Obesity, who is to blame? pt2

In part 1 my focus on the obesity issue was directed at what I see as the failings of the exercise industry as a whole. The over complication of such a simple under taking on so many levels all because of business and money making opportunities and at times ego driven mentalities. Its a shame because as more and more media opportunities present themselves in this global communication phenomenon it would seem that money is still king.

We have a crisis in this country there is no denying that when large sections of the population make blue whales look like tic tac’s. And yet we are still sleep walking into a frightening future not only because of the direct health issues but also the crippling financial consequences this will throw up in having to deal and treat these problems. A recent article by The Lancet has nearly half of the male population in Britain obese within the next 20 years. With a rise by as much as 17 percent in women. By 2030 the figure could be as high as 26million people being obese. This will be up 11million in under 20 years at a projected cost of an extra £2billion a year to treat obesity related diseases.

Frightening figures when you consider we are supposed to be more aware and educated about what we put into our mouths and how it  affects us. Yet there seems to be no stopping this obesity monster, and its a double edged sword. Everywhere you turn there are businesses offering food sources which greatly contribute to the problem. Peoples lifestyle choices can be as such that they find it extremely difficult to sit down and eat a nutritiously balanced diet or get to the gym to exercise. But if by some miracle all these issues could be changed with only quality food sources being allowed to be sold, time allowed for trips to the gym or to exercise at home, would the people of Britain then feel that their freedom of choice had been taken away from them and that they were living in a nanny state?

Not only that but what about the economic vacuum that would ensue with job losses through lost revenue for all the things that contributed to the obesity epidemic in the first place and those that are in place to treat the epidemic from the drug companies to the fitness industry. You’re ending up in a situation of robbing Peter to pay Paul.

It would seem that one sector cannot survive without the other and obesity is just cannon fodder in the middle.

When all is said and done its down to choice. Your choice. You are the architect of your own destiny and what you do today will affect you if not tomorrow but some time down the line.

If you do choose to make a change to your lifestyle and are in the Watford region then why not pop down to my good friends gym and mention where you heard about the place. You’ll be made very welcome and there could well be a reduction in your first training session fee.

New Spartan Gym

Steven A Barlow, Co founder www.spartan-warriors.co.uk and founder of Spartan Runners “because we don’t just run” © 2011

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