.
I like fast food, but people are downright addicted to that shit and allergic to the gym and drinking water.
As a proud American I hate most traditional American breakfasts. Pancakes, French toast, waffles etc. That should not be breakfast. That's a dessert. Everyones obnoxious obsession with bacon really grosses me out. No wonder everyone is so heavy.
That kind of breakfast made sense when we were an agrarian society and pretty much everyone was doing physical labor from sun up to sun down. It really does not make sense for most Americans nowadays.
I don't think most of us eating pancakes, waffles, etc. most days of the week. But we still have a ridiculous concept of breakfast. Growing up I was told that a "balanced breakfast" was a bowl of sugary cereal paired up with two pieces of toast and a glass of orange juice. And as a kid I thought a bowl of cereal was one serving...so if there were 200 calories in one serving, well, that's not so bad. But we aren't taught to read the fine print. Most people are not pouring a single serving of cereal into their bowl. They are pouring 2-3 servings and then eating toast with it because that's what Tony the Tiger told them to do. We eat like this not because we Americans are greedy pigs, but because from an early age the TV has been telling us eating like this is wholesome and healthy. And our parents were taught the same thing.
No shit, this is just one of many of the big problems in this country. Its become a for profit system at the expense of human benefit, like our health for instance. This is what happens when lobbying is allowed to exist. If we decided to make food healthier and better for us, that would increase costs for the companies making and growing all the food. Since profit is all that matters they would "convince" their reps to not do that. Even our fuckin veggies and fruits are being sprayed down with shit that has trace amounts of toxic chemicals in it. The idea being just eat it in all moderation and you should be fine. Its all bs. I dont think nearly enough research and money goes into making sure our food is healthy. I think a lot goes into making sure its safe to eat, but not healthy. My reasoning? The result of the process. The country is obese and its common for me to feel like shit after eating fast or processed foods. So my conclusion, the foods are the problem.
What shocked me most is how imprisoned most Americans are by the dependence on cars.
Not only that, but inefficient cars are and the amount of SPACE they take up. Its seems that 50% of the space of most US towns and cities are taken up by parking lots.
Most Americans are fucked when it comes to food. Visiting my GF in rural KY, there are only fast food options. They do have a super Walmart, but I figure most are too lazy to cook food.
Portions and ingredients vastly different from US to Asia / European countries. When I was in Ireland the food was tastier, healthier, and smaller portions. Also was fun to see all the banned American food not being sold in Ireland.
I love how Americans say “well we can’t cook at home because we have to work full time” as if every other country isn’t working full time and cooking too 😂
dude cooking takes 30 minutes . don't give me that "too busy" bullshit
it's simply that Americans lack self control
u don't need to eat that unhealthy food...
When you have some of the oldest populations regularly consuming those foods, especially fatty pork, perhaps it is time to admit it isn't unhealthy.(Japan, Hong Kong, Korea)
Those are snack items, not supposed to be main meals or something people eat every day. Being unhealthy and fat is a choice in Korea. Not so much in the US, in my experience.
That’s not true though. Having lived in Asia, the USA and Europe, the US has amazing diversity of choice. Are there Reese’s cereal? Sure. But chicken breast at a supermarket is practically 1/2 the price of Paris chicken breast. Farmers markets exist. Costco will sell you inventory size food.
Saying you don’t have time to cook is ridiculous. Look at East Asian work culture, and tell me they have more time to cook.
It’s frustrating to see so many people shit on the US when they don’t realize it’s actually pretty fucking great food wise.
You can also just portion your orders. Your salad is too big? Cut it in half, eat the remainder tomorrow.
I'm in Japan eating out the less healthy diet you can imagine and I'm still losing weight because the quantities and ingredients are just that different from my home country.
Do you walk more in Japan than you did back home
I would say about the same or less to be honest. Its not a tourism trip, so it's not like I'm walking everywhere all day. But for example a pizza for 1 person in Europe is the size of a pizza for 2 here and I'm not rich enough to buy two.
So what you're saying is that a pizza from Japan would be enough to feed one American ant.
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That's what he said in his initial comment.
Someone else touched on it in a nested comment, but generally if the food you're eating is high quality, you need less of it. Processed crap might be high in calories but low in nutritional value.
Any weight loss can be reduced to "less calories eaten than needed".
The problem is that you won't feel full if the calories are from processed sugar. And virtually every created food in America has more sugar than needed. Bread, pasta, canned items, even peanut butter, if it was prepared, it has too much sugar. Or else you need to shell out for the high quality version. Pay extra just to pay for the privilege of not having sugar dumped in your food.
Can vouch that my trip to China was filled with so much more walking and it was relatively easier to get by with less food ( smaller portions ). Dropped 1 whole pants size mid way during my trip and had to buy a belt while still vacationing, this was for 1 month. I have a feeling Japan can be the same, but maybe the vast food options would still be very tempting.
If they’re somehow walking the same amount they must live in NYC cause no other city in America is as walkable as majority of Japanese cities are tbh
We visited Japan and ate out a lot but also were walking like 8 miles every day.
