Walking and Health

If I don’t lose weight, if I don’t gain control of my eating habits, if I don’t start to exercise more, I’m going to die of some type of a complication due to obesity. Harsh words. Yes. The truth is sometimes not nice. But, the truth will set you free.

Do you have a weight problem? Do you eat too much? Do you eat until you’re so full that you can hardly move? Do you eat at a certain hour even though you’re not really hungry? Do you snack just because it’s there?

If you agree with any of the statements above, you’re not alone. Obesity is an epidemic and it is affecting our waistlines and our children’s waistlines. It is also affecting our health and putting us at risk for diabetes, heart problems, and other health factors related to obesity. We must gain control of our lives if we are to make a difference and lose weight and keep it off.

The first question we must ask ourselves is do I have an eating problem? The first steps in most systems of recovery or changing of a behavior is denial, then acceptance. Most of us are in denial. I don’t have an eating problem. I can stop eating whenever I want. Eating doesn’t interfere with my life. I still work, I have children, I clean my house. My clothes still fit me. These are all fine and good and nobody is saying you’re letting your eating interfere with other things. Losing your job or blacking out are more obvious in an alcoholic or a drug abuser, but are they? Obese people have serious issues, too. An over-eater who can’t make it up a flight of stairs without huffing and puffing, needs to re-think his lifestyle and make a change. He needs to go from denial to acceptance, even if only a few signs are there. Even if he can make it up the stairs without stopping at the top to catch his breath, is his middle waist area larger than it should be for his height and age. Even if she can fit into the size she wore in high school, can she bend over and touch her toes without her belly getting in the way?

Let’s get beyond denial and into acceptance. Some people know they are over weight, but by how much and what should they do about it. The best way to gage whether you have a weight issue is to know your BMI or your Body Mass Index. Go ahead and click below and enter your personal data in the WebMD-BMI Calculator. Don’t be shy and please be truthful to yourself. Then come back and we’ll continue.

That wasn’t so bad. What are your results? A BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is considered healthy for adults. A BMI of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight, while a BMI of 30 and above is considered obese. People with BMI’s of 18.5 or less are considered underweight. Your BMI uses your weight and height to estimate your body fat and health risks. People come in all shapes and sizes, but when you put in your height, your weight, your age and your level of daily activity, the various weight management calculators can get an estimate of your body fat and therefore a feel of your chances of being at a greater risk for health issues.

Obese individuals are doing too much of one thing and not enough of another. Most of us need to change our eating habits in the form of healthier food and smaller portions, and exercise more. How do we do this and know if we are doing the right thing? We know if we are gaining weight we need to decrease our intake of fuel and increase our levels of activity, and all in moderation. Each adjustment you make with your calorie intake or your levels of exercise should always be done in moderation and always check with a doctor prior to any new exercise regimen. It’s always better to be safe. Normally, your doctor will encourage you to begin a walking program.

Walking is an excellent form of exercise because it is easy on the joints, gets your cardiovascular system up and going and is not a strenuous form of exercise. Start slow and short and gradually build up to a faster pace and/or longer distance. When I get ready for my annual Avon Walk for Breast cancer, I always start at least six months prior to the walk and I start very gradually then work my way up to a faster pace and longer distance. I will admit that I am overweight, my BMI is not where it should be and although I consider myself to have light exercise, I know that I take in more calories than I burn.

I once had the calorie intake and usage explained in a fun and easy way to understand. Envision your car in your garage or wherever you park it for the night. You wake up in the morning and you want to take it out for the day but you see that the gas gauge is on “E”. So you get ready and leave your home and head over to the gas station to fill it up. You fill it up so the needle is on the “F”. Now, this may seem silly, but you drive for a few miles and see another fun looking gas station, so you stop and put more gas into the tank, even though the needle has barely moved. Then you drive for a few more hours and see another delightful looking gas station so you stop there and have to purchase an extra gas container because your gas tank is still full from the top-off of your last stop and now you have reserves in the trunk. You get the point here, you would have to drive several hundreds of miles (exercise for your car) to burn the fuel in the gas tank and then don’t forget you still have the extra gas in the trunk (excess fat) that is being stored and will not even be used until you deplete the fuel out of the tank and pour the reserves into the main tank.

Our bodies are like a car, or truck, or SUV because we all have various shapes and sizes and we can all metabolize our calories at different rates. But, nevertheless, this is what we do to our bodies when we eat a normal breakfast, get to work and eat a donut from the pink box that Joe brought in to work, then we eat a hefty lunch at a local fast food place, because we only get 30 minutes for lunch. Then we get a candy from the break room because the heavy meal we had at lunch is putting us to sleep so we need a quick pick me up, then we head home a little late from work, gather up all the kids and cook up something they’re going to eat, finish up at 7:30pm and at least settle in for a few of hours of TV to see American Idol or better yet, the Biggest Losers. It’s a vicious cycle that we need to gain control over and we can do it if we realize we are doing it (no more denial) and we accept that we need to make a change. Try to eat less, eat smaller portions of healthier foods, and exercise more. Grab the moment and take the car out for a spin.

Check back again when I tell you what happened when the Wii told me and my family that we were all obese.