The “Official” World Obesity Day may have passed, but that does not mean we have move beyond the Clear and Present Danger of health of our time. Sure, there are sensational, sporadic events just about every other year. This condition remains a GINORMOUS problem. It is dull, yet insidious, and persistent. Because of this, it doesn’t get the attention it rightly deserves. People are quick to poke fun at it or poke fun at the people with this condition, but are unwilling to emphasize the underlying factors. Whether you like to hear it or not, obesity is preventable and treatable. We can, we must, take action now to break ourselves of our deadly routines.
Eat, eat, eat. Sit, sit, sit. Day, after day, after day…OBESITY!
ACTIVE-DAD
The Great american dream
You have strived to achieve the “Great American Dream”. This dream has been distorted into extended periods of sitting around and eating. You get up in the morning, eat cereal — which may be delicious—that is high in sugar. You chase that down with coffee that contains even more sugar. You get into your spacious Ford F-150, sit and drive to work. You get stuck sitting in traffic.
At work you are sitting at your desk 90% of the time. The only time you get up is to go to the restroom and maybe grab a soda at the vending machine. For lunch, you are so hungry you could eat a whole horse! You settle for a Chipotle Burrito (not a whole horse, but close) because it’s the “healthier option”. You have them load your burrito up with rice, sour cream, Monterey jack cheese, and chicken, romaine lettuce and salsa, because you are watching what you eat. You munch on the chips and salsa, that’s a must. Wash that down with another soda, Diet Coke of course. Time to get back to work…and sit.
It’s time to find pleasure in Physical Activity again! IT FELT SO GOOD! Don’t allow obesity to take you hostage. No more negotiations.
ACTIVE-DAD
Email Alert: “Donuts in the breakroom. Help yourself!”
Oh dip! You definitely can’t pass up on free donuts. You eat one glazed donut. You wrap up a cake donut in a paper towel for safe keeping. Back to sitting.
That’s just the first half of your day! It’s time to go home and man are you HUNGRY!
Text Message
You: “Babe, what do you want to eat for dinner?”
Her: “I don’t know”
You: “I had Chipotle for lunch”
Her: “Pizza’s easy. Kids will love it.”
You: “Ok, I’ll get Dominos.”
at home
You have three slices of pizza for dinner, because you don’t want to over do it. You wash your pizza down with a beer or THREE! You earned it, right?
You watch some T.V. with the family. You put the kids to bed. Finally, some quiet time to watch your favorite shows. You stay up late watching four episodes of your one-hour show. You are exhausted now. No way are you getting up early to hit the StairMaster. Besides, you feel gross and you hate how people in the gym look at you like you don’t belong. They have no clue how athletic you were and how in shape you looked like 15 years ago! It’s too hot (or cold) outside to go for a walk. You go to sleep. You wake up and do it again.
You get the picture. Eat, eat, eat. Sit, sit, sit. Day, after day, after day…OBESITY!
Now you, along with half of the men in the United States are looking at one another, seeing the effects of obesity in real time.
time TO TAKE ACTION
You can do better. You have been wanting to do better. It’s in you to do better. Your younger self screams at you every year that you allow to pass, basically staying the same. In actuality, you are getting worse. You once fancied yourself an athlete. You were at least physically active for a large chunk of your life. You miss how exercise made you feel good. Somewhere along the way, you gave up and began to accept just getting by (You Know Why You Gave Up, And So Does Everyone Else!).
It’s time to find pleasure in Physical Activity again! IT FELT SO GOOD! Don’t allow obesity to take you hostage. No more negotiations.
It is not ALL OR NOTHING! You just have to take the first step. Literally, the first step. Start with a walk! Move up to a brisk walk. Stay there for a while, or forever, your call. JUST. GET. MOVING.
Let’s do it together.