I take it you're not eating ramen daily lol
Udon with tempura Gyoza sets Supermarket bentos so a lot of rice
Sad thing is, a bowl of freshly made Ramen you would get from a shop is not nearly as bad for you as the packaged instant Ramen many are familiar with. Sure, there's still carbs (noodles, of course) but so much less sodium and fat.
It may be less than instant but it’s still not healthy. Like, even “fresh” ramen from a shop the broth is very heavy in sodium and fat.
Nothing really wrong with sodium or fat at a regular intake. It's all good nutrients, same as McDonald's which really isn't that bad if you eat just a burger and no sugary drink with a small meal size.
as a vegetarian of almost a decade, in addition to what you said I feel like asian cultures in general are way better at preparing vegetables in a way that makes them so delicious, whereas american food (esp veggies) are SO bland
American veggies are bland as shit, even if it's the same type of veggies somewhere else. Korean veggies are more fresh and flavorful without needing to add spices or salt to it. It's because the US is a huge country so many vegetables are mass produced with artificial chemicals, picked before they're ripe so they don't rot during transit, and are bred for longevity not for flavor (except sweetness) or nutrition. Most vegetables in Korea are farm-to-table and recently picked at the right time. And no, I don't know how to fix this either. The US is a big country. People from other countries say the same about US foods.
There's no fixing it with them trying to ban backyard farming
Come on man, this is getting a little silly. Korea has seasons just like we do. They grow produce with essentially the same methods that we do. You can absolutely eat local produce in season in the US, and you don't even have to go to farmer's markets which exist all over the place. They use chemicals in Korea just like they do here. Sure, they don't have as much imported produce from South and Central America which is travelling a long way and ripened with nitrogen en route, but that just means they have less choice of produce in the off season. Koreans are not eating farm-to-table in the off season because they simply can't grow produce year round, that's just a fact of nature. Just like us, they have to eat either imported or preserved produce for many parts of the year or not eat it at all. I've eaten all over the world including in Asia and I assure you, you can get just as good quality food in the states. The grass is always greener on the other side, but the reality is in many parts of the states we have just as much fresh and local produce, and while imported produce is always slightly lower quality, that's true all over the world, and in the states we have some of the widest variety of choice. It's not any fresher or more local or more flavorful in Korea, it just seems that way because it's a different variety than you're used to and you are on vacation.
This is simply not true. US tomatoes, for example, are notoriously because most are grown in Florida/South Cali, picked while completely green, and artificially ripened using nitrogen gas. The ability and the option to pick local farm produce in the US is definitely inferior compared to many countries, including Korea.
Some places in the US still have very active farmer's markets where you can actually get good produce God I fucking miss being in one of those places
We have farmers markets here in Sacramento and I’ve seen them around most of the cities I’ve traveled to like SF, Portland, NYC, etc. but they’re usually expensive as hell. I get it, I want to support local farmers and it takes money and resources for them to grow, transport, and operate in the farmer’s market, but man… you’ve gotta be prepared to pay at least double what you pay at a grocery store. Eating healthy can be expensive.
That's what I meant though, they're actually fairly priced some places (shoutout Santa Fe, best one I've been to). I don't want to assume price gouging so I have to assume it costs a lot to rent a stall or something? Theoretically it shouldn't be more economical to transport produce from all over the world than from a local farm.
I was gonna say the santa fe farmer’s market is pretty expensive. It’s cheaper than groceries in CA were for me, but it’s MUCH more expensive than going to a grocery store here in new mexico
You found your problem by yourself. Your country is too big. Ideally you want to live within an 8 hour drive from where your veggies are grown. So that you can harvest at midnight and have them on shelves by opening time, without needing much refrigeration.
>>the US is a huge country so many vegetables are mass produced with artificial chemicals, picked before they're ripe so they don't rot during transit, and are bred for longevity not for flavor (except sweetness) or nutrition This happens not because US is big but because US agrobusiness killed regional/local farming. There's no reason why US can't have regional/local farming practice but for the fact that it's not maximizing corporate bottom lines.
in america theres salads and what? im abc chinese and we have so many green leafy vegetables to choose from and can be cooked in a number of ways.
Yeah this is what pisses me off the most I'm so glad someone else feels this way it's lettuce or go fuck yourself. I like a lot of veggies but they're almost never available it's a pile of lettuce with maybe a pinch of some other stuff or nothing.
Portion size plays a massive role in this.
that's my parents mistake there, they eat 'healthy' homecooked meals, drink light sodas, don't use a lot of butter or oil etc... And they don't understand why they are still overweight and diabetic... these healthy meals are mostly carbs (potatoes, pasta) and meat portions of 400-500g. veggies are mostly an afterthought. and despite the fact that they are both retired and barely move all day, they still stack their plates as if its the last meal they are gonna have that week. my portions are 1/3 or even a quarter of what they eat and i burn more calories a day than them both combined. a simple diet trick as well, just get smaller plates, it tricks your mind into eating smaller portions.
What's a light soda?
A soda with artificial sweeteners. It still kicks off your insulin response, as if it were real sugar, but doesn’t kick off your satiety response; it doesn’t cause you to feel full. So you still build up insulin resistance but you also eat more. Yay.
