What Will You Choose?

          I have been reading a few articles here lately about how America is the most obese country and the State of Mississippi has now declared war on obesity. I understand that a lot of people are a product of their environment and some of the only places individuals can get food from are the local corner stores, mom and pop diners and fast food restaurants. If they are able to shop at a grocery store because they have to stretch their dollars and get as much food with little money then things like fruits and vegetables are out of the question because of the cost. I understand all of that and hopefully one day this government and this country will find ways to make it easier for low income families to afford healthier foods. But right now it is killing many families especially African Americans.

            Now what I do not understand is how individuals whom have all the tools they need to become healthy and to be somewhat in shape still choose to make the wrong choices everyday when it comes to their health. Everyday some  people wake up and by their choices say I am going to choose to eat fried chicken, cakes, pies, fried fish, chips and soda, fried pork chops, burgers and french fries because it taste good. Instead of saying I am going to choose to love me and my body and choose to eat right. I am not saying that everything we put into our mouths has to healthy. You should be able to eat a combination but I do believe 70 to 80% of what you put inside of your body should be good healthy lean foods. The other 20- 30% can be your cheat foods.

            I could not imagine walking around my office out of breath because of the extra weight I am carrying around. I can not imagine not being able to enjoy a beautiful day in the park with friends and family because my knees are hurting. I could not imagine having to go to sleep with a sleeping aid because there is too much fat surrounding my lungs and heart. I could not imagine having medical bills up the wall because of something that I can personally prevent.

            I choose my health over choosing that bucket of fried chicken everyday. I choose to want to live a long healthy life instead of drinking soda everyday. I choose to walk around feeling great about myself instead of choosing to eat that double cheese burger or strawberry shortcake concrete every week. I choose to be disciplined and take the time out to think about what I am putting in my body. It’s okay to overindulge in the foods that you love every now and then but not on the weekly basis. I hope you choose what is best for your health and not choose what is best for your taste buds right now. Live Healthy, Live Long, Live Happy.

Yours Truly,

STL Healthnut