Heard another sad news of the sudden death of a young politician in Nigeria today. He simply slumped and died. I know my mum died at 45 (breast cancer)… but 51 is quite young to slump and die. You know the first thought I got just by looking at his photograph was “chubby”. Then I said to myself, he looks obese, maybe he had a heart attack.
We will not bury our heads in the sand this time. We shall talk about the likely reason and relate to them as much as possible. But as a true Nigerian, not only is it not our portion, we will jump and pass…. and return to sender😁.
Obesity It is a known fact that obesity is a contributory factor to the development of long term conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. For many people, obesity in itself is a long term condition. Honestly, if you are obese, just expect to aquire some kind of medical condition as you get older. Honestly, someones size, as in BMI puts them at risk. Obesity is simply our diet and lifestyle pattern. What you eat (and drink) and when you eat (& drink) it = input. And your level of physical activity = output.
Know your numbers
Please go and do the maths, but don’t go and starve yourself. My body mass index as I type is 33.5, you all know how tall I am (not tall). So the truth is that I am obese. Thers are a couple of numbers you should be familiar with by now. These includes:
1. Blood pressure reading
2. BMI
3. Weight
4. As we get on in our lifes, we must start to make little changes to compensate the lack of physical activity. It is that simple. I am glad I dont have a sweet tooth, that really helps. But that’s said, I have what I think is a savory tooth. My favourite drinks are 1. Gin and tonic 2. Nigerian guinness or 3. Champagne. I really need to work on this input.
Excess fat
Did you know that fat stored around your abdomen means that you are at higher risk of heart attack, stroke and diabetes?…
Take for example today, I worked from home. Actually, I will be working from home on most days until after the festive season. If it wasn’t for the fact that I pushed myself to go to the gym for 30mins (then the sauna as my reward), I would have had 0% physical activity today. Meanwhile I had egusi and eba for lunch and I’ve just finish consuming grilled fish with a glass of wine.
It all adds up This is just on a work day. Let’s not mention the weekend. And you all know this is Christmas weekend. I will be on a roll this Christmas as usual. Winning and dining and living life to the full. Eventually, it all adds up. Like many of us, I too have noticed an increase in my stomach or abdomen size. It comes with age and lifestyle. So I am conscious of trying to have a balanced lifestyle. On the contrary, its not about looking for slim. It’s about reducing the risk of dropping dead just like that. I hate exercise.. I can only do 30mins at any time. I can’t run to save my life and I dislike aerobics. I really cant come and kill myself. But I am bent on making an effort.
Exercise goals Did you know that you should aim for 30 minutes of exercise daily. They say 3-5 days a week. I have been exercising religiously once a week for ever. And that’s on a Sunday. It’s really difficult getting in 2 other days during the week. When I go this Sunday, it would be twice I would have gone to the gym this week. My aim is to have a lifestyle of doing physical activity 3 times a week for 30mins. I am almost there…. are you? What are your health goals for 2020 and how do you plan to achieve it?