Who I Am Not!

OK, this has come up close to two dozen times in the last week so it must be addressed.

No, I am not "like" Jared (The Subway guy) in any way, and there is no correlation between me resurrecting my athletic self, and Jared who had to be admitted to hospital during college because of his obesity. I went to hospital once in college too - FROM A RUGBY INJURY!

There is a difference! Look at me in college, and look at Jared in college. Who can point out the subtle difference between us?

I was a normal, athletic, thin, American kid (well, normal back in the 70's unlike the sadly chubby Grammar School kids today). I played both collegiate football and rugby. I played competitive rugby throughout my 20's. Jared never wore a jockstrap in his life.

And then I turned 30. And then I got lazy. For a decade I chose to please my palette over taking care of my body. I was never a junk-food junkie (the blog photo notwithstanding), but I over-indulged in beer and tasty, high fat food. I am like a majority of Americans. We were not born obese, we do not have a glandular problem, we just chose to get fat - nobody's fault but ours.

Now, God Bless Jared - he started walking, changed his eating habits and lost over 200 lbs. He extended his natural life by decades. I don't want to disparage the guy, but there is a huge difference between people who lived an entire life of obesity before getting a wake-up call, and most Americans who were active most of their life and then put taking care of their bodies on hold.

Americans cheer people on TV shows like "The Biggest Loser," but it is important to look at ourselves. Just because you are not 200 lbs overweight, don't shake your head in pity at that fat bastard with his shirt off and tears coming down his cheeks in front of millions of people; put down that slice of pizza, eat vegetables and move your body more - even 15 lbs over-weight is too much.

OK, I am putting the soap box away. Final lesson: (1.) Don't call me Jared. (2.) Eat a nutrient-dense diet!

Good night, and good luck.