Are Your Friends Making You Fat?

You can't deny it: the people we spend our time with undoubtedly have a say on how we conduct ourselves, and certainly how we treat our bodies. If you feel that you are overweight and are trying your hardest to get rid of unwanted pounds or embrace a healthier lifestyle, you may find yourself struggling when you're around your friends. This can be a difficult situation to deal with, but can be overcome if you understand why your friends could be adding to your worries.

Peer Pressure

Do you often go to restaurants when you spend time with your friends? What do they order? Social situations can oftentimes feel like appropriate times to have a "cheat day," and break from your diet. Why?—because we don't like to break from the group. If your friends are all eating pizza and beer, it's hard to order a grilled chicken salad and water. Friends can knowingly pressure you into "being part of the group" as well. The fact of the matter is, however, if you are serious about practicing a healthy lifestyle, you will forego the peer pressure. If you feel uncomfortable around your friends for this reason, perhaps you should bring it up with them—you certainly don't want a diet to ruin your relationship, but explaining to them how important it is for you to get healthy and reach your goals could ease up on the pressure and allow your decisions to be made stress-free.

Sedentary Buddies

Perhaps not every one of your friends is active or likes sports, and that's okay. We each make our decisions based on what is important to us. However, if spending time with your friends means embracing their sedentary lifestyle, being overweight should not come as a surprise to you. How do you battle this? One idea is to bring it up. As you can imagine, many people are insecure and uncomfortable talking about their weight or lifestyle—even with their closest of friends. Suggest going for a hike on a nice day instead of sitting in the house watching TV. Or perhaps suggest taking a dance class with a friend. There are a variety of activities that are both active and highly social. You may be surprised at how willing many of your friends will be to take these up—perhaps even because they share the same goals as you. This is an opportunity to get out and try new things with your friend, improving your relationship, while simultaneously getting off your bum and getting moving.

Whereas your friends could be a factor in your weight, the decision to get up and do something about your health is all up to you. A good friend will be supportive of your decisions and goals, and will not weigh you down if you take the time to discuss the lifestyle you want to live and how you wish to achieve it. Who knows, they may take up the same goals and you could both be in it together.