The Health Aspect.........

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-04-2003
The Health Aspect.........
25
Fri, 05-14-2004 - 11:55pm

Last night, I was lying in bed trying to go to sleep and it finally dawned on me (lightbulb on lol).

 

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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-14-2004
Sat, 05-15-2004 - 8:34am
Hi ~

I'm 24 years old and the "health aspect" has just occurred to me as well. Many of us decide to lose weight for the more obvious reasons - wanting to wear cute shorts & skirts, wanting to look presentable (if not hot) in front of co-workers and strangers, etc. And there's nothing wrong with any of these superficial motivators. Anything that motivates a weight loss is a good thing, in my opinion.

But yeah, the whole health aspect is pretty important. Some of us never see ourselves as being "unhealthy" (I know that I never saw myself that way until recently). One night, it suddenly occurred to me. I had just gone grocery shopping and I saw the bags of food sitting on my kitchen table - greasy potato chips, high-fat Haagen Dazs ice cream, butter saturated gourmet cookies, etc. I realized that all of these things have been going into my body for YEARS and I wondered how I've been able to process all of that grease & sugar!

The biggest eye-opening event occurred one particular evening. I had Mexican food for dinner - a lot of it. After dinner, I indulged in way too many Oreo cookies. I was eating the Oreos with cold milk (which is rare - I usually drink hot coffee with them) and the cold milk somehow made the Oreo cream "greasy" in my mouth. In fact, the cream filling coated the roof of my mouth with a grease-like substance (which never happens when I drink hot beverages with the cookies). I suddenly realized that this "greasy cream" was laying in my arteries. The image nearly scared me to death. Later in the evening, I had my very first case of heart burn (from the Mexican food) - not knowing that it was heart burn, I thought I was having a heart attack from the greasy Oreo cream!

This fear kept me awake all night and I realized it was time to lose weight for health purposes, not solely for a "pleasant outward appearance". At 24, I shouldn't be fretting about clogged arteries! So that was my eye-opening event.

Anyway, sorry for the long post. I am happy that you've realized the health aspect of weight loss - it will serve as a tremendous motivator, believe me! I wish you well.

Adrienne

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sat, 05-15-2004 - 8:45am
You are so young. And you can do it.

I am a rehab nurse and I see all of these patients coming in for knee replacements. The majority of them are 5'2 and 200+ pounds. I don't want that to be me either. They wonder why their joints have worn out. Duh!

And honestly, I don't see many obese elderly people roaming around. They drop dead many years before old age because of their weight and subsequent health problems. And the ones that I do see have a plethora of health problems.

I don't know if we can reverse the damage that has been done or is being done but we can certainly improve our health by taking off the pounds and getting some exercise.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sat, 05-15-2004 - 9:26am
Good morning Rely =)

  Shawna-- Proud Cl for 100 Pounds or More to Go 

Avatar for coffee_bean123
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-17-2003
Sat, 05-15-2004 - 1:39pm

Good for you (all of you) for taking charge while you're still young. I only wish I had done the same. I put on all my weight when I was about 21, and it has slowly crept (creeped?) up over the years. Occasionally I'll stop to think that if I had lost it when I was , I would have had less to lose and longer to reap the benefits. I can't go back and change time, but I can go forward from here. Fortunately (?), the only outward

Coffee Coffee 2 

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-04-2003
Sat, 05-15-2004 - 8:01pm

I wish I could quit cold turkey! Good job Coffee!


I'm going to get Wellbuterin (Sp?) in July to help me quit.....so Shawna.......you with me?

 
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-02-2003
Thu, 05-20-2004 - 12:26pm
trust me girl ... i'm 23, and had that moment too LOL


 
 
 
 

Avatar for honeisos
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2004
Thu, 05-20-2004 - 1:42pm
I get you ... That was me too..... I came to that aha moment not too long ago.

After years of dieting!!! Sometimes you have to take a hard look at yourself .

But now I know ... so it gives me hope ...and this time when I stumble I get up and start again.

sasha

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-13-2004
Thu, 05-20-2004 - 2:48pm
Relydria,

I think that's what Forte, among others, have been saying all along. Congrats for understanding: if you don't have your health, then you don't have anything. Anyone can lose weight, but to lose weight and be healthy......now, there's the rub! Good luck to you. (Not sure all the saturated fat in low carb is congruent with that, though. In fact, I know it's not, but at least you're aware of the health aspect today.) Have you ever watched "Low Carb and Lovin it?" I just dropped my jaw when I saw the saturated fat in some of those recipes. Be interesting to see what you think.

Anyway, you're right, it's not all about the cute clothes. It's about living long enough to enjoy them.

Astri

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-20-2004
Thu, 05-20-2004 - 3:17pm
Yup, it's all about the health all right!

Forte

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-08-2003
Thu, 05-20-2004 - 4:13pm
Gosh, I'm sure NONE of us had ANY idea it was about health. Thank you, Forte and Astri, for your depth of knowledge and insight none of could dare but dream to have.

Your mutual admiration society is making me unhealthy. I'm off to throw out my ice cream maker and cancel my subscription to cable. Tired of hearing you guys pat yourselves on the backs for your wonderous achievement of finding good tv shows.

I'm going to try to find the 100+ board, I somehow slipped into the Forte and Astri Zone.

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