There really isn’t a nice way to tell someone they’re obese.
At least that was the technical term shared with me after I completed my fitness test. Although grades weren’t handed out after taking my initial health and fitness assessment, it was clear that I had failed. Actually, I ranked the highest in the “poor health” category. This could be considered the equivalent of being told that you are the winner of the suckiest division of your choice of sport. Doesn’t dampen the blow does it? Yeah, I felt pretty low that day.
However, it was eye opening to see just what is considered healthy, and what is not.
Having adopted a healthy lifestyle last month, I’ve learned just how little I know about what it takes to live healthy. We are constantly bombarded with how much things cost, the weather, traffic reports, local and global news, but you rarely hear updates about how we can improve our lifestyles without the use of drugs or miracle diets. No, that type of information is not readily shared and requires us to take initiative and find the answers ourselves.
The answers came when I started counting my calories.
My health coach, Grace Derocha, put me on a 1900-calorie diet. Coming from a 3200-calorie lifestyle this was quite a shock to my system. Little by little, however, I began to learn just how many calories are in the food that is readily available to us. It was terrifying to learn that my favorite sandwich contained 900 calories! I soon realized that my obesity was due to my ignorance of what I was putting into my body.
Once I had this knowledge, I then realized I had the control.
I now try to keep a regular diary of my daily calorie intake. Doing this has helped me keep things in check, and I am just getting over the hump to where I crave healthy food.
Stay tuned as I learn what it takes to do 100 push-ups and how expensive running shoes have become!
Editor’s Note: David Murray is a social media manager at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Murray publishes a blog chronicling his journey to fitness called “The Pursuit of Healthiness” on AHealthierMichigan.org/healthymurr. He is the founder of Social Media Club Detroit, and is a national speaker on digital communications and social media best practices. He has spoken at BlogWorld and TEDx events. Murray has also been featured in Wall Street Journal Online, and David Meerman Scott’s book, The New Rules of PR and Marketing.
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