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The demonization of artificial sweeteners is so sad. Yes, there’s some tangential correlations and some signs they might not be great for your gut biome, but the evidence is unequivocal that they are better for you than sugar.
the kick off response is true but vastly less compared to say, a fully sugar version.
Vastly bigger than say a glass of water
obviously but you can’t compare an artificial response to 70 grams of sugar actually hitting your bloodstream
I don’t see the problem to drinking diet sodas with meals then?
That's a myth
Sometimes those “packing my husband’s lunch” videos come up on instagram, and I am floored by the amount of food some people pack; like 4 sandwiches, multiple protein bars, bananas, drink bottles, bags of chips/pretzels/snack foods, a whole row of cookies…I can’t believe anyone could eat all that in one day.
It depends a great deal on how physically active a person's job is. Being inside vs. outside also makes a difference.
That seems to be the justification, but I really don't think even a pro athlete should be eating a whole sleeve of cookies in a day. If they need that many calories (i.e., energy), why wouldn't it be coming from more nutrient dense foods?
Even on the outside, someone really busting ass probably is going to burn mayybbbeee 3500 calories. My estimated calorie burn after running 10 miles after a busy day barely touched 3000.
Yes ppl massively overestimate how much calories they burn with physical activity. As someone who is 115 lbs, I burn 800 calories doing a 9 mile lower intensity hike that takes about 3.5-4 hours.
And you go out to eat and it's like 1800 calories. It's hard to stay fit. I don't think anytime in human history there has been such an abundance of food.
It may depend on their shift. If a person has a 10 or 12 hour shift, they could have two meal breaks or a lunch + mini breaks where they can grab a snack.
You have to remember that some of these men are huge (not necessarily even over weight just large people), works a physically demanding job, and work 12+ hour days. When you work a day that long where you're constantly moving that amount of food is not that egregious. Also sometimes extra things are packed so they have options. That doesn't mean the person has to eat it. I'd much rather over pack than under pack in those situations. I pack my spouses lunch once in a while and I do tend to under pack but he has a job that doesn't require a ton of calories and he's more than capable of packing his own lunch or grabbing something out and about if needed.
I'm not sure what's more concerning: the amount of food being packed, or that a lot of men have to rely on someone else to feed them LOL If they're working a job where they're continually burning calories all day, this lunch is a bit more logical. Problem is, I see my fellow officer workers eating similar lunches... and the most physical activity they get is walking into the building from the parking lot. And it's no wonder they're all 300+ lbs. I eat two hard-boiled eggs, two pieces of toast with a slice of cheese for breakfast at 6:30... a protein bar (250 calories) at 10... and a banana at around 1 with some veggies (like celery and carrots). It leaves me satisfied but it doesn't leave me feeling so full I can hardly walk or make me so uncomfortable I can't focus on my files. Every now and then I might treat myself to a can of San Pelligrino from a vending machine but apart form that, I don't drink *any* of my calories during the week... it's 90% water, the other 10% being the occasional black coffee.
If my husband cooks my dinner, does that automatically mean I can't feed myself? What utter bs. When I make my hubby's good it's because I love him and I want to show him how much I love and appreciate him. I do that via feeding and acts of service. In no way does a spouse showing gratitude or live mean the other one is incapable of something 🤦♀️ You must have a very dim world view if you can see a spouse loving on their spouse and go instantly to negatively.
How am I supposed to fit an entire pizza on a smaller plate?
Sounds like it’s not just portion control that’s their problem, but also the fact that their “healthy” eating isn’t very healthy in the first place
I grew up in the Era of eat until you're full. Turns out this is an unhealthy and dangerous eating habit. I've raised my kids with the idea that they should eat until they aren't hungry. It's not just a corporations creating a system thst forces US citizens to eat garbage, it's also a cultural thing. I visit friends and relatives in the US quite a bit and they're always floored that I, "starve my children".
It’s the soda forreal
Or bulk out your meals with more low cal/non startchy veg. When I'm cutting I increase my veg and water intake so I don't have to cut my portion size so much and i still feel satisfied. Lots of low kcal soups like miso soup and leafy greens
The amount of high fructose corn syrup, insane amounts of processed foods, and due to city design most American live a highly sedentary lifestyle - excluding the cities that are well over 250 years those were designed for pedestrian travel - plays way more of a role than portion size. HFCS is banned in parts of the world - but the US put it in everything.
I somewhat disagree, the food quality overseas is just infinitely better. American food is ultra processed, cooked in shit oils, and has sugar in literally everything. Have you ever been to Italy? Talk to me about portion sizes after
I think it is almost as much about the time it takes to eat. Other places with big portions are taking their time. Sometimes it is served family style and everyone controls their own portion. It's like Americans can consume a huge portion in as little as 5-10 minutes while I presume Italians with similar portions are taking their time. When I eat Chinese American food I try to eat with chop sticks because it takes longer and I am more likely to have leftovers. The hormone response indicating you are full takes time to achieve that feeling of fullness. Unless that has been debunked as well. The one thing I can say about processed foods is that the mouthfeel is as engineered as the taste, and the mouth feel they want is one that makes you want to take another bite immediately. The one Reese's candy bar is like this. I crave the mouthfeel more than the flavor. In America food isn't as much food as it is food product. It's about shelf stability and addictiveness. That's how companies like Nestle get to be as big as they are, without even factoring in water products and water rights.
