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I'm from the UK and married to a Canadian and the big difference I've noticed? Canadians do not walk anywhere. When I was staying with my wife in her little town I said I was going to walk up to the local store, about a 15 minute walk away, and got 3 offers for a lift. I said that it was fine, I wanted a walk, and her family looked at me like I was crazy.

I can also not get over how many drive through places they have. You could drive home from work and pick up a coffee and dinner without ever leaving your car [or more likely, truck].

I've also noticed that North Americans in general dress really casually [we would say badly in the UK]. You can hide a lot of sins in tracksuit bottoms and a baggy jumper, but not so much in jeans and a shirt, or a dress. I would not dream of leaving the house in tracksuit bottoms, even to go to the supermarket. Most of the men and women women I see in supermarkets here are dressed to the 9s, although this could be because I live in a pretty affluent area.

There is also a lot more trashy food on offer. For example, in cinemas in Canada, they have a butter dispenser for popcorn. I nearly vommed in my mouth when I saw some big guy pumping the butter dispenser all over his popcorn. At the same time healthy food is really expensive. I'm a vegetarian, and the price of things such as hummus [quite fatty but has lots of complex proteins] was crazy. Fresh veg was also very expensive. In restaurants, it was pretty much the same menu everywhere I went, with a couple of little variations. Most stuff was deep fried, and the healthy options were very limited or non-existent.

In comparison, I've noticed that loads of men in the UK [the south at least] are looking ripped. It used to be enough not to be fat, but as someone who runs regularly, who would be considered slim, I'm feeling pretty inadequate these days in comparison to loads of guys rocking the big guns. There is a real health kick trend in the UK at the moment, which is pretty cool. Not sure why, maybe Jamie Oliver? Most stuff on menus here is fairly healthy, and it's easy to make low calorie choices. At times it's actually quite hard to go unhealthy [my wife laments her butter popcorn to this day].

My two pence [no offence intended to the homeland of my beautiful wife].

You people spamdrink milk too?

I can easily drink several 1-liter packs a day.

Random Dude wrote:

 trexmeyer wrote:
That's a lot of sugar.

The naturally occurring sugar found in fruit is considered okay, is the same not true for milk?

I've seen differing opinions on fruit and I honestly don't eat any, so I can't even comment on how it does or does not affect me.

tyrannosaurus wrote:I'm from the UK and married to a Canadian and the big difference I've noticed? Canadians do not walk anywhere. When I was staying with my wife in her little town I said I was going to walk up to the local store, about a 15 minute walk away, and got 3 offers for a lift. I said that it was fine, I wanted a walk, and her family looked at me like I was crazy.

I've also noticed that North Americans in general dress really casually [we would say badly in the UK]. You can hide a lot of sins in tracksuit bottoms and a baggy jumper, but not so much in jeans and a shirt, or a dress. I would not dream of leaving the house in tracksuit bottoms, even to go to the supermarket. Most of the men and women women I see in supermarkets here are dressed to the 9s, although this could be because I live in a pretty affluent area.

There is also a lot more trashy food on offer. For example, in cinemas in Canada, they have a butter dispenser for popcorn. I nearly vommed in my mouth when I saw some big guy pumping the butter dispenser all over his popcorn. At the same time healthy food is really expensive. I'm a vegetarian, and the price of things such as hummus [quite fatty but has lots of complex proteins] was crazy. Fresh veg was also very expensive. In restaurants, it was pretty much the same menu everywhere I went, with a couple of little variations. Most stuff was deep fried, and the healthy options were very limited or non-existent.

In comparison, I've noticed that loads of men in the UK [the south at least] are looking ripped. It used to be enough not to be fat, but as someone who runs regularly, who would be considered slim, I'm feeling pretty inadequate these days in comparison to loads of guys rocking the big guns. There is a real health kick trend in the UK at the moment, which is pretty cool. Not sure why, maybe Jamie Oliver? Most stuff on menus here is fairly healthy, and it's easy to make low calorie choices. At times it's actually quite hard to go unhealthy [my wife laments her butter popcorn to this day].

My two pence [no offence intended to the homeland of my beautiful wife].

I'll offer a perspective from Texas. People do NOT wear loose fitting clothing to hide their copious rolls of fat. I know shorter shorts is the style for women, but maybe one out of five actually has the legs to pull it off, and I'm pretty sure I'm being generous there. The sheer number of people with fat about to burst forth from their shirts is maddening. Women are the worst offenders. Why would you wear skin tight clothing when you are fifty pounds overweight?

 trexmeyer wrote:

Random Dude wrote:

 trexmeyer wrote:
That's a lot of sugar.

