Just a curious question... based off of a substitute teacher in my career prep class.

Anyways... apart from reading us our assignment and doing the roll call... the only things she talked about with us was about weight loss, dieting, calories, and exercise.

She told us how she lost 90 lbs, and how she bikes 11 miles every day.

Don't get me wrong... that is AWESOME. I really admire her for that. She's not a spring chicken young either... it's an amazing achievement...

HOWEVER... when she starts talking about how all of us WILL gain the "Freshman Fifteen" when we get to college, how we NEED to start exercising, asking us if we're doing anything to burn off calories of something we ate/will eat, etc... talking about calorie counting, carb counting, telling us that losing weight was awesome for her, etc... and nothing else... for two class periods straight...

I'm sorry... but... does it really become the centerpoint of your conversations? Has it become that for you guys? I just think that in our career prep class... talking about businesses, restaurants, partnerships, etc... she would have something other than dieting and exercise to talk about...

Not a rant or a vent at all... simply a curious question...

it would never become a focal point for me on a job or if I was trying to take a class. In personnal conversations it might be more of an issue to discuss but I repeat NEVER in my life as a professional.

I am actively trying not to talk about it as much. I work with three women and three of the four of us are dieting. I'm sure the other one wants to smack us.

It's hard not to talk about it when it's on your mind so much. I try really hard not to go on and on, but I know that I've gotten boring and all I talk about is food.

Sadly I do bring it up a lot. I try not to but since I put so much time and effort into it and it's on my mind all the time it tends to come out in conversation. If I'm talking to someone I haven't talked to in awhile I almost always update them on my weight loss. Some of them love to hear about it but I can tell others get annoyed. Oh well.

I understand being very proud and excited but unless your job is "motivational speaker" or "weight loss guru" it shouldn't be the main topic of conversation at work.
Maybe you could gently direct her to a weight loss forum site so she can get it out of her system

I talk about dieting and weight loss when it is brought up or with others who I know are going through the same battle of the bulge I am.

I talk about it a lot. I don't know why she is talking about it in class and being preachy- that should stay out of the workplace- but when you lose a large amount of weight, you spend a lot of energy and effort and thought on weight loss.. it can be consuming..it can sometimes be all you think about. Sometimes you can't help but talk about weight a lot.

Thanks guys. I'm not at that point yet (with only 4 pounds down)... but I can't help but wonder how much it will consume my life... if at all.

Unfortunately, today was her last day as our sub. So... not much else I can say to her/talk to her about...

Oh well... I just found it interesting...

I don't bring it up but if someone else does I become hard to shut up.

I find the topic absolutely fascinating from a variety of angles.

Absolutely because it's LIFE CHANGING!

Maybe she didn't have a lesson plan to go off of? I agree it was totally out of place for a business class. I talk about my weight loss efforts to exactly one person, a very dear friend of mine, but I didn't bring it up first to her even. She began WW and started talking about it. We talk about it often since, but I never even bring it up with my boyfriend, sister, other friends, family. It is extremely personal to me, and I just don't want anyone elses input, suggestions, ideas, or judgement when it comes to weight.

It's hard to judge the situation without being there.

When I was in high school, subs rarely had a background in the subject they were subbing in, so we either ended up chatting with the sub and each other, or using the time as a study hall while the sub read a book.

There are all sorts of people who have one-track minds or intense passions that come out at every opportunity. Way back in high school, my homeroom teacher talked endlessly about the military (he still had a military buzz cut, thirty years out of the military).

I know I've gone through passion jags. Thankfully I'm out of the unicorn phase (freshman year in highschool and maybe a smidge into sophomore year, but in college I met a dorm mate in college who was deeply into unicorns - I never saw so many unicorn t-shirts in my life. And if she wasn't talking about unicorns, she was talking about Dungeons & Dragons).

People talk about what they're interested in, and no matter what your passion, it's hard to grasp sometimes that the whole world isn't as fascinated by a subject as you are.

I think that was a really weird tangent for her to go off into considering the situation, but I imagine she feels like she has finally "seen the light" and wants to shout from the rooftops to anyone she feels like she can help to see how great health and fitness can feel. Again, weird though!

I wouldn't say that I talk about "weight loss" a lot, but I do end up talking about great recipes I tried or ways to make simple meals healthier. One co-worker is very actively interested in health and weight loss so we chat sometimes. My other co-workers are heavy themselves, so I tend not to bring it up with them, unless I'm talking about something tasty I made.

I remember when I lost weight the first time, I saw that movie - "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" and one of the ways was to tell him every day everything you ate that day. Haha - well my poor boyfriend because at the end of every day I would tell him everything I ate. I didn't lose him (and he really never seemed to mind) but it did make me realize that I was talking about it way too much. So now I talk less about it and try to just git er done.