Before we get started with today’s topic, I want to remind you of the goals of this website. It is to promote fitness progress and research while becoming a place of knowledge and encouragement for your journey as well.
If you would like to read more about what this website will focus on and eventually become, head on over to the About page.
Now on to the topic at hand. Have you heard people say this before?
“I’d rather be fat and happy than skinny and miserable.”
Sometimes the second half of the preceding statement will have some variants but the overarching theme is the same. This statement was really popular in the late 90s and early 00s. I haven’t heard it at all within the last decade or so.
However, a quick venture onto Google revealed this topic to still be a current discussion. There are a few posts written about it this year in fact.
I first heard this statement in retaliation to reading food labels. Counting calories started to become popular and as such, reading about the nutritional value of food became popular. This perpetuated into avoiding any meaningful exercise as well.
Some people wanted to eat whatever they desired without any thought of consequence. The thought of exercising alone was enough to make these types of people uncomfortable. The interesting part is these types of people are not actually happy.
They are settling with the lesser of two evils.
If you subscribe to this type of thinking, consider the following points:
- Just because someone is skinny doesn’t mean they are healthy. This is especially true if someone is fat.
- Being fat is a subjective description since the definition of fat will vary from person to person.
- Being happy and making healthy choices such as reading food labels and exercising are not mutually exclusive options.
- When it comes to your health and well-being, ignorance is not bliss.
- As you continue to do so, exercising and eating healthier foods will get easier with time.
I would like to conclude this post by claiming that happiness starts from within. You need to find a way to get happy now. Not by eating anything and everything you want, not when you lose 20 lbs, not when you get your dream job, or any other qualifier.
If you keep putting requirements to be happy, you will never reach happiness. One way to become happy is by raising confidence by earning small victories. Make a list of things to do today and complete that list, even if the list has menial tasks such as “research healthy recipes.”
As you complete more tasks you will become more confident. Once your confidence starts to rise, you become happier with yourself and your performance.
And while you’re at it, start exercising. Sure you may be easily fatigued and inflexible at first but everyone has to start somewhere. Take solace in the fact that it doesn’t take too long to start reaping the benefits of exercise.
In the coming weeks, I will add quick workouts you can start incorporating into your daily life. In case you haven’t visited the About page, I am a huge proponent of bodyweight exercises, stretches, isometrics, martial arts, and virtually anything involving the body.
Gadgets and fitness devices are fine but I have mostly given up weight lifting in the traditional sense.
Let me know in the comments if you agree or disagree with my assessment of this old saying and why you feel the way you do. Have you started exercising and making healthy choices again? How’s that going for you?