The naturally occurring sugar found in fruit is considered okay, is the same not true for milk?

I've seen differing opinions on fruit and I honestly don't eat any, so I can't even comment on how it does or does not affect me.

Of the research that I've personally done, everything that I've personally found has said that, from a purely evolutionary stand point, milk/dairy is "bad" because we're not really developed to handle it appropriately (that we've forced ourselves to kinda shows why we *should* be at the top of the food chain) whereas the sugars in fruits and other unprocessed foods fit out dietary needs better and they digest in a way where, unless you severely overeat the sugars and other nutrients to take in will be appropriately digested and you'll get the most out of what you eat.

Meh, I've seen the following:

All fruit should be avoided
High GI fruit should be avoided
All fruit is good, in any quantity, eat more fruit damn it
Fruit is good in moderation

And:
Milk is good
Only whole milk is good
Only skim milk is good
Stop drinking milk fatties!
Milk is bad, but other dairy products are good


My conclusion is that your diet should be based on what works for you. I eat relatively low carb and I'd rather eat a ton of greens than any fruit. I love my cheese and sour cream. Some people can't handle it. No matter what though, eat your damn veggies and be willing to experiment with your diet if you find yourself gaining excess weight or you're not losing weight as fast as you should be.

 trexmeyer wrote:

My conclusion is that your diet should be based on what works for you. I eat relatively low carb and I'd rather eat a ton of greens than any fruit. I love my cheese and sour cream. Some people can't handle it. No matter what though, eat your damn veggies and be willing to experiment with your diet if you find yourself gaining excess weight or you're not losing weight as fast as you should be.

Lol, much of the research that I've looked for and looked at, has basically been the basis for things like the Paleo Diet (yet not quite the paleo diet, if that makes sense)... Basically, more meat, fruit and veggies; Cut out ALL processed grains (so no oats, wheat and the like... rice in moderation is OK) The nice thing is, there are a ton of resources for people who go that route to point them toward the "proper" replacement food that gives better nutrient content to calorie ratios.


Of course, all that said and I still enjoy the nectar of the gods: beer, whiskey, rum, etc. so I'm definitely no food "nazi"

Trex, you have the craziest diet I've beer heard of.

I also think 1/5 is pretty generous. There's no shortage of fat girls wearing tight clothing in the US.

If it were up to me tights and yoga pants would have a capped size.

 cincydooley wrote:
Trex, you have the craziest diet I've beer heard of.

I also think 1/5 is pretty generous. There's no shortage of fat girls wearing tight clothing in the US.

If it were up to me tights and yoga pants would have a capped size.

Trex's diet is not crazy. It's high in protein and low in carbs. The fat is much higher than I would eat, but he seems to think the better taste is worth it.

cincydooley wrote:Trex, you have the craziest diet I've beer heard of.

I also think 1/5 is pretty generous. There's no shortage of fat girls wearing tight clothing in the US.

If it were up to me tights and yoga pants would have a capped size.

I agree 100% with the capped size.

Random Dude wrote:

Trex's diet is not crazy. It's high in protein and low in carbs. The fat is much higher than I would eat, but he seems to think the better taste is worth it.

Actually the high fat is for nutrition reasons. My diet is based on the Perfect Health Diet. I'm a firm believer that fat is absolutely necessary for humans to function properly.

 trexmeyer wrote:

cincydooley wrote:Trex, you have the craziest diet I've beer heard of.

I also think 1/5 is pretty generous. There's no shortage of fat girls wearing tight clothing in the US.

If it were up to me tights and yoga pants would have a capped size.

I agree 100% with the capped size.

Random Dude wrote:

Trex's diet is not crazy. It's high in protein and low in carbs. The fat is much higher than I would eat, but he seems to think the better taste is worth it.

Actually the high fat is for nutrition reasons. My diet is based on the Perfect Health Diet. I'm a firm believer that fat is absolutely necessary for humans to function properly.

And of course, diets can be tailored to fit the specific needs of different people. Luckily, I have a family member who is a dietitian, so I can always get advice. I need roughly the same protein intake as you do, but a higher carb to fat ratio since I'm fueling for distance runs.