Weight time vs. wait time...should disney be setting a better example?

[No1DopeyFan]

I am a bit upset, but not surprised by this posting. Why does it matter if you are fat, skinny, short or tall. Do we have to be a certain size to visit Disney?? If a person wants to eat junk food, they will eat junk food. I find it so funny that people blame others for their weight problems... no one forces anyone to eat a hamburger over a salad or other healthier choices, it is a personal choice.

 

[Deadmanwalking]

I am a bit upset, but not surprised by this posting. Why does it matter if you are fat, skinny, short or tall. Do we have to be a certain size to visit Disney?? If a person wants to eat junk food, they will eat junk food. I find it so funny that people blame others for their weight problems... no one forces anyone to eat a hamburger over a salad or other healthier choices, it is a personal choice.

Your right.... I think the whole thread was started by some self-righteous health food nut that is miserable each time he/she downs another bowl of granola topped with tofu and wants to make everyone else as miserable by forcing us all to eat like rabbit.

 

[LeeLee D]

There are indeed many obese people that go to Disney World.

Perhaps...just perhaps, they go to get away from their daily lives where they are told every day how fat they are.

Maybe...just maybe, some of them go to Walt Disney World to escape from the pointing fingers, and the snide remarks they get every day back home, and they just want to go on a vacation to a magical place where they won't be judged by their size, but instead by their smiles and kind words.

People don't to to Disney World to get fat, but some people go to Disney World to forget that they ARE fat, and they just want to feel the magical feelings that the "Normal" people feel...if only for a few wonderful days.

Thank you.

 

[sknydave]

Hi, "normal" person here.. I would love to get in on these magical feelings I'm supposed to be having. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

 

[mickey&me]

Hi, "normal" person here.. I would love to get in on these magical feelings I'm supposed to be having. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

Yes--Disney World! The way I read the post you're referring to, the poster meant that people who go to Disney go for the same reasons, no matter what their size--to feel the Disney magic, to have the Disney experience. Evidently you interpreted the post to mean that you're supposed to feel the magic all the time.

 

[optjay]

The food choices at Disney have already started to be plain, bland mass produced crap. The variety has dwindled to the point were every food venue has the same stuff to choose from.

Your on vacation!

I look forward to eating what I want! Junk or what ever.

Eat better at home. Live a little on your trip.

 

[sknydave]

Yes--Disney World! The way I read the post you're referring to, the poster meant that people who go to Disney go for the same reasons, no matter what their size--to feel the Disney magic, to have the Disney experience. Evidently you interpreted the post to mean that you're supposed to feel the magic all the time.

Read their post again

 

[Scooter]

Hi, "normal" person here.. I would love to get in on these magical feelings I'm supposed to be having. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

It's the magic of enjoying all the wonders that Disney has to offer without being pointed at and without having people making snide remarks out loud about how fat you are...heavy people are heavy, not deaf. They can hear your comments...so please, people, teach your children that people of size have feelings too and that they aren't freaks to be gawked at and made fun of.

 

[sknydave]

There are A LOT of overweight guests at WDW... A LOT. Do people really point at overweight guests? I've seen a billion by now, it's nothing new.

I mean, I saw a lady that was roughly about 40 years old and ~260 wearing a mini skirt a 120lb woman would have a hard time fitting into... But comments and pointing should be expected at that point.

 

[minnie61650]

Just an FYI:

Weigh gain is not always cause because of food choices or laziness:

In addition to thyroid disease causing excessive weight gain,
http://www.medem.com/medlb/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=zzzdmmpx77c&sub_cat=501
hormonal imbalance,
http://www.safemenopausesolutions.com/hormoneimbalance.html
and polycystic ovary syndrome can all cause excessive weight gain.
http://www.revolutionhealth.com/articles/?id=article.2006-11-15.9315258916&s_kwcid=polycystic%20ovary%20syndrome|867257574

Many medications also cause excessive weight gain.

Insulin and other diabetic drugs cause weight gain.
Antidepressants,Antihistamines, Birth control pills, sleep aids, migraine med's, and steroids even in small amounts such as used for a sinus infection or given in epidurals to help manage back pain as well as many other meds can cause
excessive weight gain.
Please do judge because you really do not know unless you have their medical history in front of you why a person may be overweight.


Just my 2 cents

 

[rainfully]

Wait... not many healthy food options available at WDW?? This perplexes me.

Let's look at kid's meals at counter services places for example. Side choices include carrot sticks, applesauce, grapes... and yes, fries. Drink choices include water, milk, or juice. Soda is available upon request... it is included but you have to ask for it! So in the example... healthy choices far outweigh unhealthy ones.

Healthy choices are everywhere... gluten free brownies and cookies, fresh fruit, apple slices, veggies with dip... I see them in every place I go.

