I'm going to get raked over the coals - but here goes...

Not including genuine metabolic disorders and things out of our control...

I really shiver when I hear people, mainly women, who are overweight say, "Oh it's OK because I like myself." Then they complain because airlines make them purchase two seats. Or XX sizes cost more. Oh, God forbid, they have to use stairs because the escalator isn't working. It isn't politically correct to point out that a few less Big Macs and a few laps around the track might be a good idea.

Here's the bottom line (pun intended.)

It doesn't affect just the overweight people, it affects all of us in terms of strain on the health care system which we all pay for. When a smoker gets lung cancer, we all point to their bad health habits. When an overweight person has a heart attack (diabetes, cancer, arthritis, etc.), it is not politically correct to point out that they probably bear as much responsibility as the smoker for their health problems.

Health care premiums are skyrocketing and experts agree that most of our health problems are preventable with lifestyle alteration. I, for one, am becoming resentful of paying for people too lazy to get to the gym or too undisciplined to make a salad rather than call out for pizza.

Lots of my friends are overweight. I still love them and I don't harp on their weight problems. They know that if (when) they decide to make the change, they can come to me for support. They also know that they can't complain to me about how hard it is to find a cute skirt in their size.

OK - let the flame wars begin! But I won't be here - I'm going to the gym.