Is Nom Really Trying Too Hard?

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Every morning, noom gives me little quizzes about nutrition and water intake. And whenever i guess right, it says corny words like new malicious. It then rewards me for my achievements with noom coins that move a piece on a game board - as if i were a child playing candy land. The core of nom's personality is that it is always trying very, very, very hard. Sometimes my foam will flash in think i have a text or a news alert, but it will just be noom saying something like, we're blinded by your 50 first meal in a row. Or batter up, but hold the batter winking moji, it's time to log dinner.

We cannot escape our bodies. So how do we reconcile them with who we really are?

Sam Anderson, a staff writer, considers this particular conundrum of the human condition by recounting his lifelong struggle to maintain a healthy weight: his teenage triumph over the “legendary snacker” he was in middle school, the slow creep of the pounds in early adulthood, and the pandemic’s expansive effect on his waistline.

Anderson also explores what it takes to monitor food consumption, the linguistic legacy of 1980s diet culture, the curse of intergenerational weight problems, the natural limitations of weight-loss efforts and the importance of self-acceptance.

This story was written and narrated by Sam Anderson. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.