7 Surprising Reasons Why Obesity is Socially Contagious: How to Flip the Script

1. Bad Influence

If your friends continually blow off the gym for happy hour and convince you to miss your workouts for social events, they are being a bad influence. But don’t worry, you do not need to get a whole new set of friends just yet. Share your fitness and health goals and make them a part of this so they do not feel left out. Since obesity is contagious, if you practice this you can make fitness contagious instead!

2. Friends Share Similar Eating Patterns

Did you ever notice that you order the same appetizer as your bestie? Or maybe you both have the same food quirks? That is because friends share similar eating patterns. This is a good thing if you all order salad when you go out on the town and a bad thing if you can name 15 of your favorite burger styles. To stay on track, try new, healthier meals or better yet, prepare them at home so you can control the ingredients and fat content! Check out some healthy recipe ideas to get started.

3. Friends Share Similar Habits

Your weekly Thursday night outing ends with several drinks and a late night to bed. It is tough to miss a scheduled women's night out with your friends without upsetting them. This is especially the case if it is to get to bed early for an early morning workout the next day. So how do you combat your weekly routine without ditching your friends? Explain your goals to them and suggest trying something different like bowling, indoor rock climbing, or roller skating. You can still have a blast without packing on pounds.

4. Peer Pressure

So you and your best friend go for a dinner to catch up, and when the dessert menu comes and you wish to pass, she gives you the look that shows you she has only chocolate cake on her mind. You fall to the pressure and order a dessert to share, but then you feel guilty the rest of the night. This peer pressure is common among friends, so you need to get on the same page and choose a healthier version of the indulgent dessert for future outings!

5. Exercise Alike

Look around at your circle of friends and compare your fitness levels. They are probably similar. That is because most friends exercise alike. You can find serious runners that are friends with other committed runners; the same goes for other sports. So make some fit friends at racing events and invite your existing circle to join in. Set a fit circle so you can motivate one another!

6. Learning Acceptable Body Size

If you can share your skinny jeans with your friends and trade tops, you are not alone. Studies show that people of similar body shape hang out together. This is not always true, but it is in most cases, because people learn acceptable body size from whom they surround themselves with. If all your friends are overweight by 20 pounds, all of a sudden it is accepted. A landmark study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that a person's chances of becoming obese increased by 57% if they had a friend who became obese. Set up a weight loss competition with your friends so that you can all better your health together!

7. Attitude is Everything

If you spend every opportunity to relax with your friends and de-stress, you may notice food becomes a large player in these sessions. And your approach to adversity becomes surrounded by food, rather than addressing the problem. Your attitude and approach to life is everything, so get positively healthy and spread the message to your friends!

Quick Ways to Make Fitness Contagious

Healthy vs. Socially Contagious Habits

So now that you know how 'birds of a feather flock together,' are you ready to change your life with your friends? Become a leader and spread the message of health and fitness to your social circle so you can all make the most out of your life together!