Weighty issues

About a year ago, my girlfriend got a job in a small office. She works with two other women who are both very heavy. Since then, my girlfriend has put on at least 30 lbs. My question is, does being around people who are overweight contribute to another person gaining weight?

why don't you ask her? ultimately she's the one who put on weight and she's the only one who can figure out the real reasons she's gained weight. if you can have a conversation with her about while being tactful and noncritical, you may actually help her address the issue. with that said, weight is a very touchy subject with women so tread lightly. also be aware that most women have periods where their weight fluctuates for many reasons. again, she'd know better than anyone else.

Indeed, being around skinny people can make people feel fat, therefore they lose weight to fit in more. I suppose it could work the other way round...

It is possible that she didn't notice her weight increasing because of the heavy women she works with.

It could be just working in an office, since a lot of people put on weight when they work at a desk.

I don't think just working with people that are overweight could cause someone to gain 30 pounds in a year.

What is your girlfriend doing differently? Is she not getting as much exercise since starting this office job?

Is she changing her eating habbits?


I know when I was younger one of the biggest things that would cause me to gain 30 pounds in a year was drinking alcoholic drinks.....partying..... and not getting enough aerobic exercise to burn off the extra calories. I have never been a big sweets eater. I crave the chips, soda, junk food / empty calories. Anyways, put me in an office environment and here come the extra pounds.

Maybe you can start packing healthy lunches for your girlfriend.......or after work take her out jogging for some exercise.

I dont think its bc she is working with fat people. Maybe she does not get as much work-out with her new job - meaning - i was a server and I was running around everywhere then I got an office job and gained alot of weight.

I prefer honesty in a mate. So imo, be honest and ask if she's noticed the weight gain and how she feels. I mean, 30 lbs is at least 2 dress sizes, so I can't imagine she hasn't made note of it. Then ask her if she'd like to be more active over the summer (hiking, riding bikes, camping, etc.) and see if that makes a difference - being physical may improve her mood, if depression's an issue, and, of course, burns extra calories.

*eats sporkful of greasy spicy stir fried zucchini, eggplant, and tofu*

I was raised around obese people and it didnt affect me at all. If anything it make me more conscious of not becoming obese too. Maybe its because i saw how hard it was to deal with the self esteem issues and the health problems.

If she's putting on weight it could be to the lack of activity and eating more, possibly due to coping with the psychologically stressful job.

When I made the switch from retail to a job in a cubicle tied to a phone for 8hrs a day I gained around 68lbs. It was over two years... and my ex walked out on me for it. I've lost 36 of those pounds since and feel okay about myself. I know I gained the weight because of the combo of eating all the time, eating the wrong things and no exercise at all.

Be careful when you talk to her though... if you decide to talk to her at all.

Thanks to everyone for your great comments.

I love this site!

watch out for co-workers bringing copious treats to the office! It has deadly results.

30 lbs in a year is very unhealthy... this needs to be addressed...

I think it does. If I'm around people with bad habits its human nature to pick up on them.

And yes, 30 lbs is a lot of weight to gain. How is she dealing with it?

I actually read an epidemiology study many years ago that studied this very thing and found that people in a workplace with overweight people ended up becoming overweight themselves. That generally, overweight people grouped together in the workplace as a result.

However, as a personal anecdote, my workplace had quite a few overweight people when I joined it about six months ago, but we all made a concious decision to work out, eat better and lose weight and, as a group, have lost probably 100 pounds in that span of time.

So it can go both ways. If you're worried about your girlfriend's weight, or she wants to lose it, you could talk about maybe her starting a trend at her own workplace that way. Just a thought.