The kids are already counting the days to Christmas and we haven’t even had our Thanksgiving turkey yet. The older I get, the faster the time goes by. The older I get, the bigger my waistline gets especially this time of year. Well that used to true anyway.

A little over 2 years ago my doctor suggested that I choose between dying and quitting smoking. I chose to quit smoking and finally got it done on August 17, 2005. Unfortunately I had already contracted extreme emphysema and Copd. While I was busy sulking about my bad luck I put on about 30 pounds almost all of it around my middle. When I finally decided to do something about it, I used extreme Atkins for about 6 weeks to lose the first 10 pounds. Since then I have watched my carbs. I eat a tuna and lettuce salad for lunch almost every day. I am actually starting to like salads and went looking for salad recipes just recently. But my diet still includes most foods, but in moderation. I drink a lot more water and I try to balance my diet more than I did in the past. The overall result is that I now weigh around 185. I would not say that I live a healthy life style. But the improvements in that directions are significant and I am trying. Something about teaching an old dog new tricks… I am heading for 170 to 175 but I am not in a hurry anymore.

You see I was in a catch 22. The only way I could help my breathing problems was with cardio-vascular exercise. The best way to lose weigh is cardio-vascular exercise. I could not breath, so I could not exercise, so I put on weight, not a very pleasant cycle. So I started the diet and I started a very limited exercise plan with a stationery bike. Over time I have built up the time and resistance on the bike but to begin with I could not do more than 3 minutes and even then it took me about 30 minutes to recover. Hey that was over a year ago and now I function reasonably well. Back in the days of 215, I could not climb a set of stairs without resting half way up. Now I can do yardwork. But that’s enough about me.

I use myself as the example so I know you are being told the truth. Today everyone has a spin on their information which usually misleads the reader and ends up convincing him to reach for his wallet. I want to help you with your life style goals and let me bring several things to your attention:

1. The holiday season is almost upon us. Make some plans to minimize the overindulgence.
2. Never believe that it is hopeless. I was 30 pounds overweight. I suffer from severe emphysema and Copd. I persevered and now I weigh 185 and the symptoms Copd are under control.
3. Never stop trying to make it better. I expect to get my weight down to at least 175 by next summer. I expect to gradually work my exercise level up until I can go for evening walks with my wife after dinner.
4. If something sounds to good to be true, stop listening, it is too good to be true, it’s a lie.
5. Do everything you can in moderation.
6. Remember the old fable about the tortoise and the hare. When I was 20 I wanted to be the hare, now that I am 60 I want to be the tortoise.
7. Stop believing that someone else is going to do it for you. There is no magic pill for your health or your wallet. If you want to fix something, do it yourself. I you lost 1/10 of a pound a day, in a year you would have lost 36.5 pounds. If you add 10 yards to your daily walk, every day, then after a year you would be walking over 2 miles.
8. Traditional medicine including the pharmaceutical companies assume that you will seek them out for their magic surgeries and magic medicines. Stop believing them. Their financial plan fails is you recover and become healthy. Think about it…what is their motivation?