About working out and the deterioration of lifestyles
I recently joined the gym to get rid of some extra kilos. My BMI (body mass index) has been steadily increasing over the past few years and in the recent past I started getting a tummy and my face started losing it's lean look. When my BMI finally breached the magic 25 mark and people started noticing how much I'd gained, I pushed myself to the gym. As a consequence I spend an hour or more everyday working out, burning calories and generally increasing my base metabolic rate. I have to say, it does feel good to have my tummy almost flat again and getting back the semblance of a fit body.
But what I wanted to write about is the effort that has gone into getting back from being slightly overweight. It speaks volumes about my lifestyle. I used to be quite fit and not have a shred of anything that could be interpreted as body fat. A few push-ups and sit-ups at home once in a while and a few pumps of my father's old barbells used to give me that athletic muscular look. Then I didn't have to try in order to be fit. Life was good - I could eat as much as I wanted, and not have it show up in the form chubby cheeks or an expanding belly. I miss those days.
There were a couple of turning points that changed things - the first one was at the age of 18 when I stopped using my bicycle and moved to a mopped. I put on 5 kilos then! The second one was when I finished school and got a job which mostly entailed me sitting at a desk and moving only when I had to attend meetings. The increase in my weight has been meteoric!
I see all the changes from when I was 18 to my current self, over the past 10 years, as a deterioration in my lifestyle. Sure I am having fun now. But I was sure having fun back then too! Just in a different way. Now my fun mostly involves watching the telly or reading or getting some thumb action on my PS2. I miss going out with mates and participating in some sport for fun.
I now have to pay the price for the change of my definition of fun, with one hour of my waking time every day spent in the gym. And I am only doing what I could be doing as a part of my day-to-day activities and as a part of having a great time with mates!
Is the deterioration of our bodies, the accumulation of fat and the hours of time some of us spend in the gym trying to get into shape or trying to maintain our fitness a sign of the times? Aren't we letting the quality of our life deteriorate because of our lifestyle choices?
But what I wanted to write about is the effort that has gone into getting back from being slightly overweight. It speaks volumes about my lifestyle. I used to be quite fit and not have a shred of anything that could be interpreted as body fat. A few push-ups and sit-ups at home once in a while and a few pumps of my father's old barbells used to give me that athletic muscular look. Then I didn't have to try in order to be fit. Life was good - I could eat as much as I wanted, and not have it show up in the form chubby cheeks or an expanding belly. I miss those days.
There were a couple of turning points that changed things - the first one was at the age of 18 when I stopped using my bicycle and moved to a mopped. I put on 5 kilos then! The second one was when I finished school and got a job which mostly entailed me sitting at a desk and moving only when I had to attend meetings. The increase in my weight has been meteoric!
I see all the changes from when I was 18 to my current self, over the past 10 years, as a deterioration in my lifestyle. Sure I am having fun now. But I was sure having fun back then too! Just in a different way. Now my fun mostly involves watching the telly or reading or getting some thumb action on my PS2. I miss going out with mates and participating in some sport for fun.
I now have to pay the price for the change of my definition of fun, with one hour of my waking time every day spent in the gym. And I am only doing what I could be doing as a part of my day-to-day activities and as a part of having a great time with mates!
Is the deterioration of our bodies, the accumulation of fat and the hours of time some of us spend in the gym trying to get into shape or trying to maintain our fitness a sign of the times? Aren't we letting the quality of our life deteriorate because of our lifestyle choices?
posted by the grim sleeper at 9:28 PM
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