Our Responsibility to Health and Wellness

It is my belief that we not only have the ability to live at a healthy weight, but that we also have the responsibility to do so. We owe it to ourselves, our ancestors and our neighbors. In this blog post I would like to discuss this key concept that I often bring up with clients.

The Privilege of Modern Society

Today we live in the most advanced society ever. We have extraordinary modern conveniences, access to the best healthcare ever, and the ability to improve our social position if we choose to. Simply by living today we are among the luckiest human beings ever to live. I have no doubt that any English Lord from 1000 years ago would gladly change positions with a regular working class American of today. The advancements and potential increase in life expectance greatly outweigh the power and prestige of being a nobleman. On top of this, we are also fortunate enough to live in a developed society. Make no mistake, much of the world’s population still lives in situations that would make most Americans gasp. In this respect we are among the luckiest of the lucky. We are the societal lottery winners. And yes, I consider it just dumb luck that we ended up in this situation.

The Obligation to Lead Healthy Lives

In my opinion, with all of these advantages we have an obligation to lead the healthiest and most productive lives that we can. Just to be clear, I am not saying that we have no excuse for being overweight or living with preventable health conditions, I am saying that we have a responsibility to not live this way. We have a responsibility not to waste the opportunity that we have been given. The other 99% percent of human beings that have lived on the earth would gladly change places with you AND do their absolute best to live a happy AND healthy life.

Embracing Discomfort for Betterment

I know that losing weight (if you are overweight), maintaining weight and living healthy can seem cumbersome. In my opinion it is little more than inconvenient. It get’s to a point where some of us are so accustomed to convenience and ease that we completely reject anything that is difficult. Make no mistake, doing things that are a bit difficult and then reaping the reward of your efforts is one of the foundations for a fulfilling life.

So again, in my opinion, we have a responsibility to make ourselves a bit uncomfortable in order to make our lives better. We are talking here specifically about health, but the same mentality could be used to improve financial circumstances, relationships, or any other aspect of our lives that we control.

The Impact on Others

One final thought on our responsibility to be as healthy as we can, if we are dealing with preventable disease (this certainly doesn’t apply to those who are dealing with health conditions outside of there control), you owe it to your direct neighbors to improve your health as well. Healthcare is exceedingly expensive for all, and a lot of that cost is driven up by preventable disease. Health issues also contribute to a lack of productivity which, inevitably, hurts the economy. So, if you are not going to do it for your ancestors or those on the other side of the globe, focus on your health for yourself and your neighbors.