My Paris Trip
Wednesday, January 28th, 2009So I only worked out 2 days in France… the gyms there suck and it cost us 26 euro for a day pass at the club med gym, which was pretty gross. They did not even have free weights there! The nicer gym was 45 euro- we checked it out but decided our 45 euro was better spent in Sephora than in L’usine (means factory because it is built in an old factory).
French culture, in regards to exercise and food is very interesting to me. While I was there, I saw very few fat people. However, in the locker room at the gym, I saw that these skinny women probably had bodyfat percentages of 30 or higher. It was wall-to-wall cellulite and pancake butts. I should not be so critical though. The women in the locker room are some of the few Parisians that participate in an exercise regimen at all. (Only in France for 10 days, I did not make it outside of Paris, but I hear that cycling is huge in the countryside.) Most of the women didn’t use any of the weight machines, except for the seated adductor machine and a twisty ab machine that I am assuming works your obliques but I haven’t ever seen one in the U.S. The men weren’t much better.
Parisians walk everywhere and don’t eat huge portions! People in cities walk a lot more than people in the suburbs, but I think Parisians probably walk more than people in U.S. cities. Furthermore, the French do eat a lot of cheese, butter, and bread. BUT, by "a lot" I mean at almost every meal. I don’t mean giant, super-sized portions of bread and cheese. Anyway you cut it, Parisians, don’t eat very many calories, and burn off a lot of calories through daily physical activity. There is no doubt that this accounts for the obesity rate being lower in France than in the U.S (even though both rates are on the rise).
If only diet and exercise were all there is to health! A person can’t be healthy and be a smoker! It’s just not possible. I saw 13 year olds smoking outside of their schools on a break and with their parents! It seems to be perfectly socially acceptable in Paris for teenagers to smoke. This also might explain why so many of the middle-aged women were really really wrinkled. Of course, smoking is on the rise again in the U.S., so we are not much better, although smoking is much less socially acceptable here.
While in France, I ate a ton of bread, walked a fair amount, and did resistance training only 2 times. I didn’t smoke, and aside from my sister’s birthday dinner where I consumed a bottle of wine over several hours, I only had 1 glass of wine with lunch one day, and 2 cafe corettos during the trip. I lost 4 lbs. I went from 117 and 17% bodyfat to 113 and 17% bodyfat. Do the math, and you see I lost muscle. What did I learn? I learned to adopt a more French attitude toward eating… I have always believed that food is meant to be enjoyed, but the French REALLY believe this. Also, it’s easy to NOT binge on cheese and bread when you know you are going to see it again in just a few more hours, and a little bread won’t make you fat or big. Also, I learned just how important it is to be active in your daily life. I already knew this but never imagined I would actually lose weight while in France just from walking. How to apply this concept in southern California where we drive everywhere might requires some thinking. On the flip side, I learned I have to do resistance training, and do it regularly, if I want to achieve and maintain a lean and toned physique. And of course, no smoking… I’ll get my wrinkles from the sun! 
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