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In the name of health

We've all been guilty of wanting and demanding fast results in life; success, money, fitness and health. In today's fast paced life who can blame us? Everything we want is at our fingertips so surely that translates to all aspects of life?

Except it doesn't. Some things in life are hard earned and there's no shortcut for it. How hard you have to work depends on how far you strayed from the right path. Not talking about the beaten track because doing what everyone else is doing is often not the right thing. Which is also why we find ourselves in our current situation. That current situation being; the fast paced, demanding, entitled and lazy society. No, not everyone but unfortunately the majority. If you look around when you are out and about, I bet you the fit individuals are the minority and they stand out. Isn't that a sad fact? 

So how have we gotten to a point where health and fitness are an elusive thing for the minority? It's not a financial issue; don't even try and argue that. All the information you need is available and free to browse, movement and being active isn't something confined only to a gym, making healthy food choices is just that: A CHOICE. And yet, the majority choose other options. 

For one individual, these choices are personal and only impact that one person. Actions equal consequences yes, but they end with that person. But what if that person is a parent? Those choices made for themselves are more than likely also made on behalf of a child. Suddenly those consequences have repercussions for someone else. Generational obesity is a huge problem; children need guidance and without it, they will simply follow the example that has been set. Obesity rates in children is staggering and setting a future of ill-health for the generations to come, all because the previous generation were too lazy to address it. A rant for another day...

The solution to the problem above as our fast paced society would have it; surgeries, injections and drugs. How charming. A lifetime of mistreating your body and when it all gets too much (or you're too sick to cope) and the path back to health is looking like a long one; we want a shortcut for immediate results. Double charming. I'm not going to lie, that mindset makes me seriously angry. Expecting the same results in a short amount of time as someone who makes good choices on a daily basis is both unrealistic and idiotic. Not to mention, you essentially then discredit a lifetime of hard work and positive choices someone else has put in. Don't expect results for work you didn't do - you didn't get fat overnight either.

Back to those shortcuts. Injections are currently the front runner and trending. Wow. Let's just inject ourselves with something we don't really know the side effects or consequences of, but it'll get me to lose the weight so surely that's a good thing right? Lose weight, perhaps yes, but at what cost? What is the weight you're losing made of? Is it making you lose fat or is it muscle? Losing muscle in the process means you essentially just got fatter with a lower bodyweight, congratulations. Your older self will be super grateful when you need assistance just to get off the toilet. Most people will focus on the results promised, without any concern for the warning label - all because a health professional recommended it. Have we forgotten that ill-health is the best business on the planet and that drug companies are money making machines? If you think they care for your health, you are gravely mistaken. Promise health while keeping people ill keeps them buying the products - there's no better business model. Most recently, said injections have been recommended for overweight children as young as 12 as a "lifetime treatment" for obesity - ensuring a client for life. You are just a cash cow; whether you live or die as a result is not their concern - keeping you ill is the point.

Next up; surgery. Gastric bypass, sleeve.. etc. Cutting off pieces of the body to make you eat less. Second wow. Going under the knife so that you cannot physically consume the same amount of food as you used to. Google definition: Gastric bypass aids weight loss by: Restricting the amount of food that your stomach holds. Will power in a bottle.

The same results can be obtained with calorie restriction and cutting the excuses. But very few doctors will tell you that. Most people I speak to will tell me they did it because "they tried everything" and it didn't work. You might have "tried" all the things but I'm guessing you didn't stick to any one of those things - as before - you didn't get fat overnight either but you managed to stick that path. If people spent half or even a quarter of the time they spent becoming overweight on losing the weight, there would be no need for this conversation. It takes work, time and effort. Three things which have become a completely alien thing to most. Calorie deficit is how you lose weight regardless of  what the method of execution is. 

One of the other side effects of these quick fixes is what your body looks like after losing weight at an unnatural pace. Loose skin leading to more surgeries, looking older as your body is trying to process the upheaval you have dumped on it and a lot of the time the previous unhappiness about being overweight is replaced with other appearance concerns. All that just to be unhappy in a different way - and that's just the external consequences.

Inside on the other hand is something that isn't often discussed. Your stomach is essentially the gateway to health and illness alike. Almost every disease starts from there or is in some way at least linked to it. Your body has natural processes which allow you to live and benefit from the foods we eat and the sun we see outside. Your stomach is where a lot of that magic happens (the benefit of course depending on what you choose to consume in the first place) and you've just allowed someone to cut off a piece. You just messed with the engine expecting it to run the same way. It won't. In roll the other health issues caused by deficiencies as your body can no longer process things as it used to. Hair, nails and skin usually lead the way followed by more serious things like osteoporosis and hormonal changes in the gut. Weighing less yes, but plagued by health issues and higher risk of breaking bones, long before bone density starts to decrease naturally. And when that does start to happen, you better hope there's still some left.

I am not going to make any suggestions for solutions. This isn't a problem that needs solving. At the end of the day, it is wasted energy trying to help people who are not prepared to help themselves. Big pharma will continue to exist as long as there are paying customers and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Our society doesn't pride itself on health, wellbeing or longevity, as sad as that is. But for the few of us who look around and see it all for what it is - or perhaps are working to fix the poorer choices of the past - I hope you continue to work towards those good choices everyday and perhaps inspire someone else around you; that's how we begin to make the change.