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Why Europeans Are Thinner Than
Americans
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By Dusty Howard, Associate Editor and Featured Columnist

Back home from my last trip to Europe four years ago, I finally
knew the secret to why Europeans are thinner than we Yanks.

In Europe --The Netherlands and Spain for a round year
anniversary--- I remember the first time I knew this vacation
would require an adjustment of my head. I was in a small town
about to board a ferry. I was hungry because it was just before
8AM and I hadn't eaten before I left my hotel.

I satcheed up to the counter of a breakfast bar and asked for a
sandwich and a container of what looked like potatoes. The clerk,
friendly enough, gave me both. Only he didn't give me both the
sandwich and the potatoes. He carefully wrapped the container of
potatoes. He had assumed I would eat them later.

For a moment I thought about asking him to unwrap the container.
Then it hit me. This was part of the secret to why Europeans are
thinner. They eat smaller portions.

And for the rest of the trip, so did I.

Second revelation. I have never walked more than when I was in
Europe. I realized that here in the States, we may exercise
harder --in gyms. By in our everyday lives, we barely move.

It's not entirely our faults. Our cities are not built for walking.
Article Continues Below

Most of our downtowns are for work, not living. We live our lives
encased in air-conditioned cars on our way to air-conditioned
cubicles. We go from one plexiglass encasement to another
plexiglass encasement.

In Europe, cities came first with sidewalks and boulevards--and
stayed that way. Highways by and large were add-ons. There are
few if any "edge cities"-- you know the type. Clones upon clones
of pseudo made-for-business-only towns have sprung up way
outside of any metropolis, anchored by an office park or a mall,
existing for the sole purpose of providing a vessel to collect the
highway river of shopping Off Exit So-and-So, soul-less hodgepods
with no real center of sidewalk life at all.

America is a nation of drivers. We drive everywhere. My
brother-in-law once drove over to his neighbor's house--across
the street. We wear our cars like armor, protecting us in our safe,
hermetically-sealed, temperature-controlled encasements from
outside bombardments of noise and heat and cold --and people.

So, there it is. Small portions. And sidewalks. I can create the
smaller portions. But are there any city planners out there who
can build me some sidewalks?

By the way, here's the list of America's Fattest Cities, according
To Men's Fitness Magazine:

2007 RANKING         LAST YEAR
1. Las Vegas                2
2. San Antonio            12
3. Miami                      14
4. Mesa, AZ                 10
5. Los Angeles             3
6. Houston                   5
7. Dallas                      4
8. El Paso                    8
9. Detroit                    15
10. San Jose               24

The Top 10 Fittest Cities in 2007

2007 RANKING         LAST YEAR
1. Albuquerque            13
2. Seattle                      8
3. Colorado Springs      6
4. Minneapolis             21
5. Tucson                      4
6. Denver                    20
7. San Francisco          7
8. Baltimore                 1
9. Portland                  17
10. Honolulu                 2

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