I was told today while at my swimming class that I was to never give details or ever mention being on the Atkins plan.

I was explaining to a couple of ladies that I am now off insulin and feel much better being on Atkins.

Well the two old ladies were making excuses why the could never eat this way and then some lady jumps in the pool and gets really in my face and said "end of discussion" and said that they would revoke my membership if they ever heard me discussing this topic ever again.

We have two Y's in our town and I'm waiting for my old one to open back up but I'm pretty confused by this stance that they are taking against me.

Birdy...

Bizarre! Talk about being intolerant! As if we live in a dictatorship, and the perscribed WOE is low-fat, or ELSE!!!

Wow Birdy - don't you just get some ignoramus's. I get that too sometimes - I don't get put off at all as to why we are doing it and is it really bad for me, I know they don't know any better cos they are ignorant to all the facts.
It seems to be that in Europe, the States, South Africa, Oz in fact everywhere is the only way to go is low fat or counting calories - which of course is fine for those who wish to do so and know no better and are not educated to our WOE, but I think that the world ought to wake up and realise that this WOE is fabulous and it works and it isn't bad for people contrary to what people may think/hear/make up.
I have been on this plan for 16 months now and am 4lbs short of a 2 stone loss (I think for maths was never my strong point) and no way am I going to let silly ignorant afraid people talk me out of it!
They were probably rather jealous of you.
Oh and also please tell me what a Y is....?
many thanks and best of luck
Fi
x

the "Y" is short for YMCA--which is an exercise club/gym, probably the oldest such club in America. There's a "Y" in pretty much every city in the U.S.

Hi Swoozle
thanks for that - we also have Y's here in the UK but they don't have the gyms and excerise bits to them (I don't think so anyways) The American ones sound so cool
We just go to a gym club should the urge take us...
Good luck lc-ing
Fi
x

Just looked online, and YMCA stands for Young Men's Christian Association--and I guess they're all over the world, not just in the U.S.

For what it's worth....

YMCA
Just conjurs up daft pictures of the Village People doing their daft song and dance of the YMCA - I did the actions to it too.... tee hee
xx

I do beleive that the US has this thing called "Freedom of Speach", no one should told you to stop talking about the way you eat - and they ESPECIALLY should not have gotten in your face about it. Did you sign something that would allow them to impose this rule on you?

If I were you, I'd call the local chapter and talk to a higher up and explain what happened.

I want to second what Talon said. Please find out who the Executive Director of your Y is and call him or her up to discuss this incident. I can see how if you were a staff member they might have a right to censor your discussion of diet and fitness; however, as a member, it seems a bit excessive. I have belonged to our local Y for almost 20 years and I have never heard of them censoring what members talk about and we have all kinds of weird discussions in the locker room (sort of like this forum).

The only legitimate reason I can think that they might want to censor someone is if a person was making other people uncomfortable by the way he or she was pushing his or her beliefs. I know that I have to be careful not to get so enthusiastic about low carbing that other people think I am imposing my beliefs on them. I work hard at not coming off sounding preachy!

I reported the action to the Y director. I was told that nothing would be done though.

It was a conversation and the ladies asked me and I was just answering their questions.

I am new to this area and don't know what people are really like here.

At the past YMCA'S I have had some pretty strange conversations but usually the staff would agree or join in on the conversation.

NEVER have I had treatment by a staff like this before.

Birdy...

Just so you know, they can't revoke your membership for something like this and if they did, you would have grounds for a whopper of a lawsuit unless they are willing to ban any and all conversation about any and all possible controvesial subjects and post those rules in writing.
She may not like your way of eating, but she has no right to tell you not to discuss it or answer questions relating to it if asked.

This is just me, but if it were me I'd probably make an effort to bring up the topic every time she was around and then remind her of my "freedom of speech rights" if she got in my face again and possibly even mention the "L" word if the old biddy didn't want to back down.

Yeah I would totally do something about that-That is a bunch of BS!

Freedom of speech doesn't apply to a private organization. They can censor and control what goes on in their PRIVATE CLUB, as long as they don't discriminate based on age, disabilities or ethnic backgrounds.

If a private organization accepts public funds, then there may be potential freedom of speech issues here.

I got this from their website: Legislation is pending in the U.S. Congress authorizing $20 million in federal funding specifically to help local YMCAs serve more at risk teens. In order to make this bill law, IT IS CRITICAL YOU WRITE YOUR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS ASKING THEM TO CO-SPONSOR THIS LEGISLATION! Simply click on "Contact Congress" to send a pre-written form letter. You can also send a letter inviting your representatives to visit your teen programs. It couldn't be easier! Click here for more information.

As it turns out, in addition to government funds, the YMCA has a major carb company, PepsiCo, as a sponsor:

(link to this statement)

YMCA of the USA launched its corporate strategic alliance initiative in the fall of 1997. The goal of the initiative is to secure corporate sponsors willing to dedicate people power, funding, advertising and promotions, and in-kind resources, which will benefit the YMCA, mission, programs and services nationwide. YMCA of the USA's Corporate Relations team reviews, negotiates and manages all alliances in accordance with the National Board guidelines and policies.

Current national sponsors, listed in alphabetical order, of the YMCA of the USA are:

Best Buy Children's Foundation
Hanes, Champion Athleticwear and MadeToOrder.com
JCPenney Afterschool
KFC Colonel's Kids/Entertainment Industry Foundation
Kimberly-Clark Corporation
PepsiCo, Inc., Pepsi-Cola Company, Tropicana Products, Inc
For more information about corporate sponsorship opportunities, contact Mia Ahmann, National Sponsorship Development Manager, at 312-419-8896.

Here is how they address problems (link to site):

Who do I contact if I have a concern about my Y?
If you have a concern about your YMCA, please contact your YMCA directly. If you know a volunteer or staff member at the YMCA, share your concern with him or her. If you would like to pursue the issue further, we recommend you contact your YMCA's executive director or chair of the board to talk about the matter. He or she will be willing to listen to your thoughts. Or you could write a letter directly to the chair of your local YMCA board because the board oversees the YMCA. If you are complaining about something at your YMCA, it's helpful if you offer a solution.

You should definitely go above the director's head, include the information provided by gotbeer and cc a local newspaper and television station. Regardless of their right to restrict members behavior, they probably are limited as to how arbitrary they can be in interfering in private conversations.