Fat people are all over the place, and the country is undergoing a “metabo” (short for metabolic syndrome) phase. The national insurance agency is charging companies more to insure employees that don’t meet the insane standards for slimness.

Real fitness buffs buy their protein & supps from catalogs, but, there tends to be a train of thought that if you eat a healthy diet and just train enough, you’ll be averagely healthy. That is the key thing “average” is in, and Japanese, as a whole, don’t tend to like men/women who are too buff. You’ll see a lot more swimmers, joggers, runners, walkers, and cyclists than powerlifters.

My friend started working there in August, my apartment lease was up at the end of September, and I had never been abroad before so it was an all signs pointing to Yes kind of situation. I lucked out having him there since it wasn’t as English friendly as I had thought – Great time and experience.

I know you updated last month saying you were taking a trip but was there any particular reason?