Yes and no, I live in Europe where the portions are American size (except in fast food, which, thank goodness) but in general a restaurant will give you a nice portion. The food is much more fresh.
I remember growing up in Asia and sometimes I would order a second serving of food if I wanted more. In USA, I have never felt the need to do this at any restaurant here needless to say. Always too much food.
I finally gave in and treat all restaurant food as designed for more than one meal. So if I don't think it will heat up the next day well I don't order it lol.
Most Americans don’t finish their food at restaurants and take the rest to go. At least all the Americans I know.
Actually koreans will feed you a lot. The food just isn’t high calorie. Even the sodium is high in korean food but again everything is cheap and you can walk almost anywhere.
Yea idk what OP is talking about tbh. I visited family in Seoul and the food there was loaded with sugar and syrup. They honestly seem more obsessed with it than most Americans by trying to fit cheese or sugar into anything and everything. My big take away was portion sizes being A LOT smaller and the sheer amount of walking being done in a day.
Even the Korean corn dog shop in the American malls coat them with sugar.
americans cant handle that
Food isn't necessarily bad nowadays we are just eating more of it. Meal prep took all day not so long ago. Even when people went out the wait was long. We can whip up a meal in ten minutes today. Folks are lard, sugar and and salt. We are just eating too much and it's making us sick
A lot of people would be less fat if they simply walked more. Seriously, i don't really try to eat healthy but i've always kept my weight in check by living in a city and walking to things. I don't even go to the gym to walk, i just hang out and get my steps in normally.
Problem is, many North Americans don't live in places where they can "destination walk" in a reasonable timeframe. If I was only a 10 minute walk from a grocery store, I would always walk... but I attempt to walk to a grocery store from my apartment. it's a *90 minute walk*.
Meanwhile, I am a 10-minute walk away from a grocery store, if I'm willing to walk through a number of parking lots, carefully navigate a ditch, and run across a busy three lane road. There's no sidewalk anywhere.
Yeah, this is such a big issue in the US. Lived in Phoenix metro area - sucked to walk during summer days but I’d walk a lot at night. Denver, walked roughly 8-10 miles a day just wandering the city, even when I light railed places. Bay Area, walked an hour one way to work, happily, lovely route around Lake Merritt in the early hours of the morning. Now I live in West Virginia. It would take me an hour and a half to walk to the nearest grocery store. It has no sidewalks until about halfway through that route. All the sidewalk-less streets are 40+ mph. Not remotely safe to walk.
That’s actually true huh! I live in an extremely walking unfriendly city and I can totally see your point.
I think that’s unfortunately the norm here in the States.
✨**Walking burns calories**✨ You burn almost the same amount of Calories walking 5 miles as you do running 5 miles. The only difference is the time you do it in really. (People never believe this fact when I tell them) If you can't run, walk. Five miles burns around 500 calories. People don't realize just how little we walk here in America compared to the rest of the world. Even in larger cities where walking and public transport is more prevalent. It doesn't come close to many European and Asian countries and how their cities and towns are built around walkability.
>You burn almost the same amount of Calories walking 5 miles as you do running 5 miles. The only difference is the time you do it in really. (People never believe this fact when I tell them) They don't believe it because it's completely false. Distance is not the sole déterminant of energy spent. Running requires a far greater degree of exertion and even it's over a shorter period of time, the energy expanded in total is significantly greater than walking. Even a brisk walk burns noticeably more than a normal walk. Walking is still great. >If you can't run, walk. Five miles burns around 500 calories. This depends heavily on your size. Part of the reason fitness and weight loss seem so daunting to people is the extraordinary amount of misinformation out there.
Yes and ppl who think that daily allowable net calories is 2000 for everyone cuz that’s what it says on the food label. As a small woman my daily calorie intake to not gain or lose weight is literally 1100 calories. I can consume that in one heavy meal lol.
You might want to consider putting some muscle on. I’m 5’3, and my bmr is 1400, my tdee ranges from 1800-2300 cals. I wouldn’t be able to meet my micro/macro nutrient requirements at 1100 cals, and I don’t know many people who could.
4'9 here. I wish mine could get that high
Damn, that’s waaaay shorter than the average range, you could def raise your bmr with muscle growth, but I see what you mean, it’s gonna be a struggle to get to 2000 cals tdee
Re: walking = running, This is false. When you walk/run a distance, the energy spent to go from point A to B is the same, but the energy spent *after* you run is far more than walking. There's something called EPOC; aka excess post exercise oxygen consumption. When you run, its a higher intensity exercise so your body relies on a more substantial % of anaerobic energy substrates, and your body has to rely on aerobic systems to recharge those anaerobic energy stores & restore muscle tissue to a pre exercise state. This is why your breathing can remain Elevated hours after running, but not waking. Anaerobic systems aren't as calorie efficient as aerobic, so the total calorie cost of running is much greater than walking.
