We Know the Problem, So Why Don't We Do Anything?

So What's Our Problem?

If such terrible, physical maladies are, for the most part, preventable, why aren't we doing anything about it? The problem is instant versus delayed gratification. There is a saying that goes like this: hard work pays off in the future, but procrastination pays off now! When it comes to our health, it appears many of us hold fast to this motto. Eating large amounts of bad-for-you food and inactivity is enjoyable.  If it weren't, the national trends would be headed the other way. And the pleasure that comes from these things is immediate, just like we want it. 

Eating healthy and exercise don't appear to have an immediate pay off. In fact, they feel like self-denial. Exercise brings the sweat and an expense of energy, and that huge hamburger or extra piece of chocolate pie sure seem more satisfying than that diety food. Plus being in good, physical condition may pay off in the future. It reduces the risks of disease, but it doesn't elimate them. We're all going to die anyway, right? 

Let's think about this logically for a moment. You are going to die. There is no doubt about it. But imagine you are presented with these two options: 1. You choose a lifestyle that will provide you with some immediate gratifications, but your overall quality of life will be lowered, you will eventually not be able to do all the other activities you enjoy, your risk for a slow, decaying death is increased, and you die early OR 2. You maintain a high quality of life until death, able to enjoy many different activities without serious health complications, all the while feeling your best. Seriously, which would you choose?

My lack of desire and inability to do things I enjoyed coupled with the real possibility of grave physical problems woke me up. I had tried to lose weight many times before. You may be familiar with that ten pounds that you lose only to have it move back in within a month. Yeah, I've been there, done that. But this time, I wanted that ten pounds and about ten of his buddies to move out for good. I didn't make up any excuses, and I urge you not to either. Most of your reasons to not do anything are not reasons, they are excuses. Call them as they are. Honesty with yourself and your situation are crucial on this journey.

So, How'd You Do It?

Every time I see someone who has not seen me in a while, and they notice the weight loss, the question is always the same: how'd you do it?  My daughter jokingly suggested I answer with the Shake Weight. 

I think the question is, in some ways, the wrong question. Normally a person is asking me how I lost weight. I cannot approach my life changes simply from the one avenue of just losing weight. Granted that is how I started, but that is not where I am today. I have not just lost weight. I've decreased my risk for disease, increased my physical capacity and endurance, increased my energy and quality of life, and I've enhanced all other life activities. 

Why do I make this distinction? Because simply losing weight as a goal is short-sighted. Sure, the number on the scale is the main figure I use to gauge the overall progress in these areas. But if I make just weight loss the goal, I will feel that my job is done once I get to where I want to be. I've seen it happen many, many times. A person goes on some sort of diet in order to lose weight. They are met with a measure of success, and, once they feel satisfied with how much they've lost, they go back to normal, only to gain it all back. They met their goal, so why keep going?

The problem is that weight maintenance, a decreased risk for disease, increased energy, and increased quality of life don't just happen for the rest of your life. They must be pursued. If you are like me, however, you will want to pursue these things because you've come to realize the quality of these benefits.

Carrying a Heavy Load: The Beginning of My Journey

Carrying a Heavy Load

Last week I transported two bags of goat feed from my garage to our humble goat barn not too far behind my house. The bags weighed fifty pounds each. As I hoisted one up and onto my shoulder and walked a short distance to a waiting cart, I could hardly imagine actually carrying that much weight all the time. I hoisted the second one up and took it to the cart. Three bags together would almost equal the amount of weight I've lost since October 1st, 2011. It's insanely crazy to think of a hundred and forty pounds of fat hanging on my frame day in, day out. If you put a bag of feed on each shoulder and one on your back, your body would immediately feel the oppression of its weight and, in no time, start to tire from the added load. A hundred and forty pounds! Good grief! That's heavy! 

The Things That Scare Me Most

I knew I needed to lose weight. I helped a co-worker carry a heavy item a short distance, and, once we put the object down, I was out of breath. Then it took forever for me to recover. My co-worker, who really isn't in shape either, kept looking at me and asking, "Are you going to be OK?" What a wake up call! If I am getting this way now, how will it be 10, 20, 30 years from now? What will I want to do that I will not be able to do? I could already see it in my life. I was not doing many of the activities that I used to because I was out of shape and lazy.

And the health risks of being overweight are undeniable. First there are heart problems, which run on my mom's side of the family anyway. I wasn't just overweight. My heart and lungs were not conditioned because of my sedentary lifestyle. The heart becomes weak due to its lack of inactivity, and its condition deteriorates. Just like any muscle, a lack of use will eventually render it useless.

Another health factor that really gave me the heebie jeebies was diabetes. I don't mean to minimize or make light of the disease, but it really is a frightening thing to have. Not only is it closely linked to cardiovascular disease, heart attacks, and strokes, it is a disease that, if it fully runs its course, causes one to basically slow rot. Diabetes ultimately damages small blood vessels as well as the nervous system. Ultimately, these two combine and many diabetics lose their eyes and limbs due to the slow decay of these body parts. If a heart attack or stroke don't get ya, its a slow, miserable death.

Over 11% of the U.S. population 20 years and older have diabetes. About 27% of people 65 and over have it. And the numbers continue to grow! In my state alone, the percentage of those diagnosed with diabetes grew from less than 1% in 1958 to almost 3% in 1985 to over 11% in 2010. Guess what other percentages grew as well? Obesity was a little over 10% in 1985 and up to over 31% in 2010! Now just because those two things happened concurrently does not mean they are related. Please don't be duped by junk science. But the correlation between the most cases of diabetes and obesity and inactivity are well established and documented. 

So what does it all mean? The risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and a host of other problems are greatly reduced by maintaining a healthy body weight and exercise. Yup, you can prevent most of these woes! Not only that, many of them can be reversed. Many with diabetes who lost weight and developed an active lifestyle actually reversed their disease to the point that it simply disappeared.

I knew I needed to act. If I did not, the future would be grim.