Be Fat, Be Lazy, Be Happy!

The Cost of Being Fit
It's clear that being fit isn't worth all the time, cost and effort it takes.  Here's a short list of all of the reasons to not even try.

• I have to give up all the food I love.  No more pizza, no more ice cream, no more cake, no more rich pasta dishes, no more desserts.  I can't live that way.  I may die young, but at least I'll die happy.
• I have to eat yucky, expensive health food.  I have to eat salad, fish and chicken all the time.  And strange foods like green smoothies and brownies made from black beans.  And it's all very expensive.
• Exercise is expensive.  I need to belong to an expensive gym and/or hire a personal trainer.  I may need to buy fitness equipment, new workout clothes, and perhaps some exercise DVDs.
• I've tried to lose weight before.  I have been there and done that.  I've tried different diet foods and plans.  I have tried different workouts.  I've lost and regained the same weight several times.  Why should I expect this time to be any different?
• I'm already eating pretty well and exercising but not losing weight.  I think I'm just different from all those people who can lose all the weight they want quickly and easily.  I have to fight for every pound, and if I eat one brownie, I gain 2 pounds.  I try to eat well, and am somewhat active.  If I have to work so hard to lose any weight, perhaps I shouldn't even try.  I should just accept that even though I'm overweight I'm ok with that.
• Exercise is inconvenient.  I don't have an extra hour a day in my schedule to work out.  I'm busy from the time I wake up until night, and I need some down time before I go to bed.  
• Exercise Hurts.  I'm sorry, but all of that weight lifting and jogging just makes me sore and tired.  
• I have a fast metabolism.  Even though I don't eat right or exercise, I'm still skinny.  That's more important than being healthy.
• Fitness takes too much time to think about.  I have to set fitness goals, I have to decide on workout routines, I have to plan my daily schedule around my workout. I have to learn about healthy eating, I have to create meal plans, I have to buy and fix healthy meals.  I have to monitor and track my progress.  I have to come up with money to fund this effort.  It's way too much work.
• I am content with how things are.  So I have some extra weight, it's not causing me any immediate problems.  I see no emergency, therefore I'll just enjoy myself.  Someday if it becomes a problem, I will change.
• I don't know where to even start.  I know I have to change, but I don't know how. Everything I've tried before hasn't worked, so I need better education.  I just don't know where to turn or how to start.

Give Up Now
Be free of guilt, my blog audience.  Go out, eat whatever you want whenever you want it and by all means avoid any form of exercise.  So you're a bit rotund and may have a couple of health issues, you're still a good person.  You only live once, might as well enjoy yourself!

What is Your Tipping Point?
Uhh, strike the above.  I repent.  Even though the case for being unhealthy is compelling, is the reward truly worth the cost? Every single one of the excuses above is exactly that...an excuse.  You know as well as me that your health is far more important than the inconvenience of eating right and exercising.  I don't need to convince you. You're just rationalizing the fact that you haven't made health a priority in your life.  I know, because I've been there and done that for the past 25 years.  I was on prescription medication for high blood pressure and high cholesterol.  I was dealing with a lot of consequences of being fat, per my last post.  The doctor was calling to schedule expensive evaluations for Sleep Apnea.   That was my tipping point.  I didn't want to be that guy. The one who, at age 50, had to wear an oxygen mask at night to avoid brain and organ damage.  

Every day, every week, every month you put off paying attention to your health will come back to haunt you someday.  What will be your wake-up call?  A slow metabolism, high anxiety and depression?  A diagnosis of diabetes?  Knee and other joint problems? Discomfort in social situations?  High blood pressure, acid reflux?  

You can wait for your own tipping point, or you can just try to realize that you need to do something about it and get going now!  Don't wait for everything to be perfect in your life to get started, it never will.  Health isn't a convenience, it's a moral obligation to yourself and the ones you love.  Now go do the right thing and enjoy the true rewards of living a happy, healthy life.