Good Body Buddies

Friendship and Women's Health

Shaping Your Waistline?

If your best friend has a very healthy diet, you are five times as likely to have a very healthy diet yourself.
--Vital Friends by Tom Rath

You Are Who You Eat With

In his book Vital Friends, Tom Rath describes the story of Rebecca, a colleague who gained 15 pounds when she was dating a former competitive wrestler. Her eating patterns changed and started to mirror his extreme diet--loading up on carbs and junk food one day then starving himself for two to loose the weight. While he ate nothing for two days, Rebecca ate her normal diet then joined him in a junk loaded day. And while this was happening, Rebecca didn't think much about how her boyfriend's diet was influencing hers.

The happy ending is that once Rebecca started dating someone new who was more health conscious she adjusted and was eating healthy and exercising regularly. She lost 20 pounds.

Your Best Friend's Diet and Exercise

Asking one group of people about their diet and their best friend's diet, those who said their best friend has a very healthy diet were more than five times as likely to have a very healthy diet themselves (compared to people whose best friends have an average diet).

Of all the people asked, among those who had a best friend who was not physically active, not one was very physically active themselves.

Your best friend might literally be shaping you.