The way I see it, the national weight loss campaign which begins in earnest next week in Nevis, is a laudable idea.
It is no secret that a fair portion of our population is on average, OVERWEIGHT or in the worst case scenarios, grossly OVERWEIGHT.
David Walwyn and his FIT WELLNESS Center team must be heartily commended for coming up with the idea and Hon. Hazel Brandy-Williams must be heartily commended for not only teaming up her Ministry with the program but literally volunteering herself as an example setter and trend setter.
She has purposed in her heart that she will not only speak about persons aiming for healthier lifestyles, but that she would seek ‘TO BE THE CHANGE,’ the adopted motto of the campaign.
She was made fully aware of what she was getting into earlier today, Friday 11th January, when she was apprised of the full extent of the program by David Walwyn himself.
She will have to get assessed in terms of her current health status and weight and will enter into a rigorous dieting and exercise program, starting next week.
The Minister acknowledges that she is only human, but vows to give it her best shot and hopes that the general population on Nevis would follow suit, as the program is being offered FREE OF COST and involves free advice and counselling from top Doctors and other Medical experts.
Interested persons can register via fitnevis.website.
Now, how did we get to this state of affairs, when our forefathers used to be so slim and trim?
Well, my understanding is that in those days, even though gyms were not yet invented and persons did not go out at early mornings on rigorous walks, they stayed fit by dint of hard work, in their lands, in the mountain ranges.
They either rode donkeys or WALKED. Yes, WALKED!
Now the experts are saying that WALKING is the best form of exercise, even though I want to put SWIMMING in the mix somewhere…
As I stated previously, when I was attending the Charlestown Secondary School, school buses were not yet invented and we had to walk from Gingerland to town and back. Ask Stedmond Tross and Joseph Liburd and my other friends of that era.
Well I newa!
Nowadays, children are seen, as a common practice, paying hire buses from Chicken Stone to the Gingerland Secondary School!
Maybe the drivers should start to charge $10.00 for such a trip.
So why are we so fat? We drive everywhere and we go and we eat a lot of processed foods or JUNK foods.
The original diet as dictated by God himself, which includes FRUITS, GRAINS, VEGETABLES and NUTS, is considered YUKKY, by the younger generation.
So we eat JUNK food and then we don’t walk it off. Hence the high proportion of cases of Hypertension and Diabetes and then their further complications like kidney failure etc.
So, the program is geared towards proper nutrition and regular and deliberate exercise.
If we collectively and individually commit ourselves to such a program, a healthier lifestyle is definitely guaranteed; we will pay less health related, expensive BILLS and longevity of life is almost certainly assured—by God’s grace of course.
So, my admonition to us is for us to seek to eat more nourishing foods and exercise regularly.
Then in committing ourselves to God, we will be happier and healthier.
That’s the way I see it. How do you see it?