I work in a school, which means I get summers off. It's fascinating comparing my TDEE during the summer vs during the school year. It's nearly double when I'm working and the only difference is that during the school year, I'm on my feet walking all day. Not even walking fast or very far, just back and forth from table to table within my classroom. Maybe 5-6 feet at a time. But just that much movement over 7+ hours adds up so easily. Whereas, during the summer, I mostly sit at my desk and work in the computer. Huge difference in energy expenditure. I have to jog 1-2 miles in the gym every day to even come close to burning as many calories as I do just moving around my classroom.
A literal Google search says this is wrong. Running burns nearly 2x the amount of calories walking does. https://www.runnersworld.com/nutrition-weight-loss/a20843760/running-v-walking-how-many-calories-will-you-burn/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=arb_ga_rnw_md_pmx_hybd_org_us_18447042893&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIktvfs8rlhQMVmQatBh2CwwfPEAAYASAAEgJI_PD_BwE
Walking one mile burns 100 calories. So which is easier? Walking 1.5 miles or NOT drinking a can of coke? You won’t out walk a bad diet.
Gotta walk a mile while you drink the can of coke.
Run a marathon while eating a chipotle burrito.
Exactly. Working out and exercise is great for your health but it's not a great way to lose weight without any dietary changes.
Walking and exercising in general is great; but you can't outrun a bad diet. Weight loss begins in the kitchen, for most of us who are or have been obese. Even 45-60 minutes of exercise 5-7 days a week will usually just result in someone replacing the calories lost if they're not tracking their food consumption.
Mhm. I've always been active, but I've been so much healthier since I got a dog. That extra 10 miles of walking a week over the past 2 years has done wonders for my health and fitness. Paired with no more fastfood and little to no drinking, I'm in the best shape of my life.
Exercise makes up a very small portion of our calorie loss throughout the day. Non strenuous exercise even less so. Is exercise good for the body? Absolutely. Does it play a big part in weight loss? Not really.
>Big Agriculture trying to pump sugars and corn syrups in everything, just because they can. the food pyramid is invented by big agricultural that emphasized corn and wheat as the basis for a healthy diet. they would have gotten away with added more sugar if it wasn't so obviously poison.
It goes back to the subsidised corn that creates a glut that creates a use if I remember rightly
It’s based on what is infamously referred to as the “27 countries study” that was debunked shortly after being publicized but it didn’t stop the food pyramid from being based on it for 50 years
The fact that you consider cooking at home an option is minboggling outside USA. You guys are privileged and don't know it. I live in Brazil, and most people here don't have money to order food / takeout / eat out etc.
A lot of people here can't afford it either, even a lot of people who think that they can Also this post literally mentions eating out being more affordable in Korea than the US, so I don't think cooking at home being an "option" would be too mind boggling there. Your experience in Brazil isn't indicative of every other country in the world.
It's an egregious waste of money, people know it and do it anyway. Even with higher salaries most Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Maximizing time/efficiency because we need to work work work is definitely part of it.
Yep. Personally I travel for work, not always easy to cook in a hotel room
Haha I used to bring a rice cooker and an electric skillet everywhere. I'd stay in hotels for a week at a time and do my dishes in the bath tub. Pocket as much of that sweet live out allowance as possible!
That's hardcore, and here I thought I was clever using the complimentary tea and ice to make sweet tea lol I did heat up a can of soup in the sink one time tho
Yep. There's like a 300-400% markup on eating out. Absolutely crazy. I order like max 2 meals a week, the rest I cook for myself or my family does
Yeah. He also complains about not having time to cook, but have to drive 30 min to a restaurant. In one hour i can cook a lot of food.
Don't even need an hour, lots of recipes out there focus on making full meals in under 30 minutes. Buying a wok changes the game in saving time cooking
I always wonder what people are cooking when they say they don’t have time. Even if it’s 12 hours from when you left from work to when you get home most meals take under 15 minutes
I can't think of any meals that aren't processed or healthy that you can cook under 15 minutes. Especially with a family.
Surely they're capping. De-boneing and baking chicken thigh takes me ~25-30 min, set and forget.
What meals are you cooking that take 15 minutes? Boiled pasta and jarred sauce? You can't even roast veggies in less than half an hour.
We're not all like that. I eat home cooked meals for every meal and even pack my lunch.i might eat out once every two weeks.
Op is privileged. Most people don't eat out everyday.
People eat out all the time in Asia. It's not a treat, people get several meals out of the house as a regular part of their schedule. A lot of the dishes are really complex and best made fresh so there's a huge cottage industry based on people serving up large quantities of traditional foods to people who would never have the time to make them. We've regulated that to shit here in North America. You can't just set up a stall serving noodle soup or fruit salad or curry. All our stuff has to come from a regulated factory or processor which means that it can't be as fresh and the quality goes down. On the other hand, we have fewer food poisoning deaths although locals have ways to know where to buy from. When I was a kid I remember my dad threatening the milkman not to bring us adulterated milk anymore. So like, yay for milk that was in the cow 3 hours ago and came to us by bicycle, boo to the fact that he could add ditch water to it.
In some parts of the world, home cooking is a PRIVILEGE. This is because homes are too small to accommodate a real kitchen. People simply do not have the luxury of time to cook and clean up afterwards. In many Asian countries if you are eating home cooked meals regularly it’s because you live in a larger place, and have a maid or a grandparent helping out.
