How Healthy Am I?

Over the last couple of years, I have been thinking about what it means to live healthy.  In relative terms, I have been generally healthy, although often overweight.  I even set out to take off some of that weight and get really fit.
I had been doing a fairly good job.  I missed the gym if I didn't get there at least 4-5 times a week.  I was even running!  This increase in exercise meant that I could eat a little "more" of the sweets that I love.

Everything was going along fine as I transitioned out of the non-profit world and back into parish ministry.  I was dedicated to getting to the gym or walking and/or running at home. 

Yet, something happened. Over time, I gradually let my commitment to exercise slip while I didn't moderate my eating habits to match that.  The pounds have slowly started to creep up again.

Every time in the past  when I have found myself in this position--suddenly, figuring out that I need to change my eating  and exercise habits-- it is like a wake up call.  One day, I look in the mirror and I see someone that I don't recognize, and that's the "tipping point."  That is the point at which I make the commitment to change. In the past, I was unhappy about how I looked. My efforts to 'get in shape' were motivated by my appearance.

But, this time was different.   The wake up call has come in another form. This time I am more concerned with my physical health than my appearance.
The wake up call was three-fold and included
1.  the discovery and subsequent surgical removal of an ovarian cyst.
2.  the discovery of hypothyroidism and my need to begin taking medicines for this
3.  the diagnosis of high cholesterol that needs to be treated with medication.
Now, none of these three things were life-threatening and none of them are probably directly related to a modest weight gain. But, all three were signals to me that I was in deed, not as healthy as I thought I was...
So.. surgery now completed and meds begun, I am now ready to concentrate on getting back into my exercise routine and changing my eating habits again.
What is becoming clear to me as I approach my 50th birthday (10/4/2013) is that I want to be has healthy as I possibly can be NOW.. before any more of my body starts to fall apart!  And it is about just that--being healthy!  If I can fit back into some of my clothing and improve my appearance, that's just an added bonus!