The longest held misconception about Japanese cuisine is that it is healthy and good for you no matter how much you eat. If I binge on rice and tempura everyday I will get fat if I don't control how much of it I eat. I am not a glowing example of health and fitness at all and I don't want to steal the moment away from the well balanced goodness of Japanese cuisine either, but I feel I need to clarify a few points here.
Firstly, I unhealthily consume unhealthy portions of healthy food on a daily basis, at unhealthy hours of the day. Does that mean that Japanese food isn't healthy? No. In America, I consumed unhealthy portions of unhealthy food at unhealthy times of the day and as a result I became unhealthy. However, I am less healthy now than at any other time in my life, yet at the same time I am happier than at any other time in my life.
My point is that fat people make themselves fat. Food can be whatever it is you eat. It's a personal choice how much you wish to consume. I am a professional glutton with no serious plans to slim down as of yet. I have an obligation to consume as much delicious Japanese food I can stuff down my throat. Why? Because this is Japan and I have access to all the Japanese sake and delicious seafood and noodles in the world it seems.
Typically, the way some Japanese control their weight is by limiting their portion sizes to just under 2000 kilo-calories, or less. The main staple of Japanese cuisine is white rice, pickled vegetables, and fish. Walking is the primary means of exercise here as commuters have to travel an average of 40 minutes to work one-way, and then walk upwards to 20 to 30 minutes to their workplace.
Many expatriates living and working in Japan have schedules that can be a bit hectic also, with some of us having to skip breakfast and even lunch. Food prices in Japan do not help either. Many of us cannot settle for the typical pickled vegetables, ramen, and fish every single day. We need diversity, and the only way to get satisfied that urge for ethnic cuisine is to eat out.
If you are well discipline and you can keep up with your weight by counting how many calories you consume per meal every single day, then good for you. However, I do not think this is the norm for most of us living here. Many foreigners in Japan struggle with obesity, and other food related issues and many find themselves either gaining too much weight or losing too much weight, depending on the reason.
The nice thing about living in Japan is that most restaurants list the calorie count next to the food item on the menu. You should be able to carefully manage the amount of calories you take in, and then walking is another very common form of exercise here.
One thing I love about living in Japan is that there are so many natural parks and footpaths. The scenery and cleanliness of Japanese parks are well-recognized by foreigners who have spent a considerable amount of time living in this country.
The only reasons for being obese, other than having too much stress, is laziness because there are plenty of ways to deal with your weight. On average, if you are under 160 pounds and walking briskly on a regular basis then you can expect to be burning 100 calories per mile. Results may vary depending on the frequency and the amount of food you consume. Also, the time of day you consume food. The popular trend here in Japan is to stop eating at 6:30pm, and if you feel a craving for something then eat either tofu, and fermented soybeans.
In summarily, it doesn't matter if what you eat is necessarily healthy, it's about how much of it you eat, and what you do afterwards that makes the most difference. Lots of walking and calorie counting helps. For many Japanese the walking and good diets come quite naturally.
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