Don T Blame The Eater Short Essay 1

Ashley C Muench
Dr. Andrew Pisano
English 101-10
January 28, 2015
It’s Not Just the Shakes
David Zinczenko argues in his short essay “Don’t Blame the Eater” that he has personal experience in the “helplessness” of gaining weight due to lack of options in the fast food industry. Zinczenko makes a strong argument that there are overwhelming amounts of fast food restaurants and deceiving calorie counts in the industry. Although constantly eating unhealthy will certainly play a role in weight gain, Zinczenko takes for granted that diet is not the only factor. His essay does not go far enough and leaves out the fact that diet and fitness are mutually dependent and you cannot address one without the other. Zinczenko is deceptive himself when describing the “deceptiveness” in calorie counts and unrightfully making it seem as though there are no healthy choices in fast food.
Zinczenko argues that fast food restaurants are deceiving and that even the seemingly healthy choices on the menu have calorie counts through the roof. In his essay, he discusses a chicken salad with almonds and noodles as 340 calories, but the salad dressing increases it to a shocking 1040 calories, then tops that off with a 450 calorie Coke. An easy fix to that meal plan would be simply using only the necessary amount of dressing, not the given amount, because the dressing doubles the calorie count of the meal. Secondly, there should be an emphasis of the empty calories consumed in both the 700 calorie dressing and the 450 calorie Coke. An empty calorie is the calories added in foods and beverages that add calories but provide no vitamins or minerals. If this person replaces the soda with a water and uses only the needed amount of dressing, not only would they decrease their calorie intake by over 600 calories, they would also increase their metabolic rate. In order for your body to process calories you must be fully hydrated and sodas coincidentally act as a dehydrate.
Zinczenko is ridiculous to write a paper about weight gain without also stressing the importance of fitness. Studies show that your metabolism increases when you build muscle. There is a 2/6 ratio of fat to muscle in your metabolic rate, meaning your body will burn calories three times faster for each pound of muscle you obtain. If a typical “latchkey” kid learned how to avoid the empty calories in fast food meals and practiced simple weight training and or aerobic fitness, they in time would boost their metabolism and lose the extra pounds racked on. A healthy lifestyle is not just about where you eat, as Zinczenko argues: it is about the choices you make and taking the initiative to be an all-around healthy person -- diet and exercise included.
I too like Zinczenko have experience dealing with the unavoidability of fast food restaurants. Growing up it seemed like all of the “cool kids” went out to eat together. After football games everybody went to McDonalds, before school on Fridays everybody went to BoJangles and before the Basketball games we would all meet up at Pizza Hut. I never indulged in fast food growing up, but I immediately saw changes in my body after consuming these high fat/low nutrition meals. I always had a very active lifestyle playing nearly two sports at all times, but I realized it was inevitable to gain weight with the food choices I made. So I changed my diet, drank water instead of soda and chose salads and apple slices instead of hamburgers and fries. I saw changes in my body almost immediately.
Zinczenko’s essay lacked the complexity it needed in order to argue persuasively the relationship between fast food and weight gain. In conclusion, no matter what the circumstances are, there are always methods for controlling your weight. Drinking water and exercising are two easy ways to raise your metabolism, resulting in more calories burnt even when you are not exercising. If you cut out sodas and extra dressing you will cut out unnecessary calories in your diet that are not contributing to your health. People need to take responsibility for their bodies and stop blaming fast food restaurants for their weight gain: like Zinczenko said it’s “like middle-aged men suing Porsche for making them get speeding tickets.”