Let me start by saying that this will not be one of those Christmas time messages where “healthy people” tell you all of the things you should do over the holidays to avoid gaining weight. I sort of think that is always so cliche how people think that imparting some words of wisdom during this time of year related to diet and exercise is in some way helpful. What really annoys me is when I see people trying to “be good” during the holidays. It just makes me think that they are just practicing a form of deprivation which we all know eventually leads to indulgence and over-indulgence. It’s a big picture people and you have to live a little. At the same time, going crazy during the holiday season doesn’t do you much good so I guess the message is moderation … moderate your control and moderate your allowance.
But enough about me, how about me? I have recently shaved a solid 10 lbs. off and much more importantly lost a good inch or more off of my waist. I figured I would get a jump-start on the New Year by starting to take care of business now rather than later. Nothing earth shattering about how I did it … just portion control, smaller and frequent meals, limiting my carbohydrate intake (to about 150 to 200 grams a day), moderating my fat and making sure it is mostly healthy fat, and trying to get as much protein as possible. Add to that great workouts with weights followed by some cardio almost every day and it has been relatively easy.
On to more important matters. Many of you know I now work with a medical facility. Being around the medical system more (also because I have had to go to the doc for a rare foot injury) has made me think a bunch about what is happening in our medical care system. No, this is not a diatribe on health care insurance matters so keep reading. What I have observed is that there is a LOT of people getting health care. And a lot of them are of course over weight and/or not optimally healthy. Of course I think to myself that if these people would just get into the gym and practice better lifestyle habits then so many of them would be able to avoid the doctor. But that is simplifying things. There are some REALLY unhealthy people out there. There are some people that are practicing eating habits that are absolutely insane. I have heard of people engaging in daily diets that drive their insulin levels through the roof and gorge their circulatory systems with “gunk”! And often these people think that they aren’t eating that badly. It seems to me that there is still a massive amount of misunderstanding about what proper diets should look like.
And then I go to the gym. And there I see that other population of people who abuse their bodies’ daily. Not by what they put into it but by what they do to themselves through exercise. I think I should of gone into orthopedics or pain management so then I could go to the gym and just hand out my card left and right to people performing exercises improperly. It is absolutely amazing how many people I see misusing equipment and performing exercises that are slowly but surely injuring them. Again, I say. Ask 10 random people in your life if they have some sort of nagging injury or ailment that keeps them from living optimally. I believe you will find that the ones who go to the gym will tell you that the have to work around it to keep from injuring things further and the ones who don’t will tell you why that injury means they can’t go to the gym because of how limited they are.
I haven’t even touched on all of the abuse that goes on with regards to drugs and alcohol … and especially of late, prescription drugs. Plus you have all the people that are dealing with psychosomatic issues that drive them to believe that they need things that they don’t. It all get’s overwhelming to me and makes my head hurt. (Maybe I should see a doctor … just kidding!) I guess what I mean to convey with this post is that it feels like we live in a nation of people that misuse and abuse their bodies left and right and then seek treatment from a system that is, from what I hear, a little out of whack but depends on repeat customers. Well if what I have seen lately is a representation of what is going on all around the country, then I think doctors are going to be doing just fine for many years to come.
