Can Relationships Make You Gain Weight?
Nothing makes you fat overnight. Weight gain comes from several factors such as lack of exercise or over eating the wrong foods. But there is no denying that when you have found “the one,” you tend to get comfortable. It starts by you realizing you can be yourself around this person. Then you notice you don’t alway have to dress up around them and can bum it out, and they still love you the same. And of course, after a while, you start skipping salads and get to eating what you really want, which can be anything, good or bad.
Think about it. The premise of dating is surrounded by food. When you go out on a date, you are both deciding where to eat. The more you hangout with each other, the more meals you will share together. Nothing is wrong with that as we all need food, but when you are with your partner, you are more likely to treat yourself. Then all of a sudden, your cheat meals become cheat days that become cheat weeks and so on.
We are all guilty of it. I know my significant other and I definitely bond over our love of food. Personally, we are big Taco Bell fantastics, which we all know isn’t great for you, but is delicious. So if you are surrounding yourself swith someone you feel comfortable around and accept, you are going to be more inclined to order whatever you want without thinking of the after effects. And if you aren’t a declined gym rat or nutrition expert, it is easy to get caught up and gain what some call the “relationship 15.”
A new survey of 2,000 people by Up4 Probiotics revealed the ways their romantic relationships affected their overall health and fitness. A few highlights were that 49 percent of people who dated someone unhealthy said they were more inclined to eat junk food compared with 67 percent of people who dated someone healthy who said they ate healthy food. Another 44 percent admitted to gaining weight while dating someone less healthy than themselves. And 38 percent of the people with an unhealthy partner said they overeat now more than before they were in a relationship.
These stats are not surprising. And this isn’t to body shame anyone at all. Everyone looks good no matter their shape or size as long as they are healty. However, we can all admit we know a couple who isn’t as fit as they used to be. Besides getting older, another reason could be their partner and his or her impact.
If you are single, don’t let this stop you from getting serious with someone. And if you are taken, please don’t kick your partner to the curb or throw blame on them. Instead, acknowledge if you have gained a little weight. Then together, think of what you can do to lose it. May be it is cooking at home more and meal prepping for one another. Another option is getting a gym membership and actually pushing each other to go a few times a week. Just like gaining the weight happened over time, the same will go for losing it. It won’t happen overnight, but if you both stick to it you can do. While you and your partner should still enjoy going out to eat on dates and loving food, it should be balanced with a little clean eating and sweat from time to time. Plus, losing weight with someone is so much more bearable than doing it alone. So yes, you can have your cake and eat it too — if and only if you two work it off later.
Born and raised in Northern Virginia, Christina aspires to be a public relations professional in a big city after graduation from James Madison University. In her free time when she’s not blogging away about dating and relationships, Christina loves to go shopping, watch Netflix and play with every puppy that crosses her path.