The choices are definitely out there for you... if you want to make them. But like many others... to me, when you're on vacation, that's the time to pig out!!

 

[minnie61650]

Disney is trying to help others make healty food choices even outside of the parks.
Disney Garden Launches Healthy, Character-Themed Food Choices That Put Fruits and Vegetables on Center Stage

BUSINESS WIRE

Posted: 2007-10-12 07:18:15

GLENDALE, Calif. & HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)----A recent study by The Produce For Better Health Foundation shows that 90 percent of consumers do not eat the recommended five or more daily servings of fruits and vegetables. Disney is helping parents get through this challenge with the launch of Disney Garden, an innovative new line of character-themed fruit and vegetable snacks and sides that are kid-tested and conveniently packaged.

Disney Garden's new food products will be unveiled for the first time this week at the Produce Marketing Association Fresh Summit in Houston, TX (October 12th - 15th) - an international trade show attended by the produce and floral industry.

Presented by Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy, and with names like Totally Teriyaki Sugar Snap Peas, Sunny Honey Orange Carrot Coins, Threezy Cheezy Broccoli Bites, My Size Minis and Foodles, the new line of Disney Garden selections offers options that are nutritious and fun - at school, home or on the go. All of the products meet Disney's food guidelines which place limits on calories, fat, saturated fat, sugar and sodium.

"Disney Garden offers delicious combinations of fresh fruits and vegetables with sauces, dips and sides that will get kids excited about eating better. We've packaged the line in a colorful way that truly captures Disney's magical appeal," said Harry Dolman, executive vice president, Disney Consumer Products, food, health and beauty category. "Parents want healthier options that are easy to prepare and serve, and kids like tasty choices that are fun and appealing. Disney Garden is a win-win solution for today's busy families."

The new Disney Garden menu includes the following choices, which will be available this fall at leading food retailers in the fresh produce department:

Disney Garden Foodles: Nutritious snacks or side dishes that are oodles of fun and easily transportable, with interesting combinations of fruits, vegetables and other sides like dips, raisins, crackers or cheese in a fun, Mickey-shaped tray featuring colorful images of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse characters. Includes "Build A FoodleDoodle" instructions to help kids create pieces of art with the food, and then eat them! Seven Foodles choices include: Celery, Peanut Butter & Raisins; Carrots, Celery, Tomatoes & Ranch Dip; Carrots, Celery, Pretzels & Cheese Dip; Apples, Cheese & Crackers; Apples, Caramel & Cheese; Apples, Peanut Butter & Raisins; and Apples, Grapes & Cheese.

Disney Garden Fresh Veggies & Sauce: Kid-sized cut vegetables with a pouch of sauce specially formulated, tested and approved by children. Parents and caregivers will appreciate that it takes less than 5 minutes to prepare (just cook in microwave, pour sauce and mix) and is available in five different varieties, including Totally Teriyaki Sugar Snap Peas, Sunny Honey Orange Carrot Coins, Threezy Cheezy Broccoli Bites, Lemon Butter Blast Broccoli Bites and Pizzalicious Broccoli Bites (yes, pizza and broccoli, and kid-testers loved it!).

Disney Garden Quick Snacks: Fruits and veggies paired with dips, like carrots and light ranch dressing, or celery and peanut butter. Additional lunch box options include fresh veggies and fruits cut and ready to eat in small individual bags. Choose from sliced apples, carrots, celery or sugar snap peas. Simply packaged and easy to open, Disney Garden Quick Snacks offer a healthier alternative to potato chips or French fries at lunchtime and make a great after-school treat.

Grocers are also bringing Disney magic and innovation to the produce aisle with My Size Minis - kid-sized fruits in fun, recyclable/reusable totes filled with fresh apples, pears, peaches, plums, nectarines or oranges. The "Minis" are smaller than their regular-sized counterparts, making them the perfect size for a child.

For the Halloween season, Disney Garden will offer Pirates pumpkins with large collectible stickers, plus carving ideas available for download on the Disney Garden website (www.disneygarden.com).

For more information, parents, kids and caregivers can visit www.disneygarden.com. The website offers activities, games and reward certificates designed to educate kids about healthier eating.

 

[MasterShake]

Well, I’m 6’ 1 “and I weigh 270lbs. When I was in high school I was very fit and I played a lot of sports. My Weight was around 225-230 in high school so I think I have a naturally heavy build. All that being said I am at least 30-50 pounds overweight, but not so heavy that I can’t play sports, run, or have trouble fitting on rides. My personal opinion is that most overweight people do not have health issues causing them to be overweight. With most people (like myself) a little exercise and a lot of self control is the key to being thinner.

