Anyone been told to lose weight like this?

Northern Express wrote:

This is a true statement. She doesn't say she couldn't lose a gram; she just points out that different runners have different limitations, and she is not at the extreme from thinness. Thank goodness.

Sorry, Bro, Hitler proved that EVERYONE has the genetics to lose 3-4 pounds.

What really annoys me about this, is not whether she could or could not stand to lose any weight, but that people who just spout this stuff out can do really serious harm. Thank goodness Ann has a good enough head on her shoulders to realize that it's a stupid comment. Plenty of people make these sorts of comments, I have seen it a lot. For some people that's all it takes to start an eating disorder. That doesn't mean they are too sensitive about weight. It means that they are vulnerable to going to extreme measures to improve performance. It often starts out as a little comment that so and so could lose a couple of lbs, and the obsession starts. I'm not saying coaches should not say anything about weight to their runners, but it has to be done in a professional way, with a plan behind it and by someone who knows what they're talking about.

I am not in disagreement with you about how some people speak out of turn and that it can be a poor influence. This is undoubtedly true HOWEVER, at the end of the day, everyone is responsible for themselves. Whether a person is "too sensitive about weight" or "vulnerable to going to extreme measures to improve performance", that is THEIR problem and something THEY need to work on.

There are lies within messages all over the place that you take in every day. This is not a good thing, but it is ultimately up to the individual to separate the wheat from the chaff.

I agree, but my point is that many don't and people that think its ok to go around giving this sort of unsolicited advice should be aware of the damage it can cause.

I'll give FW another chance to answer why he wrote #2.

I don't have the genetics to be an olympic body builder, and I certainly don't need to be a MD to be confident in that statement.

Seriously, you all are overblowing a comment about 3-4 pounds! Someone who needs to lose 3-4 pounds is NOT fat.

If you are worried that such a comment will lead a girl to an eating disorder, well she's already got some scary mental issues going.

Cool - point taken. I would just stress both issues rather than focus on the one side, but that's just me.

Bdubs, don't be ridiculous. Oly weightlifter vs 3-4 lbs? I am not sure if that's a very pertinent analogy. Neverthless, I do think FW's #2 was just sort of a filler statement so that he could have 3. Not really here nor there.

Bdubs wrote:

I'll give FW another chance to answer why he wrote #2.

I don't have the genetics to be an olympic body builder, and I certainly don't need to be a MD to be confident in that statement.

That's a HUGE difference from what I've said. You are talking about genetics in a very general way regarding performance that doesn't require much if any proof. I could say I don't have the genetics to dunk a basketball and that would be true because I'm short, but that's WAY different from what steeple woman said. She said she doesn't have the genetics to be skinnier, and I say BS to that. Like the crude poster already pointed out with regard to concentration camp people, if you restrict your intake enough, you'll get skinny. Doesn't mean it's the right thing to do, doesn't mean she needs to do it, but she doesn't know if her genetics are prohibiting her from doing it at all.

Relaxed wrote:

Seriously, you all are overblowing a comment about 3-4 pounds! Someone who needs to lose 3-4 pounds is NOT fat.

If you are worried that such a comment will lead a girl to an eating disorder, well she's already got some scary mental issues going.

And many do. Female collegiate distancer runners have the highest incidence of eating disorders of any collegiate athletes, and the number that have disordered eating is staggering. I honestly don't know many female runners that haven't at some time thought about or actually done crazy things to lose some weight for running.

This is some classic FW trolling. Taking the literal meaning of genetics and trying to ram your point home. Everyone else read it as her using it in a figurative meaning, and understanding what she was saying. Great job FW!

FW,

I'm really on your side. I think I've figured out why you occassionaly irk people, and you're doing it now. But if you don't want the out, don't take it. No skin of my back.

I like to play the Devil's advocate now again, but I usually know when to stop...

Can you not tell when you're getting too skinny? I know I can. Some people my height can get a little skinnier, that's all.

True, and those girls should not be allowed to run. They are dead girls running.

Their coaches are too focussed on winning to acknowledge and man-up to the fact that those girls should be off the team until they can cope with their lives as normal human beings.

I took it to mean that she does not get as skinny as the other runners while doing similar things, like eating right and training hard. We all know people who can eat more than others and stay very thin. Others we know have to be very disciplined to stay lean. FW, is that not genetics? I'm seriously asking. What is it then?

runnerchick wrote:

http://steeplechics.com/viewblogs.php?id=2

This really pissed me off when I read it. Good for her for sticking to her guns. This kind of comment can cause no end of trauma.

Why do you ask? Do you need to lose a few pounds?

atlanta96 wrote:

I took it to mean that she does not get as skinny as the other runners while doing similar things, like eating right and training hard. We all know people who can eat more than others and stay very thin. Others we know have to be very disciplined to stay lean. FW, is that not genetics? I'm seriously asking. What is it then?

I took it to mean she wanted to end the terrible conversation as fast as possible and get away from the guy before she snapped on him. I doubt she intended it to have any scientific basis. No need for a huge debate over the scientific accuracy of her frustrated reply to some jackass.