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In February I maxed out at 223 lbs. I'd cut out the throw away cals of (however: what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas) martini's and Jameson's for New Years in prep for a needed diet that I knew had to kick in. Late Feb I started on South Beach and so far I have dropped 31 pounds. By the way "Large" Ian has been on a similar regime and may soon need to be called "Medium" but I digress........

I used to go to a movie and have medium popcorn/ no topping + M&M Peanuts or Goobers, and a can of Moxie: no more.

I now have a water and a packet of cashews.

Aside from saying "hey! I lost 31 pounds!" I ask you: has the low carb, obesity epedemic, Super Size, diet awareness shown up in the per caps?

Have you added low carb alternatives for people?

Anyone selling Jerky?

Those Chinese with their love of fried chicken feet at the movies (by the way: this is a true fact) were way ahead of us. Say what you want about barby fried chicken feet: I'll bet it's low fat and low carb.

While I joke: a 20% drop in baked goods is no joking matter if you bake. All you need to do is look at McD, etc. etc. to see that Atkins, etc. is no joke. A 20% drop in per person purchases at concession counters would not be good either. What say ye?

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Michael Hurley
Impresario

MODERATION and EXERCISE is the best way to maintain a heathy weight. My downfall each year are the trade shows, where even the exercise of walking the huge trade show floor doesn't burn off the extra calories from all the meals, candy, popcorn, nachos, etc. Usually takes me a month or so to lose the extra pounds.

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Customer Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, NY 14650-1922
Telephone: +1 585-477-5325 Cell: +1 585-781-4036 Fax: +1 585-722-7243
E-Mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

RE: The low carb craze, this TOO shall pass... John tells it like it is: a lifelong LIFESTYLE change is required to take it off, and more importantly, KEEP it off... Low carb is like all quick-fix diets, it can produce dramatic short term results, but they are transitory and will be lost unless your lifestyle changes to maintain what they start... Man is an animal who has, since the dawn of time, required a balanced diet and exercise to be healthy... Not eating certain foods is un-natural, and even vegan vegetarians have to find alternate sources of the protein they refuse to eat in the form of animal products...

Poorer nations and populations would starve if it weren't for carbs: grain and grain products are much more efficient and less expensive to raise than animals, and provide the bulk of their diet... Yet, in many instances, these same consumers of high carb diets are not overweight, and have far fewer ailments associated with being overweight than we do...

Potatoes, rice, pasta, and POPCORN contain LOTS of good stuff, and provide a high ratio of bulk/calories IF eaten in MODERATION and without a lot of fats, sauces, and other no-no's... Of course you need to balance them with other fresh fruits and vegetables, and some protein... And you need to put down that remote, get out of that recliner, and move that fat rear end around a bit, as well... Even more important, you gotta do it as a permanent everyday thing, to have LASTING results...

We both love and crave carbs, and can't feel complete for any extended period without them, so I'd bet the family jewels that Atkins, like every other quick-fix diet, will be a distant memory before long... Don't sell your popcorn machine, just offer a little smaller container, and get stingy with the toppings...

The only effect my diet has had on the concession stand is that I'm no longer stealing a Bagel Dog and an Ice Cream every day. Profits are up.

I have lost 28 lbs in 6-weeks. I did Weight Watchers and started jogging. I do about 2-miles per day. My biggest revelation at Weight Watchers was learning how I over ate.

I still have no self-control as I found out recently on my visit to Maine. I was fine while eating at home or at work. But I spent 4-days on the Lewis R. French a 140-year-old schooner. The meals were delicious and I ate double portions of everything. I gained 1.8 lbs that week.

Now I'm trying to lose 4-lbs before my trip to India next week so that I will have lost an even 30-lbs.

Weight Watchers is basically a calorie counting system. You can eat anything you want as long as you don't exceed you caloric intake for the day. They do recommend that you stick to the USDA food pyramid. That is eat carbohydrates, limit your meat & fat intake and bulk up on your fruits and vegetables. That and drown yourself in water.

This morning I had blueberry pancakes with fresh strawberries on top. For lunch I'm having a turkey sandwich with lots of vegetables and no mayonnaise. For dinner I'm taking out one of my managers for sushi. As you can see, I'm not avoiding the carbs.

But let me tell you a 3-ounce portion of meat looks pretty small. I try not to eat any meat bigger than a McDonald's regular hamburger patty.

Anyway, I'll see you in a month when I return from India, Nepal and Tibet. They say everybody loses weight over there.

I have been watching carbs since the first of the year. I lost 20 pounds the first three months and maintained my weight after that. I never did give up popcorn and still eat it every day.

I bought some low carb bars for the concession stand, but have sold only about six bars in three months--I ate all the rest!

I find that 3-4 low carb bars hits the spot................. just kidding.

I don't think low carb-low fat etc is a craze. The NIH says that obesity is a craze. Bottom line for me is is loosing the high carb-high fat iems from my diet works then I'm for it. Last night I had a bacon cheese burger HFB (hold the freakin' bun!)

We're in a relatively blue-collar, military area, for whatever that might be worth.

We haven't had any request for low-carb positioning at either our indoor or drive-in.
About the only thing I remember seeing around here was a brief experiment with canola popping oil... but that's all but gone from our market now.

The only concession I've made for any issue has been to add a couple of sugar-free candy items (rarely requested), and to make burger patties available, "HTB", as Mike put it... also rarely requested.

Matter of fact, double-burgers are up this year, as are pizza sales. Chicken is as strong as ever... as are nachos... a real low-carb offering !

I may be off on this, but I see no signs that the theatre is generally included in a customer's lifestyle conscience. They're going to the movies to "get away from it all", and it seems that also applies to whatever diet they might be on.

"... I'll take a double-cheeseburger with fries, a large popcorn...extra butter, a larger Reeces Pieces.... AND A DIET COKE!" ... pretty typical order

[This message has been edited by rodeojack (edited June 12, 2004).]