As you lose weight metabolism slows down.

I agree. I am related to a nutritionist who is the daughter as well as the granddaughter of nutritionists, so perhaps I recognize the variety of reasons that could cause unhealthy weights among many people by association more than others. What is clear to me may not be apparent to others, and I seek to help others be more aware of all the variables.

It depends on how you're losing weight. If you're doing so by starving your body, then yes, it will slow your metabolism down. However, if you're doing it through proper diet and exercise, then you will most certainly not experience a slowing of your metabolism.

The reason why most people gain weight again is because they go on diets and make a huge massive change in a short period, once the weight is gone they assume that they now can go back to eating normal like before.

All studies show that best way and most sustainable way is to lose a small amount each week by making a life long change to how and what you eat. Diet´s are fine if you want to lose 5-10lbs but not if you are massively overweight.

Also not to forget that programs like the biggest loser is all show nothing else, the contestants come in , lose the weight and then are left alone, leaving the reason most were overweight alone. Which of course means afterwards they go back to the normal and gain all of it again.

Weight gain and weight loss is a multi faceted problem that a lot of people face, there's no never going to be a silver bullet. People have differing body types and metabolisms that go with it, however at the end of the day its all about knowing your limits and eating with in your confines. You need to find something that works for you and that very well be something that is completely different than your neighbor.

It should be less about dieting and more about sustaining a healthier lifestyle both in what you eat and how much you work out. Think in the long run and start to get into a rhythm about eating right and getting out and sweating a bit. Some people may have really slow metabolisms, but lets get real here. A majority or more of the US population is considered obese and its not because of 'slowing metabolisms'. We have people that eat too damn much and move too damn little. We're not suffering from an obesity epidemic because of stuff like this article implies, its because we're stuffing our faces day in and day out.

Fair enough. The content of that posting, and the one preceding it, is correct.

My original objection was to this statement:

They gain weight back not because their metabolism slows, but because they eat too much.

Whether the statement is fair boils down to how you interpret "eat too much".

Your view is that, even if they're eating a borderline starvation diet, they're still "eating too much" because their calorie intake exceeds their calorie expenditure.

My view is that whether they're "eating too much" should be determined by how many calories they eat in comparison to the average person. If they're eating no more calories than the average, healthy person does, and if they're expending at least as many calories through exercise as the average, healthy person does, but they're still gaining weight, then, IMHO, it's unfair to blame the eating and appropriate to blame the low resting metabolic rate.

there was a little anoying fat kid around here for a while, it was really arrogant and always stand in the way like 'so what' ...

everytime I saw him I just said: 'your blocking the way, Fatty!' ... wich might Sound a bit hard to say it in a Kids face ... but since I never show disrespect for people in general ... it worked ... didnt saw him for awhile, but then he reappeared some day and wasnt fat anymore but looked like someone who worked on his bodyshape for the last few weeks ^^

There are several factors for weight gain...we can all agree on this. Having said that at its core @thegerg is right. Weight gain and loss is more or less a calorie equation.

In my limited experience my observations regarding weight are

1. As Americans by and large we eat ENTIRELY too much and that leads to our country's weight problem.

2. We don't exercise

3. We eat TONS of processed foods.

4. As with other problems involving addiction weight gain may not be genetic but it is generational. Fat parents often have fat kids.

My stomach never was the same after I lost 45lbs. I get terrible pains if I eat and go to sleep even 3hrs after a meal. Since then I've gained back 10lbs because I like cheeseburgers. It was actually painful to switch back to eating whatever. My stomach would hurt from a pizza. I went 3 months only eating 30-50mg of carbohydrates a day but it was no holds bar with fat and lean food.

It's easier to lose weight and keep it away if you keep a record.

I use a spreadsheet to track the following:

1. What I eat and how much (calories in)

2. The amount and frequency of exercise I do (calories out)

3. My blood pressure and weight

With a spreadsheet, I can notice trends and take action to rectify bad trends. In my case, I need to eat more because the very dry climate made me want to drink more rather than eat.

Have you considered trying S Health or myfitnesspal for your tracking needs? These are smartphone tracking tools that may be able to more adequately meet your needs. There are other apps I'm sure but I use S Health personally.

I considered them for my tablet and I may yet use them. But, my Excel spreadsheet is fine because I'm familiar with many of its features. Plus, I find it much easier when I need to make snap changes. It's also easier for me to see the big picture with the spreadsheet.

It's called self control. "Food addiction" is a joke. I can't take anyone seriously if they claim they can't stop eating. They are mentally weak.

They need to change their entire attitude and outlook on life. I have watched that TV show a handful of times and I am not shocked at all to see so many of them have no self respect at all.

From my experience with obese people they have multiple issues

1. They almost always have poor mental health

2. They almost always have extreme diet's

3. They almost always lack muscle mass to combat their calorie surplus

Just like getting obese didn't happen overnight getting a good body takes time. It's a healthy lifestyle diet+gym that gives you a stable fast metabolic rate. This crash diet/exercise program is unsustainable for radically obese people.

You forgot how people are conditioned regarding food. If you have fat parents...you have no shot ABSOLUTELY NO SHOT. I was a school bus driver for one year in 2010. It was obvious that most fat kids had fat parents. And I drove elementary kids. It is very difficult to change how someone is raised. This includes your relationship with food.