It's an interesting study in diet vs. lifestyle.

For awhile, my roommate and I in Eugene would bike *everywhere* (not a car between us) but eat out for virtually every meal. Red Bull and a bagel every morning for breakfast, super-oily quesadillas with chicken, salsa, sour cream and soda, some kind of snack, then chinese or some kind of salad, soup or lasagne for dinner, in relatively large portions. I had a regular checkup with my Dr. (blood tests and the works) and my cholesterol levels were low, my blood pressure on the low end of 'normal' and my 'resting' heart rate around 74 (It's always been a little fast)

Fast forward a few months, when I move and start taking my car everywhere, eating the same stuff, but just driving- sadly never taking my bike to work because I had the car.

I gained 15#, lost all my endurance, and though I don't have any way to 'prove' it, I'm sure my cholesterol/bp went up as my heart started skipping beats again.

I'm back to my pre-move weight and muscle mass, but it really 'laid it out' for me... the traditional bacon 'n eggs, sausage, gravy, biscuits 'n fried tatties came about and were very practical for those getting up and feeding/milking the cows as the sun rose, then having breakfast before heading back into the field to sow/bale/fork/fertilize/harvest. It was a time when people worked HARD and burned enough calories to be thin and wiry despite the huge caloric uptake...

Now, with our sedentary work and home lives, we find ourselves craving the soul-mending foods of our predecessors (come on, what's more soothing than a creamy thai soup with coconut milk and ginger or a morning-after breakfast of biscuits and gravy, with eggs and bacon?) but our lifestyles just can't process it...

I'm a person who will order the biggest entree I can for the lowest price and just take what I need/want and box the rest. I'm with Mimi- if I'm trapped at work, darn straight I'll want a good lunch.