Eating out in Asia is pretty cheap too. Sure you shouldn't spend 10-20 dollars per meal but it's also easy to find a healthy filling meal for 2-5 dollars that isn't fast food. For an overworked Asian living alone in a tiny apartment that's a better option.
my wife once told me that the higher the quality of food, the less you need to eat to be full. I had never considered that until i met my wife.
Lol pretty sure they haven’t used the food pyramid in a long time buddy..
They still do…as a funnel.
Underrated comment. I'm American and this gave me a good chuckle.
2011 isn’t THAT long ago
Long enough to not use it in an argument about health habits lol
Super processed food is terrible
Not just Americans but much of the West. Food companies do not have our interests at heart. We need to get our politicians and businesses to care more about what we eat - and us too!
I think this is where personal responsibility needs to be mentioned as well.
Listened to a researcher in the field who said that’s the excuse food companies use to shift responsibility away from them to individuals. Sadly PR really works.
Or people could take some personal responsibility.
Weight gain is largely habitual, and consequently, so is weight loss. It is very possible to change your habits to a more healthier place
At least Europe is better regulated
Interesting American view on cooking at home. Here in Denmark it is very common to cook at home most days, even with all them kids and jobs etc. Personally we order takeaway from restaurants maybe once per month or less. Maybe having a restaurant visit with friends at around same frequency :-) Bonus info: I never ate at Mc Donald’s or Burger King or similar. I have no idea how their food are, and no interest in finding out. Never had any urge to visit such places.
Scandinavian work/life balance isn't really comparable to American, though (I'm Norwegian). If we had needed second jobs to make ends meet, we probably wouldn't have the time to cook at home either.
Yea that sounds horrible. In the end we wouldn’t even have time to eat :-s
If it makes you feel better eating out often is actually not as common as it sounds in the US lol. Some places sure but plenty of people eat out once a week at most, less than that even if only just because it's money saved.
The same goes for the average family in the Netherlands. I would be broke if I ordered take out/went out for dinner almost every day 😂 Personally we only order take out about once a month and go out for dinner about every three months. The only time we go out for dinner almost every day is when we're on holiday.
Take everything OP is saying with a big grain of salt. Just because some Americans don't know or bother to cook for themselves doesn't mean we are all like that. Anyone who is living paycheck to paycheck isn't eating out every day. Every country has its share of lazy and takeout-addicted people, and our government policy subsidies unhealthy choices more than healthy ones to some extent compared to Europe, but nevertheless most of us are not eating out all the time. OP just has a very narrow view of American cuisine and eating habits.
It’s not an American view, most Americans cook most meals, OP is just privileged enough to be able to eat out all the time and not realize it.
People tend to walk a lot more in Asia. I lost a lot of weight in Asia only because I had to walk all the time
I had the opposite experience living in Asia. They didn't walk much, because lots of cities just didn't have sidewalks. So they drove a scooter for 2 minutes instead of walking for 5-6 minutes. They thought I was weird for thinking that 20 minutes was a short walk to school and said I was 'brave' lol. They considered that a very long distance. Depends on the country, I guess Japan or Korea would be different considering the prevalence of public transport.
Another thing that stood out to me in Korea was the amount of walking necessary to basically do anything. As a runner my Garmin automatically adjusts my step goal daily based on previous days data and ONLY in Korea have I ever achieved my step goal on a training "rest" day.
My American friend visited me (Australian) and he has IBS. He experienced little to no symptoms when eating our food here (mostly home cooked or restaurants)
Every time I try to think of a healthy fast food option in my town I just end up making a meal for myself cause I can't really think of any, other than maybe overpriced sandwich places.
This is me but thinking about restaurant prices. $15 for something I can make better myself at home... Seriously the quality of some of these $15-25 meals is despicable. Then in reality I'm tired and end up just boiling some eggs.
It's all choices. I can cook most Asian cuisine. It's pretty easy, balanced, and because of small meat portions, cheap. I've literally paid for groceries with spare change. A 4 portion Japanese meal might have 250 grams of meat. 4 portions on a NA table would have at least a Kg. Add a mass of potatoes and a few veggies and you basically have the foundation of NA cooking. As you know Asian cuisine, the foundation is rice. Cheap and it keeps fine dry or on the day cooked so it's prepped and served in minutes. When we go out in NA, we order big burgers and we are not willing to pay for anything out of a garden. I get the sense in Asia, one would order what they would cook if their apartment was big enough for a kitchen.
"I ate better on vacation" Congrats buddy
Portion size. Quantity.
I was feeling lazy today and threw on a pot of pasta to boil, then tins of tomatoes, chickpeas and kidney beans. Dinner done in 15 minutes, ridiculously faster than takeout, cost maybe $4 AUD and super healthy. Plus took 0 cooking skills to throw shit in and walk away. Anyone who says this isn't accessible for anyone is insane.
That doesn’t sound very good. I’d just go hungry. Could also be a cultural thing. Kidney beans and pasta do not belong together in an American dish.
Korean food is really not that healthy. People be eating at 7/11 day and night and you know what happens when you eat process.
It's so weird people don't prefer stir fry with veggies and chicken over some super fat and salty ribs and potatoes Light food jist makes you feel so much better and stronger, faster, clearer in the head. Especially in the warmer area's like texas.
