It's Official, I'm Obese

I come from a long line of fat women. It's true. My great-grandmother, grandmother, mother, all my aunts . . . they all ended up fat. Some of them fought the good fight, but at the end of the race they were all at the same place. Overweight.

I only mention one side of my family, for I have no information on my fathers side. I'm a bastard. And no, I'm not saying I'm mean and kick small children and animals. (Not all the time anyway.) I was born illegitimate and my father died in Vietnam. I have no idea of the family health on that side of my family.

Most of my life I have fought not to be fat. I've worked out. Gone on endless diets. Jogged, walked, biked. You name it and I've done it. But the forties have not been good to be. Well, for a cow, they might have been good.

I know I need to get my butt in gear and start watching what I eat or find a way to work out with Will, but I keep putting it off. It is just easier to buy larger clothes than to work at loosing the weight.

About a week ago, I succumb to the checkout stand magazine rack allure and purchased All You's Health and Fitness issue. It has since been laying unopen on my dining room table, under the take out boxes. I dug it out during super and was flipping through it. I found a place where they give you the formula to figure out your BMI (Body Mass Index). Being a nerd for mathematical equations I ended up completing it and found I had a BMI of 35.

Under the formula is a table that explains the different number ranges. I look down and the very bottom of the table says "30 or higher". That would be me. And what did it say under 30 or higher?

You are obese.

I don't know why this was such a shock. Did I expect them to call me fluffy? Tell me I had big bones? I hate the word obese.

When I looked over in the other columns there was more good news. I found out that I'm at higher risk for high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, asthma, and so much more.

Hoping to get a better idea of what "obese" really was I looked up the definition online. Here are a few of my favorite phrases:

a condition in which excess body fat
has accumulated to such an extent that
health may be negatively affected

obesity has been found to reduce life expectancy

one of the most serious public health problem of the 21st century

Obesity is often stigmatized in the modern Western world


So, I'm going to be sick and die young. And they think this is worse than continually buying clothes with more XXs in them?

I did see one comforting note in the definitions of obese:

perceived as a symbol of wealth and fertility
at other times in history and
still is in many parts of Africa

You might ask, just in case a time machine is not made available and you don't win a free trip to Africa, what are you planning on doing? Am I starting a new diet tomorrow? Going to increase my exercise? Join a gym?

I've decided on a definite two-punch regiment guaranteed to make me feel better. I'm going to "post" about it, because that always takes away some of the stress when I'm dealing with things. Then I'm going to quit buying magazines on impulse; it could be deadly to your health!