Have you ever contemplated that grain of sand clung to your foot while your chilling on the beach? For instance how it got there, how long did it take or how many of his little friends does it take to make something as gigantic as that beach your lying on? You Haven’t, that’s okay I have a tendency to think about weird things and then wonder that the answers are.
So here’s the cliff notes on the answers. erosion, currents and tides, fish poop, millions of years and one hundred trillion other grains of sand is what it takes to make that beach your lying on. In other words a lot of small things happened every single day and eventually it ended up making the awesome beach you are dreaming about right now.
A few weeks back those questions crossed my mind as I was looking back towards the beach brushing a few grains of sand off my feet before putting my shoes back on. and it got me to thinking that…
Our health is a lot like a beach.
Both are made from tiny things that over an extended period of time will accumulate to make something much bigger then themselves. Just like the ever changing beach our health from a day to day view is changing so insignificantly that we never notice something until it becomes so big that it’s obvious. The slow progress is a detriment on both sides of the equation. If you went on a crash diet and started exercising 2 times a day you will not see a dramatic change for months. Or on the flip side you wont pick up 20 lbs over night because of that extra trip down the buffet.
Design your own beach.
You may remember that 25% of our health/life expectancy can be attributed to our genetic build up leaving our daily choices to make up the lion’s share of our health. What I’m trying to say is that the decision you make today for lunch today is simultaneously the most important and least significant choice you will ever make. I’m sure you have heard the statement ” one kale salad wont make you skinny, just like one cheeseburger wont make you fat” and I totally agree with that statement. The problem/solution is that what we tend to do once often translates into what we do very often.
21 choices a week
lets do some math for a minute. lets say you started being fully conscious of the decisions you were making about your diet and nutrition at the age of 18. You eat 3 meals a day 7 days a week equaling 21 meals. You do that 52 weeks a year for 1,092 meal a year. And you live for 60 more years (78 is the average american life expectancy) that would give you a grand total of 65,520 opportunities to make an impact on your overall health and well being.
There is no way anyone on this planet can make 65,500 or so perfect decision on what they put into their bodies. If you start with the next meal and win there you may be able to put a streak together, when you win the battle at dinner and so on and so forth until that double fudge chocolate brownie yells your name loud enough. The fact of the matter is there is going to be bumps along the way that’s okay life is hard and cookies are delicious. Whats more important for our long term health is how quickly you forget about the one “poor decision” and get back on the path.
Little by little becomes a lot.
Over the past 4 years or so I was able to share this idea of small but consistent change with my family and as of today my Wife, Mom, Dad, Sister and I have lost a combined 130 lbs. We did it by starting small and working our way up to more healthy choices in our 21 meals a week. We started an exercise regime that wasn’t much in the beginning but grew into something that met our needs and kept us injury free. And perhaps most importantly allowed us the chance to have a piece of birthday cake and not feel horrible about it.
I’ve compiled a list of the 10 small changes we’ve made that have given all of us a better quality of life and over the next two weeks I am going to share them with you 1 by 1. I’m not a doctor or a dietitian and what I’m going to share with you is far from ground breaking but I truly believe that what has worked for us could make a difference in your life as well.
P.S
If you stay the course you will have that beach body you’ve always wanted, its just not going to be this summer if you are doing it for the long haul. Also a tight stomach and buff arms is nice but you know whats really sexy? Low cholesterol, low blood pressure and the way your doctor will praise you during your next physical.
Subjects to change 