The Real Reason Why French People Are Thin

For the six weeks that I've been on campus so far, I have literally yet to see even a slightly overweight French student. Coupled with the fact that the bread here is delicious and I can't seem to stop munching on croissants (there is a consistent stash in my room), I set out to discover the reason why...

At Penn, doing a sport is pretty exclusive. It's like, either you're really good at a sport and you play for a varsity or club team all the time, or you're left with a perpetually guilty feeling about not going to Pottruck. I was of the latter group.

Here at HEC, however, doing a sport is pretty much mandatory. Not that everyone is super athletic or you have to sign up for athletics like you do for classes, but just because there is absolutely nothing else productive to do on campus. As I mentioned in my last post, we're about 14 km south of Paris in actual farmlands, fenced in by 200-year old stone walls around the entirety of the campus. We don't get half as much work as we do at Penn, so what's one to do after class (I only have 9 hours a week) aside from running around the expansive grasslands of the campus?

To date, I have joined the rowing team and the aerobics class. During the first week when you can try all these different options without obligation, I also tried salsa dancing and zumba, but there are enough other options to fill up your entire week. I don't even compare with the local French students, who seem to be constantly going from sport to sport. This is why, I have deduced, they can eat massive amounts of pain au chocolat and baguette and whatever else they wish without gaining an ounce.

If only we could have such leisure at Penn!

My thesis is incomplete thus far as I haven't had the chance to observe Parisians in depth, but I'll keep you guys updated! :)