How can we reverse the trend of Obesity?


I am no expert in Health and Fitness nor on Nutrition, but from leaving home and not knowing how to cook an egg to where I am now has been a great journey. There is something quite magical about combining a load of ingredients together and then sitting down to enjoy the fruits of your labours... I am hooked! ... and for those that know me, you know I am now fairly passionate about eating healthily, after all... as my father once said... "without your health you have nothing...". It is however difficult as a young person with all your life ahead of you to really worry too much about what you eat, you're young, eat and drink what you want... plenty of time for being serious about all that later isn't there? ... but old habits die hard and best to at least find out about your body and how to get the best from it early on, then you can enjoy life to the max... this is why I am so proud of +Otis Ogle (my son) who has gone from knowing virtually nothing to having some really solid fundamentals on nutrition and health in place at the age of only 23... if only more were like this!

Sugar in popular drinks
Unfortunately most young and older people are not like Otis (or my Nephew - Personal trainer +Martin Dealey ), in our constant battle for money, houses, cars, gadgets, possessions and status we have no time... no time to prepare food, no time to sit down with our families and enjoy conversation over a nutritious hand crafted meal... no time to pass on or learn about the importance of a balanced and healthy diet... no time...

Greed and endless chase for cash has meant that we are too busy to take care of the very thing that enables us to do what we do... our health... and as the saying goes... "if you have no time to set aside for maintaining your health now... you had better put aside plenty of time for ill health later on..." some truth right there in this statement...

The microwave food aisles in the supermarkets are a testimony to how bad we have become... they would not provide us with a whole selection of pre-processed foods if we did not want them... we are being encouraged to maintain and continue on the path we are on... Heh... remember we are not bad people, we are just being slowly herded down a path which is not good for us, but is good for those focussed on profit!

We have been lulled and duped by great marketing strategies to believe Fat is bad, Cholesterol is bad, and that low calorie products are much better for us... we have bought the advertisements... One Cal, Coke Zero, Low Fat this, Energy boosting that... the list goes on... with one aim in mind, to get us to buy the next 'new' health gimmick fad... (just a quick aside... I did a 20 minute talk busting the myths of Cholesterol... if you are worried about cholesterol levels you might want to watch - Chris on Cholesterol here)

Heck even the Skimmed milk (in the UK, green and red labelled milk products) are worse for us than the regular normal milk... we all bought that one didn't we? If you really want to move away from dairy then go for Almond Milk... even Soya Milk in large doses has health ramifications so beware of that one too!

SO HOW CAN WE MAKE THINGS BETTER?

We have to really learn about food... I mean REALLY learn about food... not what the advertisers say, but from people who know what they are talking about! The thing is nutrition is a massive subject, but you owe it to yourself don't you? Ignorance is not an excuse... this is our life we are talking about, and the person who cares about that most is you... if you don't care... then no one is looking after you at all!

Once people learn about food they start to get interested, once interested then enthusiasm... after enthusiasm better choices and more enjoyment... more enjoyment leads to a happier and more fulfilled life... and... you don't have to make huge sweeping changes all in one go either... even small changes on top of small changes can lead to vast improvements... but those fad diets? ... come on, they are not sustainable are they? ... going to drink shakes and protein powders for the rest of your life? ... No... sorry to say... another money making venture for us to BUY INTO right there... nope... it comes down to making sustainable changes... but first...

What does 200 calories look like in food portions
Your body is not the same as anyone else's... So before embarking on a journey of better health... Find out from an expert (a nutritionist e.g. +Varsha Khatri), about you... Then you can discover a pathway to health that's designed for you... It's not rocket science is it? Work out how your body processes food so you can work with it, not against it, otherwise you're driving the car without a map hoping you're taking the right roads... there is no one nutritional programme that fits all... we are all unique, we celebrate that... so lets have our own health programme just for us...

Then... make small sustainable changes... You don't have to start taking shakes & starving yourself... Or give up things you like... This is about steady, sustainable improved life choices... 1lb a month for 12 months is almost 1 stone... And if you do it naturally... You won't put it back on... these health choices can easily be integrated into family life too... kids will enjoy learning about food, what is good for them, why is it good? ... time to instill these valuable lessons back into our homes... it is up to us...

12 exercises to work all the major
muscle groups
Now we are on a nutrition programme designed for us... mix that in with some carefully crafted exercise... Progressively getting more challenging the fitter you get... Suddenly you are well on the way to a really different future.. Not only feeling much better, but less tired, less stressed and with far more energy... You won't be forcing yourself to stay on a 'diet' you will be loving the new regime so much you won't want to go back to the bad old days!

... oh and one final thing... surround yourself with people who are making better health choices... group learning, group experiences and group encouragement... I learn things about nutrition everyday because the people around me know stuff I don't and vice versa... Forward to a healthier future? ... I'm in!

#Link4Growth #L4G #Link4Health

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