HEALTHY LIFESTYLE? A REVIEW

A healthy lifestyle doesn’t start after you recover from a dreaded disease.

Some people take illness as a reminder to step up their health routine, some ignore the whole thing.

Which one is the right response?

Both work, just one better than the other. But there’s that other part.

I remember being a kid in the car with my dad and grandpa.

Grandpa had a can of Olympia beer open to sip during the ride.

My dad smoked a lung dart, a few of them, on the drive.

Grandpa was diabetic, whatever that was. I learned more about it later.

 Turns out diabetes runs in the family, so it’s important to know more about it.

Grandpa died in the early 60’s. He was in his early sixties.

My dad passed in the mid-90’s. He was in his mid-sixties.

He was a consistent smoker who knew to switch to menthols when his regular brand of big red irritated his throat.

Quitting smoking never crossed his mind.

“I’ve read that the stress of quitting smoking is more deadly than smoking,” he said.

Toward the end of his life he sat quietly in a chair with a blanket over his lap and a cigarette in his hand that his then-wife kept lit.

We sat together. He was quiet and I wondered what I was supposed to do.

So I pulled a cancer stick from his pack and lit up.

We sat quietly together smoking until the nausea hit me and I had to stop.

I get the urps just thinking about it, but it was bonding moment. I think.

Or maybe I was an idiot and he didn’t want to comment?

I don’t remember any healthy lifestyle talks growing up. No one talked about a healthy lifestyle, we just plugged along like most families.

Eat what’s on your plate, stay out of trouble, and don’t get a girl pregnant was the regular talk from my Mom.

So maybe we did have those talks?

 

Healthy Aging

As I look back I do remember some unhealthy stuff like TV dinner in an aluminum tray, frozen food instead of fresh.

When I asked about the health aspects of fresh vegetables I heard this: “That’s for old people.”

Is sixty-nine old enough to be old people? Or is sixty-nine the new thirty-nine?

It was for Jack Benny.

Healthy people aged sixty-nine shrug it off. Just a number, they say. And they’re right.

At what age is a person considered elderly?

According to the World Health Organization, aging is commonly measured by chronological age.

As a convention, a person over age 65 is often referred to as elderly. This is also the age when most people retire and start receiving a pension.

However, the age of elderly is not uniform and can be impacted by genetics, lifestyle, and overall health.

 

If you’re a baby boomer reading this, do you remember any mention of mental health growing up?

I can’t say I did, but it’s a big issue today with mental health awareness.

Imagine hearing about a family of boys doing ‘fuzz checks’ in their front yard. Pretty funny until it happens in your front yard.

A fuzz check is getting pantsed in the yard to check on pubic hair growth.

I raised two boys; we didn’t do that.

We didn’t so a lot of the things I grew up with. Eat what’s on your plate included the god-awful green peppers that turned my stomach.

It wasn’t torture, but more an awareness that I wasn’t smart enough to know my parents were on to me.

If I picked the green peppers out of the Spanish rice, I had to eat them all at once.

If I shoved them all in my mouth and tried to excuse myself to the bathroom to spit them out in the toilet, they were a step ahead.

Feed it to the dog? We didn’t have a dog.

My last resort was to stage a food strike where I’d sit at the table not eating until it was bedtime.

I was asleep in the kitchen chair by then.

It took a while, but I got over my food aversion.

When the wife and I took a trip to Spain I even ordered the Ernest Hemingway paella in Valencia’s Le Pepica.

Mmm, mmm good. Even the green peppers.

 

Responsible Healthy Lifestyle

No matter your age, it’s a good time to start the health push.

Why not make the effort sooner than later, then you are less likely to live in a state of blame.

 

Blaming someone for getting fat is a loser’s game.

Be honest with yourself and count up the food and drinks for a day, then weigh yourself for a baseline.

Start by hogging down massive amounts of food and drink all day, then weigh in.

Doing it this way ensures dramatic results since your weight will be elevated.

My massive consumption day ended with 250 lbs showing on the scale. That’s a load.

Four days later after small meals of sautéed veggies and chicken, no beer, no late nights with my head in the fridge, I came down to: less.

 

Why not surprise yourself with how easy it is to lose weight with conscious decisions instead of the latest breakthrough?

 

My weight loss journey, my current weight loss journey, is full of hope.

I could lose weight with drugs like Ozempic. It’s a sure thing with a few minor side-effects.

Nausea and vomiting are common side effects, affecting around 1 in 10 users and often occur when doses are increased.

Vomiting more than three times a day or violent vomiting accompanied by additional symptoms like abdominal pain may indicate that Mounjaro or Wegovy aren’t suitable for you, so please monitor your symptoms.

Constipation is a very common side effect of Mounjaro and Wegovy, affecting more than 1 in 10 users.

Diarrhea is a very common side effect, affecting more than 1 in 10 users of Mounjaro or Wegovy especially when you first start the injections. Diarrhea tends to be mostly mild and resolves after a few injections.

 

Projectile vomiting? Explosive diarrhea?

While they may be a good excuse to call in sick to work, it’s got to be awful to live through, especially when you know it’s coming.

 

Health Education

When it comes to living a healthy lifestyle, continuing education is key.

You need to follow the Hippocratic oath:

 

I shall do by my patients as I would be done by; shall obtain consultation whenever I or they desire; shall include them to the extent they wish in all important decisions; and shall minimize suffering whenever a cure cannot be obtained, understanding that a dignified death is an important goal in everyone’s life.

 

Is it hard to live the life you want suffering from avoidable pitfalls?

Swollen ankles, knee pain, and inflammation accompany obesity in many cases, and obesity is no one’s friend.

Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, sleep apnea, liver disease, some cancers, and stroke are no friend.

 

We are capable of change, so let’s be willing to do it.

Start today?

If you’ve made changes, tell us how it’s going in comments.