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Fish Are Friends, Not Food?

Do you have passion? I mean, passion for your health.  Do you have it?

Most don’t.  How do I know?  Because I’m a wellness expert. As Malcolm Gladwell points out in his best-selling book, The Tipping Point, anyone who invests 10,000 hours in a specific area will become excellent at it.

So, how do you define passion?  How about FANATICAL?  Does that work for you?

Every chance we get to get a glimpse at our health numbers, we should fanatically do it.

Like three days ago at Gold’s Gym. Free body fat percentage testing. Free. Can’t beat that price.  Took less than one minute.

Sixteen percent.  Anything under 19% is considered excellent. Bet you have no clue, and you have no clue because you really, deep down inside, don’t want to know.

How do I know?  Wellness expert.  Remember?

This Dude Is 50

Once again tonight, the TV was on while I was in the vicinity, doing the evening things American families do. I don’t sit and watch TV, unless it’s American Idol, and even then it’s iffy.

But Diane Sawyer was talking about First Lady Michelle Obama announcing big plans to fight childhood obesity.

Childhood obesity? Are you kidding me!!!!  For real?

How the hel heck is that possible?

We all know why, and there’s an old saying that proves this “fact”.

“The acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

The best way to help our children is to help ourselves. We adults are in for the fight of our lives, if we really want to be a great health example. And if we don’t have the fight of your lives….

Then our children will.

How does a person live with that?  Seriously.  How?

Is Idol on at 8pm or 9pm tonight?

If your goal isn’t impossible, you’re not reaching high enough.

Hang in there if you are struggling.  Odds are, you are.

I know I sure am. Ran once last week. Once! How is that possible?

So here we are, another week.  Yesterday, I swore there would be time for a run. After delivering four keynote speeches yesterday, each to a different audience, exhaustion took on a whole new meaning. No run.

Today is another day…. for all of us.  Good luck.  Do not give up!

Know Your Numbers

Did you know that if you don’t know these numbers (below), there are people like me who question your intelligence?

Do you know your:

• Body weight
• HDL & LDL cholesterol
• Blood pressure
• Resting heart rate
• Triglycerides
• BMI (body mass index)

These are the bare minimum numbers you should know and manage. If you feel uncomfortable with today’s tone, good.

You can wait for your wake up call, or you can anticipate it and manage it before it gets out of control. People who nag you about your health love you.

You knew that right?

Exercise.  Fitness.  Wellness.  Flexibility.  Strength.  Cardiovascular.

Blood pressure. Resting heart rate. Good cholesterol.  Bad cholesterol. Body Mass Index.  Triglycerides.

Those words should mean something.  So should these.

Determination.  Perseverance. Tenacity. Hope. Dreams. Persistence. Motivation.  Inspiration.  Courage.

Focus.  Discipline.  Results.  Good habits.  Bad habits.  Dreams. Goals. Success.

If not today, when?  It’s up to you.  Always has been.  Always will be.  Carpe diem.

My son and I went to Gold’s Gym yesterday.  It was packed.  That’s great to see.  Yet even though Gold’s Gym was crowded, the people exercising represent such a small portion of the population.

When I drive to and from work, or on errands, there are occasional joggers along the way. Again, a small portion.

Maybe the ones who exercise regularly are missing the boat.  Perhaps they are the crazy ones.  Wasting their time on the frivolous pursuit of a sound body.  Not a perfect body.  A sound body.

Wasting their time and energy by rearranging their schedules to make exercise fit.  Passing on “delicious” foods, or skipping second helpings, in an effort to practice healthy moderation.

What’s wrong with that small portion of the population?  What a bunch of self-indulgent individuals.  They remind me of the people on the airplane who put the oxygen mask on first, before offering to help the person next to them.

Gaining weight or losing weight.  These two topics seem to occupy our human obsessions more than just about anything.

Why?  Because it’s so challenging, with all the media, to feel comfortable with our bodies.

Maybe the media is right.  Maybe we are deficient in some way.  Want to know how I can tell if I need to gain weight or lose weight?

I simply ask myself, “How do you feel today”?

This past week I gained four pounds.  I can just feel it.  It feels different. Not different in a good way.  Different in a challenging way. At least there’s one thing to be really thankful for this past week.

I was listening to my body.  Were you?