WTF? Most of my friends are skinny as hell. Even got a vegetarian in the group. What the hell happened to me?

A couple of years ago on St. Patrick's Day my friends introduced me to Irish Car Bombs. I've since gained 5 pounds. Stupid alcohol.

I find this somewhat off as well.

a better link might be that if you're fat, your wife/GF/husband/BF is probably fat. It makes sense, simply becaue when you're with someone, you both eat the same meals, chow the same snacks, etc.

about 6 years ago I put myself on a very strict diet and lost 70 lbs. When I was finally "skinny-ish" for the first time in my life, I got a lot of dates. When I started seriously dating my GF, the diet went out the window... too many meals out for dates, snacks, etc. We both gained a lot of weight since then.

If I had been with someone who was a health freak, I'd probably still be thinner. Peer pressure obviously has something to do with appearance... if everyone around you eats loads of crap, you're going to fit right in. If someone looked at you crosseyed for touching an extra piece of candy, you might think twice about indulging.

Oddly enough, I used to be overweight along with my parents. As I started dropping weight, they did as well.

Try Sake Bombs. Same concept, but you use Sapporo and sake, obviously. You place the shotglass of sake on top of two chopsticks placed over the glass of beer, slam your fist on the table or bar to knock the sticks out of position to let the shotglass drop into the main glass. Then chug. Same kind of drunk, but low cal compared to the Irish version.

Also, fat people have fewer friends.

/runs away

If you want creamy-goodness in the middle, stick with Oreos.

Mmmmmmm... Skinny people...

When I was with my ex I gained 10lbs during around 7 months. When I met her she was almost rail thin but during those 7 months she quickly gained 40lbs. We were like fat catalysts to each other. It's not as romantic as it sounds.

Actually, from what I read in the article, that's actually what these researchers are suggesting. The argument goes: People don't necessarily look to their spouses or their siblings for social behavioral cues, they look to their closest friends. You don't get to choose your family, and to a certain extent you can believe that you don't choose who you fall in love with (the whole opposites attract thing). But you do choose your close friends, and those bosom buddies usually mirror your thought patterns about life, and vice versa, more so than spouses or siblings. Thus, obese people are selecting best friends who are more likely to mimic their own thoughts about beauty and health, not to mention their eating tendencies and fitness preferences - thus those close friends are more likely to become obese themselves. (Notice in the video that the non-obese people tended to cluster together just as much, as long as they had no obese close friends.)

Dammit, I've been infected! Everyone, save yourselves! It's already too late for me...

This study is bulls**t to me. I was fat long before I had any friends. It's sad to say that, but it's true.

Hmm. I wonder if you can catch thin too.

also, please don't eat me

actually that was my point in my previous post. you can certainly 'catch thin.' but not in a 'oops, i accidentally lost 10 lbs' sense. but if you look at the whole generation of girls who idolize the unhealthy model-skinny look and developed all sorts of eating disorders. all that happened because of they are surrounded by images of super thin people.

I think if you're the minority in your group of friends, you will probably naturally emulate them no matter what the vice or activity is...

Then again, I got fat the old-fashioned way... I got married.

Ramen.