Cheaper to Gain than to Lose!

This is true. It’s cheaper to gain weight than it is to lose it. And, the economic downturn is partly to blame. People are stressed, and turn to cheap comfort foods like pizza, chips, ramen noodles, microwave burritos, processed foods, and pre-packaged foods such as macaroni and cheese and frozen meals. All are less expensive than say, chicken, fish and other lean sources of protein, or fresh greens—and all are loaded with fat and sodium. In fact, McDonald’s reported sales increases of 5.4 percent in January, which it attributed to the success of its “core” menu (burgers, fries and soda).

Yet, consider this: If you focus on the healthy choices, and skip the fast food and processed, pre-packaged foods, you’ll come out ahead—and with leftovers.

And, it’s not just about the food. Gym and fitness club memberships are down. The International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association reported that gym memberships fell by nearly two million between 2006 and year-end 2008.

But, all is not lost. Even if you are stressed, worried and feeling pinched, you don’t have to trade healthy habits for unhealthy ones, and in fact, now is exactly the time to start enforcing healthier choices—to maintain your health. Like we said, it’s cheaper to gain weight than to lose it, and it’s also cheaper to stay healthy than to try to regain health. Go back and read some of our earlier posts for tips on making healthy choices and finding ways to become more physically active. Get a group together at work to “take the LoneStart Challenge.” (And yes, this is our Blog, so we get to promote our program!)

Our responsibility for health begins at home. There are some challenges we all face we can’t do much about individually—but health and wellness is one that’s up to us.