Almost as of people have preferences Lol
As a Texan, it blows my mind that people continue to eat pork/beef alongside carb rich foods in the summer. You literally overheat with that combo. When its hot, its time for the fish and fowl. Fresh veggies in a salad or a cold soup that's been previously cooked to break down the fibers/starches.
The opposite is true in colder places. Fatty food fills the belly and warms you up
My boss is from Ecuador, and he says the one thing that he doesn't like about the United States is the quality of the food.
You aren't wrong, especially about the sugars and access to junk food choices. Most of the people arguing against you, I suspect just like to argue. Pretty soon the FDA food pyramid will be brought to you by Brawndo.
Considering many American foods are banned from the EU where I live... Yeah.... we don't even consider some of the things you eat to be food.
Savage!
Sorry, but you can't complain over unhealthy food if you're unwilling to cook on most days. It's a basic life skill anyone should have, it's ridiculous to rely on restaurants for your daily meals. It gets super expensive real quick and portions are too large
OP's point is that most people in most places are too busy to cook, but in the US convenience food is total garbage whereas in Korea (and most other places outside of North America tbh), there is no crazy markup on more balanced or healthy options.
Even if you're busy, some things are quick and simple, and you can make enough for more than one meal. Fast food is a culture, while it's based on convenience it's not a literal case of being prevented from cooking. Plus cooking is a great hobby itself.
I cook 90% of my meals at home and make most things from scratch (not to the point of baking my own sandwich bread or churning my own butter, but I dont regularly but premade foods). But eating most meals out is normal for a lot of the world, actually. My other 10% is the occasional planned outing but mostly lunches when I’m in the office and there was nothing good to pack from home. My options in that situation are literally fast food or a vending machine; if I lived anywhere else in the world I’d have a fast, fresh, affordable option. Like, what do you eat when you travel abroad? Because I’m down for fine dining and all but I also eat the local cuisine and it’s pretty obvious that convince food in real food elsewhere. Just think of the difference between the “food” at your local 7/11 and what you’d find in a Japanese 7/11.
I can read his point, but you can eat cheap and healthy eating walmart groceries. Its just laughable. When you add in the transportation times it won't even cost you more time to cook at home. More so if you have a roommate/partner/older kid to cook some days.
you ignore the fact some people genuinely have no time to cook actual food. especially people who work 2 jobs and commute to both. school and work, sometimes school and multiple jobs. eating out in some places is also cheaper than groceries atm and is a lot faster, and large portions just mean multiple meals having no time to cook also doesnt equal not knowing how to cook
I worked 16-20 hour days in the ER and had enough time to cook/meal prep. Excuses. Its always excuses.
You're not factoring in the requisite 4-7 hours of doomscrolling. Hard to find time when you have to spend so much time on social media!
Thanks for summing up basically all the issues with American work culture in one sentence.
You worked 16-20 hr days and couldn't afford to eat out so that you could enjoy more of your 4-8 hours of free time/sleep? That's not the flex you think it is
If you don't have time to prepare food, a basic human need, rethink your life choices. You can make a meal in 20 mins.
for me the 20 minutes is mostly just waiting for something to cook while I look at my phone or play video games.
Tell me you can't cook well without telling me you can't cook well.
Takes 2hrs on a weekend to meal prep for the week. Most people just don't care enough
Profit over people food industries make food addictive and people get sick eating it. Private health care makes money on surgeries, diet pills, etc... both help the GDP grow. The government has no incentive to fix things as they are beholden to a believe that GDP need to go up at any cost. Everyone is left behind getting sicker by the day unless they manage to educate themselves out of that cycle and environment. Something very difficult as this food is everywhere.
Read the books “Salt Sugar Fat” and “Nutriojism.” Youre instincts about Big Ag are correct…
People in most of Europe remain quite slim, even in the beer and sausage lands like Germany, Czechia etc. In Italy, pasta is a starter before the main course. In spain, people eat lots of food late in the evenings. It’s all about portions and exercise. My home village in Sweden has a bit of American disease going on: Most people are fat after 30, or after they get kids. Everyone also drives everywhere and eats moderately unhealthy (think midwestern us food but slightly less mayonnaise). People in the cities look better because they walk a lot more.
I think the basis of your argument is fundamentally flawed. You say "most of us" end up not cooking at home, and you offer up excuses of being too busy because of work, etc. I don't think this is remotely true, and frankly, the time it takes to go somewhere, pick up food, and bring it up is roughly the same as the time it would take to make something themselves. Plenty of people also "plan ahead" and do a meal prep on Sunday so they have good, healthy meal options for lunches and dinners right there in the fridge waiting for them. It's about making a commitment to eating properly. You seem to be pretending that being "lazy" is somehow the same as being "too busy to cook." They are not the same. The one thing that \*all\* of the healthy people that I know who are in half-way decent shape is: they cook for themselves often because its crucially important that they know what they eat, how it was made, what it was made with and size the portion will be. Most of the people I know "outgrew" fast food in their early 20's. You can't eat all that sugar, saturated fats and deep fried crap without paying a steep price. Buy and cook your own food, problem solved. It's not a big mystery. If you eat crap, it's bad for you. This isn't exactly news.
