Not Sure You Need to Lose Weight? Ask Yourself these Questions…

Ask yourself, “How do I look?” Do any of these answers apply to you?

•  Am I overweight, looking like an apple or pear?
•  Do I have a spare tire around my waist?
•  Has my skin become excessively dry, almost paper-thin?

then, ask: “How do I feel?”

• Do my joints hurt before or after any physical exertion?
•  Am I constantly worried and anxious?
•  Do I feel tired and sluggish most of the time?
•  Do I suffer from mood swings?

Last question, “How am I doing?”

Are simple walking and climbing stairs difficult?

• Do I have problems concentrating?
• Is running impossible for me now?
•  Am I unable to sit straight, preferring to slouch or stoop my shoulders?

The average life span of men and women is 80 years, give or take a few years. The painful truth is, a significant number of men and women look and feel 80 before they even make it to the first half of their life! You spot the tell-tale signs from their physical appearance:

•  sagging dry skin
• unsightly posture
• uneven and unsteady walk (they need to drag around those heavy pounds)
• aching joints
• sporting the “I’m not happy because I look terrible” look

Now, if their appearance is this bad, imagine what the inside machinery is like! Most likely, it’s even worse:

• clogged vessels
• inefficient heart
• loads of sugar and fat parked in or around vital organs
• Conditions such as diabetes, nervous tension, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease that are silently brewing.

If health authorities had it their way, they’d create legislation to make exercise mandatory as soon as a baby leaves the cradle, not during the teenage years when obesity is likely to strike.

Weight lose efforts and fitness shouldn’t be associated with any age limit. You can start at 10 or at 30 – even at 50 and 60 – the idea being that fitness should not be seen as the cure for a condition that’s already come about. One should not wait for illness to strike before going on to some exercise activity, Brad King and Dr. Michael Schmidt in “Bio Age, Ten Steps to a Younger You” (Macmillan, Canada, 2001).

If you make exercise part of your daily routine, you will experience some benefits, including:-

• A better night’s sleep
• Waking up in the morning feeling refreshed
• Walking with a sprightly gait
• Having energy left at the end of the day
• Feeling more optimistic about recreation

For more insights and information on scheduling your exercise and taking care of yourself amidst a busy schedule, I recommend the ebook, Fitting Exercise into a Busy Schedule.