Are you following the trend?

I see more studies every day that illustrate the poor health in our country. I see many trends, like our health declining and obesity increasing. I also see a trend that a number of diseases that come along with obesity are continually increasing.
This trend is disturbing and it has to stop. It is costing us all a ton of money. We are spending more on healthcare, food and clothes. We are even spending more on airline tickets and gasoline because we consume more fuel carting extra weight around.

The trend, while widely known, does not have to continue. I am working with people day in and day out to stop the trend one person at a time. I can’t do anything unless the people I work with make one important decision. The most important decision they (and you) can make is to stop following this trend.

That’s right, the trend can be stopped if we decide to stop it. How do we stop the trend? The same way we stop any trend, we stop following it. This is easier said than done, but I have put together a few simple ways to stop following the current health (or lack of) trend and start setting your own trend.

Stop and Think
The first thing we need to do is take a moment. Just take a minute or even a few seconds to think about your health. Health is not just blood pressure and cholesterol. In fact, by the time these numbers are brought to our attention it is often too late. We already have major issues with weight, fatigue and other areas. How do you want to feel each day? You have control over how you feel. Health is about feeling good and making choices that will help you realize that feeling every day. Stop and think about what you feel like today, how you want to feel tomorrow and what you have to do in order to bridge that gap. If you have already been focused on your health you have some good news. You just have to keep doing it. Stopping and thinking is still helpful though, since you have to acknowledge your progress and keep yourself motivated to continue.

Decide what YOU want
The questions we asked above are the key to living healthy. How do you want to feel? Do you want to feel good or bad? Do you want to feel energetic or sluggish? Do you want to feel healthy or sick? These sound like simple, no brainer questions. These sound obvious when asked out loud. Well, that is the key to getting the answer you want. Ask them out loud. Talk to your friends and family about what they want. Tell them what you want. When the options are next to each other, it gets much easier to make the choice. Once you have decided what you really want, it is easier to make the healthier choice. The more you make it, the easier it gets to keep making it. This isn’t a newsflash, but sometimes we all need a reminder of what we are doing (or not doing) for our health. If we just do what is easy or right in front of us, we will not be making the choice to live healthy. The most convenient option is not likely to be the healthiest option. This is old news, but we still make the easy choice most of the time. That is the problem and the biggest reason for the health trend. By making a conscious choice, you are deciding to live healthy.

Be the expert
You know yourself. You know your routine. You know you better than anyone else does. If you are a person that likes to eat at certain times, make sure you have options available. If you know that you have a craving for chocolate around 2 pm each day, put a tiny candy piece in your desk so you can get a taste and be done with it. There are a million things you can do to match your routine. We all know the difference between healthy and unhealthy. We all know what it takes to do it.

Be the expert, trust yourself and do it. Not knowing how to live healthy is no longer a valid excuse. Every time they show us the updated obesity numbers, they remind us why this is the case. The obesity numbers are on the rise because we eat too much and don’t exercise enough. This is obvious. The real reason we eat to much and don’t exercise enough is more valuable information. We have become dependent on the experts and have convinced ourselves that we can’t do it. We have become satisfied with the trend because it is easier to just go with it. It is easier to be fat if our friends and family are fat. It is easier to let our health go if we see that everyone else is doing it too.

The trend is no secret and neither is the solution. These steps can help you figure out your own plan. The difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is not that significant. The results are much different and the difference there is very significant. But the difference between one person and another is simply this: one has a plan and one doesn’t.

If you are struggling with your health, what do you need to do? You don’t need to start a specific diet. You don’t need to go to a certain gym. You don’t even need to change much internally. All you need is a plan. If you can set up a plan for what you want to be doing, you can do it. There is no question about it. No matter what the trend says, you don’t have to be part of it.

By taking a moment to stop and think, you are able to take control. You are able to assess your current situation, which allows you to slow or even stop the negative cycle.

By deciding what you want, you are now taking control. You are looking at your routine and deciding how you want it to look. You are thinking about how you feel and deciding that you want it to improve. You are deciding that the way you feel is important and you are willing to act in order to affect it.

And finally, by being the expert, you are perfecting your routine. You are taking the process that you want and results you hope to achieve and finding a way to make it all work. The only way you can do this is to trust yourself and believe that you can do it.

The real trend is more than just people getting fat while they eat and don’t exercise. The real trend is people refusing to take ownership of their own health. Maybe you don’t think you can or maybe you think it will be too difficult. Maybe you just don’t understand the ramifications of not making changes.

Well, you know what they told us when were kids. Following trends seemed like a good idea. When we used the trend as an excuse to do something, what did our parents say? Mine asked me, “If everyone jumped off a bridge, would you do it too?” That is basically what we are all doing. We are letting our health go and slowing jumping off of a bridge by not taking control.
Are you following the trend?