In response to mcoker. . .

"I love that stuff. You ever watch The Biggest Loser? I love that show. It's amazing to see how much weight these people lose on diet & exercise. It's amazing what a person can do with that combination!! I like things like this - although it was just a matter of time. I think like 60% of adults are overweight. That's just amazing to me."

60% of adults are considered overweight, but you have to take that number with a grain of salt. That is using BMI, and by the BMI, I'm overweight. Now, pretty much everyone will agree that I'm not overweight. How can someone with a muscular build with 14% body fat be overweight?

Moving on, I really don't think it's a matter of time. Yes, the obesity scare is getting bigger every day, but I don't know any larger people that are trying to lose weight and being successful at it. All I see at work is people just getting bigger. Faith and I were talking this past weekend and she said that pretty much everyone that she knows gained weight after college. Everyone! I was the lone person that has not gained weight. Well, I gained weight, but I lost it all and I'm back to my graduation weight of 184. Since I've been at my job, I've noticed that my boss has gained about 20 pounds. No one at work is healthy except the guys in my group. I sit around in meetings and there are only maybe 1 or 2 other people that I would consider of normal body weight. Everyone is getting fat and it isn't going to change. You know why it isn't going to change? It's because of Corporate America. There is such a push in some many businesses to to stay late and get that presentation for the board ready for tomorrow morning. Put in some extra hours to get ahead at work. Go smoozing with the boss after work and have a few drinks.

People end up working 60+ hours a week. If you're single, it isn't bad. Actually, who am I kidding. It's fucking horrible. You are your job. You have no hobbies outside of your job because all you do is get up, drive to work and grab a 500 calorie muffin and grande mocha, eat out lunch at the local Mexican place for lunch, and then go home and grab a burger and fries for dinner. Oh, throw in a couple of sodas at work, a trip to the vending machine for some mid afternoon sugar, and some beers after work while relaxing on the couch watching TV because you earned it after your hard day of work. I know so many people like this. They do this because their jobs tire them out so much that they have no energy to actually exercise. Also, they are bogged down with doing life stuff like paying bills, doing laundry, cleaning the apartment, etc. Our jobs are demanding so much from us that even a single person can't fit in enough time in a day to exercise. And what about the people with families? It's ridiculous.

I'm all about balance. Balance of work, of life, of my friends, of my family, of my health. I will never being middle to upper management. I'll never have a job that requires me to travel a lot. I don't mind putting in extra hours today, but don't expect me in on time tomorrow. I'm almost to the point that I try not to do too good at work because if I do too good at work, I'll get promoted with more responsibility and usually with more responsibility comes more hours. If I work more hours, I'll have to cut something out of my life and I don't want to do that. I love competing in triathlons because it gives me a social outlet to actually hang out with like minded people. It's also a great stress relief for me, and guess what, I'm in shape and I think I can look pretty damn hot!

Ok, I've gone way off topic. I'm glad shows like The Biggest Loser and Honey, We're Killing the Kids exist. Hopefully, it'll inspire people to change their ways, but it's hard to change their ways. I think TBL will change more peoples' attitudes than HWKK will. HWKK is preaching to the choir, but I think TBL will inspire more people. Problem is that the weight lose techniques on TBL I don't agree with. To me, I'm no professional physician or dietician, but it seems like the weight loss that is being promoted on that show is the type that's similar to crash diets and will likely cause rebound weight gain. How is this healthy? People can't lose weight by dramatically changing their lifestyle and then go back to their old ways. I don't think the show ever follows up with people a year or two after they go on the show. The best way to get to a healthy weight is to not diet, but do a permanent lifestyle change. Luckily, I found this out in my 20's instead of my 40's.

Fuck, Mike, now you've gotten me all worked up and I need to go to bed soon.

Point is, people aren't going to change because it's hard to change and most people don't have the will power to make sacrifices to change. It's only going to get worse and it's mostly because of American culture and working hard to get things that you want. Was it worth the high stress job and $150k a year if you drop dead at 55 from a heart attack? I'm now in the minority because I can run 3 miles and do 50 pushups.