At the same time many of the posts have been a little harsh on this thread. Some people on this thread seem to have a genuine dislike/hatred for people that are heavier. I don’t see why it should matter to so many what another person looks like.

I don’t agree 100% with the future health care cost argument. There are very few people that can say they have no negative vises or traits that can cause some sort of health issues in life. Any of the following traits/habits can increase the costs of health care; Smoking, type A personalities, excessive drinking, high stress, drug use, obesity, extreme sports and so on. Genetics have been proven to be a huge factor in someone’s overall health. Some day we will be able to easily identify the genes that cause the increased likelihood of many maladies. Should we blame rising health care costs on people that choose to procreate with others that have these faulty genes? Let’s be honest health care costs are astronomical because of the current health care system.

My opinion is that is someone is overweight that is their business. No one should feel sorry for them, but no one should really hate them for it either. If someone is overweight and they can’t fit through a turnstile and they throw a fit, guess what, they are a jerk. Who cares about the fact that they are fat?

I don’t think there is a single person on this forum that dislikes the possibility of having more choices at Disney. But I doubt many would want to see any of the current choices that are available go away. Sorry for the long post…..

 

[KeeKee]

Master Shake, you make a great deal of sense. Thanks for bringing balance back to the discussion.

 

[LeeLee D]

... Do people really point at overweight guests?

Yes, they do. I was sitting at the fountain in front of The American Adventure at EPCOT. A teenager with a tour group looked at me, elbowed his friend, pointed and they both started laughing, puffing their cheeks and putting their hands in front of their stomachs like they were shaking a fat belly.

I said, very loudly, "yea, I'm fat, so what!". Their group leader grabbed them and went in the building.

Not my most mature moment:hammer:, I know, but it gets to me sometimes. I wasn't bothering anyone, I was just sitting and enjoying the day.

I have been reading all the posts from folks who think they know why overweight people are that way. I may be overweight, but I'm not dumb. I know that eating too much (and/or the wrong things) and not being very active is why I am overweight. But have those of you whose post show thinly veiled (no pun intended) disgust for the overweight ever stop to consider why someone like me eats too much? Have you ever paused to think about the damage that may have been done so that their only source of comfort/stress relief/friendship is food?

I'm not making excuses for myself nor am I upset because people express their opinions, I guess I just wish that we could all give eachother a break and live and let live.

 

[awalkinthepark]

I think gluten is a big problem for many many overweight people whose doctors have never considered celiac sprue because they aren't underweight even though they probably suffer many of the other symptoms. I think low carb diets worked for a lot of people because they had an undiagnosed gluten intolerance.

I thought that I had a thyroid issue ...my test came back fine so the doctor offered to prescribe prozac and a diet drug instead(I declined)....gluten was never even mentioned...I stumbled across an article on celiac sprue and cut out gluten...I lost 30 pounds in 2 weeks, felt better, looked better and very happy that I did not allow the doctor to medicate me. Now when I accidentally eat gluten I get a rash, I bloat, I get headaches, I feel like my stomach is being stabbed....

I think we need to rethink that food pyramid...following those recommendations are making some people very sick.

Just an FYI:

Weigh gain is not always cause because of food choices or laziness:

In addition to thyroid disease causing excessive weight gain,
http://www.medem.com/medlb/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=zzzdmmpx77c&sub_cat=501
hormonal imbalance,
http://www.safemenopausesolutions.com/hormoneimbalance.html
and polycystic ovary syndrome can all cause excessive weight gain.
http://www.revolutionhealth.com/articles/?id=article.2006-11-15.9315258916&s_kwcid=polycystic%20ovary%20syndrome|867257574

Many medications also cause excessive weight gain.

Insulin and other diabetic drugs cause weight gain.
Antidepressants,Antihistamines, Birth control pills, sleep aids, migraine med's, and steroids even in small amounts such as used for a sinus infection or given in epidurals to help manage back pain as well as many other meds can cause
excessive weight gain.
Please do judge because you really do not know unless you have their medical history in front of you why a person may be overweight.


Just my 2 cents

 

[LoriMistress]

LoriMistress is keepin' it real, y'all.

Okay, I haven't really commented much on this subject matter, because I knew this was going to be a heated debate. But I felt like commenting. Personally, I'm on both sides, (I've been fat and skinny/thin before), so I know what it's like to be over-weight/fat.

I don't care if Disney changes their rides to be more "spacious" because Disney has to accept the fact if they want more money, they will have to adjust to the increase climbing change that there are more over-weight/fat people in America. Disney has always been about adapting to change.

