My Own Behavior Change

I wasn’t an athletic kid, which I think is rather strange given that my parents were strong athletes in both their school and adult lives. Unfortunately, one habit I did pick up from them was smoking, stealing their cigarettes from them when I was ten years old. By the time I was fifteen, I was a full-fledge pack-a-day smoker. I dabbled with aerobics in my early twenties in an effort to look better in the dating game, but it wasn’t a meaningful attempt at improving my fitness level. It wasn’t until I was approaching thirty that I started to think about my health, and making Lifestyle Change Number One.

When a smoker tells you they need to be ‘ready’ to quit, they are right. I had quit before, for other people not for myself, and it never stuck (Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change anyone?). When I was finally ready to stop for myself, of my own choosing, I quit cold turkey and haven’t looked back. The most unusual aspect of this rather commonplace story is that I quite literally traded my cigarettes for an ice axe. I took up mountaineering as a smoking cessation technique, figuring that lung function/health played an important role in that sport! That was in 1997, and in 2008 I successfully climbed Mount Everest.

I still ate terribly however. Like most people, I wasn’t making the connection between what I ate and the health of my body. That revelation came just a few years ago, causing Lifestyle Change Number Two. As with smoking, the nutrition epiphany came to me when I was ready. There were no medical issues, no major event; I just was over forty and beginning to think of my long term future. I wanted to make sure my body was in for the long haul, and I was ready to achieve that end. My own mortality had suddenly dawned on me (hello Health Belief Model of Behavior Change!). I studied up on nutrition and health, downloaded a great calorie tracker (Livestrong MyPlate), and took charge of the situation.

The most significant result of improved diet and consistent exercise has been a 20+ pound weight loss, maintained for over two years now. While my numbers such as cholesterol and blood pressure were always in a healthy range, they too have decreased significantly. It’s the least I can do to ensure I continue to live vicariously through myself well into my golden years.

Nation's Tri - 2013