Having observed my fellow citizens in swimsuits at the beach this summer, I am certain this was no fluke. We deserved this distinction!
On the other hand, South Carolina still outweighed us, coming in at No. 9, even after they tightened their belts four notches. Last year they were No. 5. That seems to indicate that some of them really were hiking the Appalachian Trail last year while the rest were eating boiled peanuts and she-crab soup.
Mississippi is the reigning champ, and Alabama and Tennessee managed to tie for second place. Southern states dominate the list. We don't take our eating lightly.
Obviously.
Need to gain a few pounds? A trip on I-69 to I-81 from New Orleans to Baltimore might be a trip worth taking, just based on the shading of the obesity map below.
Maybe we can't educate, but we sure can masticate.
It seems just plain wrong, though, that Wisconsin didn't make the Top 10 after adding Krispy Kreme cheeseburgers to the State Fair menu last year. Maybe next year, Cheeseheads.
Georgia dropped from 14 to 17, an amazing feat with Paula Deen restauranting, magazining, teeveeing, and advertising calories galore non-stop. If the pounds she's passed along were money, we'd all be rich.
Oregon shrank 10 spots. Amazing! Could anything short of mass exodus do that? Nike is headquartered there. Maybe they said "Just DO it" and everybody did.
If you're going to New England and are sensitive about your weight, eat and go to the bathroom in Pennsylvania and don't get out of the car again until you get to Maine. You can stop in New York if you're desperate, I suppose, but the rest of the trip takes you through skinny states with skinny people.
Colorado was No. 51, the leanest state. It took me awhile to see how they managed that. I don't mean diet-wise, but where that extra state came into play. Seems the measuring committee included the District of Columbia on the list. DC came in at No. 49. Members of Congress must have emptied their pockets before they weighed in.
Colorado looks pretty skinny on the map and I think I know why.
New Englanders eat fish and chips and clam chowder, NC folks eat barbecue, Virginians love their ham, and Cajun food is big in Louisiana. So what do Coloradans eat? I did a little research and two foods popped up on several sites:
Green chili rellenos smothered with green chili (which probably runs through like the Colorado River) and Rocky Mountain Oysters.
Mountain oysters? Just how badly do you want to be thin?
When I moved back to TN from living in CO for 30 years, I was (and still am) astounded at the lack of interest in healthy/clean living. I never ate Rocky Mtn Oysters and very little green chili but I still never looked like the picture that is all too common in these parts: mom and dad, junior and sis waddling out of a fast food eatery with super-sized crap. Dad's gut hangs out over his over-sized droopy shorts. Mom's bare midriff is exposed because it's too big for a super small tee-strap to cover it. Kids are genuine replicas of mom and dad. They all have this weird pigeon toed walk, probably due to all the flab.
ReplyDeleteWhile that green chili may be responsible for a certain amount of weight loss most Folks in Colorado are simply more in tune to a healthy lifestyle.
One can't exercise in the fattest states. Either it's raining or too humid. Food is also comfort for midday big ole lunches in hot weather. People tend to be very irritable in the humidity. Plus the variety of produce here if awful. You can choose between collard greens, dead Mexican lettuce and cabbage. I live in Mississippi and seem to do okay but have to watch it. When I moved here from California I gained 25 lbs, like the next day. Srsly.
ReplyDeleteI don't worry about dieing from diabetes. Smoking and drinking will get me first. :)
I saw those Wisconsin doughnut-burgers...good lord!
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the fattest Canadian province is? I suppose I could get off my lazy arse and look that up.