Should You Tell Your Best Friend They Need to Lose Weight?

Everyone has at least one friend they think are overweight and really should lose weight, but most people never say anything. The most obvious reason for this is because it would be impolite and no one wants to offend their friend. On the other hand, if someone is destroying their physical and mental well being due to overeating, you shouldn't worry about offending them, you should worry about helping them.

Deciding whether to not you should tell your friend they need to lose weight is really a matter of assessing the individual, as well. There's not really a magic number here that constitutes whether or not you should say something (well, 400 - 600lbs is probably a good magic number). You should pay attention to how the individual's weight is affecting them.

Try to determine if they seem unhappy, uncomfortable with their weight. Also pay attention to their health. Do they often have lots of energy? Can they move around comfortably? Do they shy away from stairs or walking in general? Those can all be indicators that their weight is negatively effecting their health, and if that's the case, you may want to tell them it's time to lose weight.

If you do tell them, be sure to tell them in a nice way that doesn't come across as judgmental. Don't do it in front of other people either, because you could possibly embarrass them. You want to help your friend, but you also don't want them to resent you. How much tact is needed will be something you should be able to feel out. Obviously, if the person is very sensitive about their weight, then you should be as tactful as possible. If the person isn't that sensitive about their weight, you can be a little more casual about it.

Now, there's also another circumstance that should be mentioned. Your friend may be well aware of their weight problem and how it affects their health, yet simply not care. If this is the case, telling them they need to lose weight could go one of two ways. They may not mind that you told them at all and say something like, "yeah, I know I need to lose weight... blah, blah, blah..." or, they could be sick and tired of people telling them that and get upset. In this circumstance, it's really just going to have to be a judgment call on your part.

It's hard to tell someone something they don't want to hear, but if you really want to be a good friend and do the right thing, you just might have to.