It is almost summer, and you know what that means boys and girls … it’s almost swimsuit season.
Some of us have been out jogging and I see you running while I am in my car smoking cigarettes.
I applaud those of you. You have drive and determination that I only dream of. I simply rely on my sprints to English class from Rogers-Stout Hall to help me stay somewhat trim.
I sometimes try to watch my calorie consumption, but only if nothing else is stressing me.
As bad as I want to look like a model, it is still not enough to get me off the couch. This is a problem that many other U.S. citizens and I share. We have all heard of how being overweight is bad for you, but it is so hard to start a regular exercise routine.
Even the fact that we have a gorgeous facility to go to at no cost does not lessen the burning in your muscles and sting in your lungs as you try to burn off the Snicker’s bar you just ate.
Just to be sure we are all on the same page, allow me to elaborate on exactly what is overweight.
Actually, overweight is a misleading term, so let’s just throw it out. From now on, it will be “over fat.” Being “over fat” depends not on how much you weigh, because that number is misleading.
Everyone knows that muscle weighs more than fat, so the key is exactly what percent of your body is fat. The only way to get a correct figure is to be tested by someone that knows what they are doing.
I was a victim of the caliper method of body-fat testing.
This thing that measures body fat is a huge lobster claw that pinches you really hard on the back of your arm, your stomach and your thigh.
As it digs itself underneath your fat layer, it takes a measurement, then you average those numbers to get a good idea of how fat you are.
I was surprised that, by the medical definition of the term, I was obese.
Obese? That is such a strong word. I wore size 10 pants, is that considered obese?! I knew I had some fat to lose, but good grief, this was embarrassing.
The point is that even a person in a size five can be obese. It all depends on your frame and muscle mass.
This concept was a hard one for me to get my mind around. Fat to me always equaled big, but this was not so.
As the weeks went by, I exercised twice a week and slowly felt myself getting stronger and healthier. I slept better, had more energy, and occasionally, working out even felt kind of good.
The rewards are countless, but still, I did not keep up my routine. There is always something better to do than exercise.
Late-night television is contaminated with advertisers trying to sell weight loss in a bottle.
The thing about weight loss pills is that, unlike exercise equipment, which if used as something besides a clothes rack will actually make you thinner – pills will not. If they do, they are probably deadly.
Just recently drugs such as fen- phen and ephedra have been shown to cause many health problems. They have both been removed from the market.
What everyone has to learn is the same hard lesson I learned from a regular exercise routine.
The basics are simple. Carbs and fat grams do not really matter, the key is total caloric intake.
Proper diet and exercise is the only proper way to lose weight. Other methods might work, but they are also bad for you.
Exercise, while it is torture at first, really is good for you. Yes, you will hurt like hell and wake up sore, but won’t you be happier when your six-pack abs draw attention on the beach?
No, that was a trick question.
You have to lose weight for yourself, not to look better for someone else. Just like everything else you do, you have to please yourself. So, you basically have two choices. You can get up and get moving, or you can stay just how you are.
If you are happy with your image, great! If you would like to see some improvement, do not, I repeat, do not be tempted by pills and quick fixes.
I think it is as rotten as you do, but the only thing you can do is work it off. After all, what good is it to be pretty and dead?

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