Like I wrote previously, "I've been fat and skinny/thin before" and I guess you can say that I'm fat/over-weight now. I think a lot (not all, obviously), of people who are over-weight/fat and continue to be over-weight/fat are that way because of psychological issues. Then their health turns to s***. Their body cannot take the poor food intake and cannot handle the extra weight. So they become diabetic, or it's difficult for them to clime stairs, constant aches/pains, etc. On Jan 1st I made a New Year's Resolution (which I normally don't do, because I figured I would break it.), but I made a promise that I would start losing weight and be at least three dress sizes down by December for our WDW vacation. At that time I was basically, a size 18 (my highest.) I was tired of looking at every picture and feeling ashamed and hating myself in every picture I was in. I wanted to take control of my life. No one can lose the weight for me; I had to take action. So far, I'm a size 14 and I'm getting close to being a size 12. This is a big step for me, since I've been dieting for several years now; and this time I've been making it stick. Despite of all the bad things that has happened to us this year (we lost our home to a fire, stress with family, life, etc.), instead of throwing my hands up in the air and giving up (like I normally do), I kept my resolution and I've been losing weight. I'm extremely proud of myself, because the weight is finally staying off. The weird part about it is when I go to WDW, I will be thinner then our last visit in 2003! Even though, I was over-weight/fat back on our last visit at WDW, I was still able to fit all the rides with basically no issues.

I normally don't tell personal things about my life, but I felt like telling everyone my weight loss struggle is because most people are going through the same thing that I am. And so far, I feel great! I'm actually starting to pull clothes out of drawers/closet that I haven't worn in years! I guess the point I'm trying to make is that even though, I've been fat (and still struggling to not be fat), I know what it's like to not feel good about yourself and trying to hide from the cameras. Nobody wants to be ridiculed because of their appearance, race, religion, etc. But you have to remember that anyone (regardless if you have any medical conditions), there are ways for people to lose weight. It's up the the individual if you're willing to put the time and effort into getting your health/life back.

 

[SeaBreeze]

I'm thrilled with the menu choices WDW has today. I have to be very careful with what I eat because there's a ton of things that make me very sick (I've gone through a lot of unpleasant tests to figure out what's wrong with me, yuck) and I used to not be able to eat at all in the parks. We'd have to leave, eat some sort of lunch that I brought from home and then go back. Now I can actually eat in the parks (both CS and TS) and not have to worry. I've also been able to find things on menus just about everywhere so I'm no longer a hassle for my friends and family. Hooray for that!

As for some of the remarks I've seen on this thread: someone pointed out that bigger people can be healther and smaller people unhealthy. Amen. I'm small and look like the pinnacle of good health but as I just said, I'm not very healthy. There are a lot of people bigger than I am in much better shape. My mom has had a life long struggle with her weight (her entire family has actually) and I know she gets more exercise than me. She also eats about 1/2 of what I eat. You'll never see her with anything unhealthy either. You'll also never see her pitch a fit about suing Disney because of her size... that's just a ridiculous person there. However, I've seen the looks she gets and it breaks my heart. She's an amazing person and people should only see that. I apologize to anyone else who has had the rude encounters that my mom has had.

Sorry for the long post :wave:

 

[Montyboy]

There are indeed many obese people that go to Disney World.

Perhaps...just perhaps, they go to get away from their daily lives where they are told every day how fat they are.

Maybe...just maybe, some of them go to Walt Disney World to escape from the pointing fingers, and the snide remarks they get every day back home, and they just want to go on a vacation to a magical place where they won't be judged by their size, but instead by their smiles and kind words.

People don't go to Disney World to get fat, but some people go to Disney World to forget that they ARE fat, and they just want to feel the same magical feelings that the "Normal" people feel...if only for a few wonderful days.

I kind of... just kind of, think heavy people need vacations also.

 

[MS&S Fan]

Some good points brought up by all. However, I must agree that WDW having a healthier menu will not stop obeisity. Just because Disney offered a healthy only menu do you think that obese people are gonna have a lifechanging revalation and suddenly realize that they have been "Unhealthy" all this time and will go home thinner and continue to lose weight on their newfound healthy diet? Some people are fine with being obese and do not think they need to change. from the outside looking in it seems that some of the posters want disney to customize a menu for their taste and hide behind the cause of fighting obesity. if you can't find something sutible to eat at WDW it's not like you don't have options in the Orlando area (Grocery stores and other resturants) Lots of the rooms have fridges so you could stock up on something you like. It's sad that some of you guys feel that because people are different than you, they don't deserve the same expierence at WDW. WDW is supposed to be the happiest place on Earth and accepts everybody big and small. I love WDW and I have the same build as they Poster above 6'1, 270. I walk at least 2-3 miles a day and work out at least 3 times a week and I will not let some of you make me feel like I don't belong at WDW because of my size. I'm sorry for the rant but this subject has struck me all wrong although I know the OP had Good intentions, and to the Lady that used WDW as an incentive to loose weight and succeded I say Great job and keep up the good work.