No Pain, No Gain!

It’s no secret that the U.S. spends more on

healthcare than just about anywhere, and yet our longevity, infant mortality and other key health indicators are actually slipping compared to other countries.


Whether you think the Obama Administration’s funding to collect the medical records of every U.S. citizen for the purpose of reviewing the costs involved in their care is a good idea or not, one thing is for certain: Lace up those shoes, it’s time to go jogging!

Not every illness is preventable, to be sure. But plenty are, or wouldn’t be exacerbated if we took better care of ourselves. I don’t have to tell you to eat better, get eight hours a night of sleep, and exercise; you’ve heard that over and over. Here are a few suggestions how to build it into your daily life:

• Can you walk or bike to work? For errands? (A cheap bike trailer can hold several bags of groceries and give your quads even more of a workout!


• Park farther away from your destination and force yourself to walk>


• Go on a junk food fast for a week. Then another. Then another. Before long, the stuff won’t even taste good anymore. (That’s how I kicked my $400/year soda habit.)


• Impose a strict “no eating in front of the T.V.” rule.


• No more excuses; go to bed when you’re supposed to!


• Grow a vegetable garden this year.


• Workout with friends. You won’t want to let them down, even if the couch is singing its Siren song.

Diabetes care and quadruple bypasses aren’t getting any cheaper. Avoid them with preventative measures!