Long Shot or Sure Bet?

I spent a long time thinking that I could somehow escape the consequences of my obesity.  It wasn't that I was unaware of the health risks I faced, but I hoped that somehow I would beat the odds and be one of those rare individuals who was both fat AND healthy.  My chance of beating the health risk odds was probably on a par with winning a mega millions lottery (which I will never win because I won't ever play!).  Fat chance!

So many of us spent years gambling with our health, and many of us finally made the decision to get started on this program when our odds ran out.  For me, it was being diagnosed with diabetes. Wake up calls for others have included heart attacks, by-pass surgery, or the need for a C-pap machine for sleep apnea. 

What's exciting is that the Take Shape for Life/Medifast program gives us the opportunity to often reverse the conditions that finally brought us (perhaps borderline kicking and screaming!) here.  My diabetes is gone and I'm off of all medications.  C-pap machines have been returned, no-longer-needed medications disposed of, and individuals who have been under the care of a cardiologist for heart conditions have been discharged from the practice because of the improvement in their health.  Other health improvements are too numerous to be listed here!

The odds of most people reversing disease and getting off medication are pretty slim - conventional wisdom is that once on a med, always on a med.  For most individuals, one medication almost inevitably leads to a higher and higher dose, followed by additional medications.  The opposite is often true here:  the longer someone is on Take Shape for Life/Medifast and the healthier they get (this is an optimal health program, after all!), the fewer medications they are probably on. 

Every day on this program, people are beating the odds of disease.  We are preventing disease and often reversing disease as cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels and blood pressure numbers return to normal.  Those are the kind of odds I like - a LOT!

So what kind of a gambler are you today?  Are you still playing the odds that you will be able to get away with unhealthy eating habits and an unhealthy weight?  If so, that's a long shot at best, and you're gambling with your health. 

Instead, consider the odds of your health improving if you stay on plan and reach your weight loss goal.  Getting and staying healthy really isn't a gamble, because making healthy choices has an very consistent and predictable pay off.  Living a healthy, vibrant life is far better than winning a mega million lottery, because that kind of life is priceless!

The choices you make determine whether you're going for a long shot or a sure thing . . . choose wisely :-)