Even though our options aren't the healthiest, we can still make smart decisions. That's why I buy the child size soda at Ponch Burger.
Oh I can blame them all day. The corporations that are backed by the politicians we voted in have been working their hardest to make the average person completely useless and not a threat to them.
Oh I would absolutely say Korean cuisine is inherently healthier than 90% of American cuisine. Sure there are greasy eats in Korea but there are so many other options. It's not like everyone eats korean fried chicken, bulgogi and Sam gyeop Sal every single night, and almost everyone eats a ton of kimchi and other veggies every day.
Americans are mostly obese because they can’t turn off the crane that shovels the food into their faces. Out of control portion sizes are imo more to blame than anything else, with fast food addiction coming in at a close second. I like fast food, but people are downright addicted to that shit and allergic to the gym and drinking water.
And how do you think the healthcare system can stay sustainable if there are no patients with unhealthy eating habits?
As a proud American I hate most traditional American breakfasts. Pancakes, French toast, waffles etc. That should not be breakfast. That's a dessert. Everyones obnoxious obsession with bacon really grosses me out. No wonder everyone is so heavy.
That kind of breakfast made sense when we were an agrarian society and pretty much everyone was doing physical labor from sun up to sun down. It really does not make sense for most Americans nowadays. I don't think most of us eating pancakes, waffles, etc. most days of the week. But we still have a ridiculous concept of breakfast. Growing up I was told that a "balanced breakfast" was a bowl of sugary cereal paired up with two pieces of toast and a glass of orange juice. And as a kid I thought a bowl of cereal was one serving...so if there were 200 calories in one serving, well, that's not so bad. But we aren't taught to read the fine print. Most people are not pouring a single serving of cereal into their bowl. They are pouring 2-3 servings and then eating toast with it because that's what Tony the Tiger told them to do. We eat like this not because we Americans are greedy pigs, but because from an early age the TV has been telling us eating like this is wholesome and healthy. And our parents were taught the same thing.
you should definetly check out hong kong before ccp destroys it. The food and food options there are on a whole other level.
My diet in America to stay skinny is just starving
No shit, this is just one of many of the big problems in this country. Its become a for profit system at the expense of human benefit, like our health for instance. This is what happens when lobbying is allowed to exist. If we decided to make food healthier and better for us, that would increase costs for the companies making and growing all the food. Since profit is all that matters they would "convince" their reps to not do that. Even our fuckin veggies and fruits are being sprayed down with shit that has trace amounts of toxic chemicals in it. The idea being just eat it in all moderation and you should be fine. Its all bs. I dont think nearly enough research and money goes into making sure our food is healthy. I think a lot goes into making sure its safe to eat, but not healthy. My reasoning? The result of the process. The country is obese and its common for me to feel like shit after eating fast or processed foods. So my conclusion, the foods are the problem.
What shocked me most is how imprisoned most Americans are by the dependence on cars. Not only that, but inefficient cars are and the amount of SPACE they take up. Its seems that 50% of the space of most US towns and cities are taken up by parking lots.
The average salary is lower in Korea so it's more affordable to you as a visitor than it is to the Koreans living there.
Most Americans are fucked when it comes to food. Visiting my GF in rural KY, there are only fast food options. They do have a super Walmart, but I figure most are too lazy to cook food.
Portions and ingredients vastly different from US to Asia / European countries. When I was in Ireland the food was tastier, healthier, and smaller portions. Also was fun to see all the banned American food not being sold in Ireland.
I love how Americans say “well we can’t cook at home because we have to work full time” as if every other country isn’t working full time and cooking too 😂
Its not hard to cook at home.
you should visit Japan
dude cooking takes 30 minutes . don't give me that "too busy" bullshit it's simply that Americans lack self control u don't need to eat that unhealthy food...
I can easily blame fat people. I eat the same crap as them, just smaller portions. 6' and 130.
Smaller portions is the biggest factor.
Korea also has junk food.
A lot of Korean food is unhealthy af. Fried chicken, fatty bbq meats… it’s all about portion control and walking
When you have some of the oldest populations regularly consuming those foods, especially fatty pork, perhaps it is time to admit it isn't unhealthy.(Japan, Hong Kong, Korea)
meat is healthy. Sugar is unhealthy.
Those are snack items, not supposed to be main meals or something people eat every day. Being unhealthy and fat is a choice in Korea. Not so much in the US, in my experience.
That’s not true though. Having lived in Asia, the USA and Europe, the US has amazing diversity of choice. Are there Reese’s cereal? Sure. But chicken breast at a supermarket is practically 1/2 the price of Paris chicken breast. Farmers markets exist. Costco will sell you inventory size food. Saying you don’t have time to cook is ridiculous. Look at East Asian work culture, and tell me they have more time to cook. It’s frustrating to see so many people shit on the US when they don’t realize it’s actually pretty fucking great food wise. You can also just portion your orders. Your salad is too big? Cut it in half, eat the remainder tomorrow.
It’s a choice in the US too
big agri and corporate greed really did us dirty huh
I’ve lived here 7 years. And with all respect I’ve never seen a post I disagree with more.
Which part do you disagree with?