Although never alcoholic, I used to drink copious amounts of alcohol on a regular basis, using the excuse that it was all part of my culture and that’s what English men do. Well, yes, this is true to an extent, but in retrospect, the integrity and wisdom of the English men to whom this refers is questionable! Luckily, I met a wonderful woman and later married. She and her family were well-informed Thai Buddhists, and from that point on I began to understand that several of my behaviors were doing far more bad than good, on both physical and emotional fronts.
The reality of the physical problems kicked in when I went for my first medical examination – and in Thailand they examine every minute detail. Everything came back normal apart from my weight. Unbelievably, I was referred to as obese and was told that I had slightly high blood pressure. My heart sank, I felt a little dizzy. However, my ego and mind refused to accept this verdict, and immediately demanded it produce a far better reason for this horrible error than the perfectly acceptable and absolutely unchangeable pastime, not to mention cultural duty, of getting ludicrously drunk.
Perhaps Thai doctors use slightly different terminology, I convinced myself. But no. It was true. I was officially obese. OBESE! After checking several websites and comparing my weight and height ratios, I conceded that it was true. There it was in black and white. How could I have gone from a lithe and handsome 18 year old to Jabba The Hut in 10 years? I was more than 20 kilos overweight and beginning to feel very unhappy about the fact that what I knew was happening but had chosen to sideline in favour of gluttony, had now entered into the realms of mainstream reality.
ME OR MEE?
I decided At that point, right there at the hospital, that something needed to be done. Strangely enough, as if to drive the nail further into the coffin, so to speak, a few days later my wife received a call from her uncle. His brother, Uncle Mee, was dead. He’d spent the last few days of the Thai new year drinking several bottles of whiskey and had preferred to sing wildly out of tune karaoke all night every night rather than go to sleep. The next day he was apparently ‘sober’ – meaning that he hadn’t consumed any alcohol that day – and returned to work. At lunchtime he left his office building and went to cross the street to a small restaurant opposite. But he never made it. He collapsed dead on the side of the street in the blazing sun. he’d suffered a massive aneurism. He left behind three small sons and a wife.
In the evening of the same day the extended family, friends, relatives and colleagues met at a downtown temple and attended the first evening of his Thai Buddhist funeral. He was laid out in an open casket, his hand hanging over one edge. As I approached the body of Uncle Mee, whom I knew well, too, I raised my hands to my nose in a traditional wai and poured water over his hand. At that moment, I realized that my life needed far more than the cursory modifications that I had initially agreed with myself upon in the hospital a few days earlier. The site of Uncle Mee scared me. In fact, you could say that it scared the old life out if me and made way for the new.
From that point on, I decided to research about how to live the most profitable (in every sense of the word) life possible. I discussed this quest with my in laws and became much more interested in and aligned with Buddhist philosophy. One of the very first things I realized was that a healthy body and a sharp, healthy mind would form the basis of my new exploration into the meaning of life. (As I was to realize again and again, most things in life are simple, but the only way to see them in their simplicity is to tune into to the right ‘frequency’, or correct thinking.)
Over the next two years I managed to lose 22 kilos, as well as reconfigure many aspects of my life. My fight with obesity was over. Of course, as is the case with every single thing in this life, at its core, it is actually very simple.
HOW I DID IT
I consistently ate less, I consistently drank less (no more than 6 small bottles of 5 per cent per week), I consistently ate sensibly, I consistently drank lots of water, I consistently went to bed early (and got at least 8 hours sleeper night), and I did consistently moderate amounts of exercise and weight training. That’s it. Forget any crazy diets, new exercise fads or the like and focus on a few very simple targets. At the end of the day, humans have been evolving successfully for thousands of years, and there is no secret to a healthy body – it is very straightforward and only demands you use your brain and common sense. So, here are the five golden rules that I created and followed consistently:
Be absolutely consistent by setting moderate and achievable goals;
Eat less, but eat all the essential food groups;
Drink lots and lots and lots of water;
Exercise moderately (this may be a brisk 30 minute walk 5 times per week), including weight training, if you like;
Get enough sleep.
It’s okay to cheat and have a pizza one Saturday afternoon with your friends, or have a few bottles of beer at the weekend (but not too may!), as long as you are revert back to the golden rules above ASAP and stick with it for the vast majority of the time. After a short while, your body will turn into a blast furnace and quickly burn up and excess calories that you throw in from time to time (the odd pizza or Heineken four Pack! Ooops!), but don’t let yourself slip back into old, bad habits. You’ll be surprised by how quickly your body and mind adapt to these new changes, as long as they are not too severe.
CONSISTENCY
Lastly, remember point number one, consistency? Well, this is the most important thing of all. So, make sure that you can handle whatever regimen you install into your life. Be wary of good intentions, and instead be realistic. Raise the bar and challenge yourself, but don’t push yourself too hard, as it may have an adverse affect! Think of it as a lifestyle change for the rest of your life. Make this change from tomorrow morning – it is never too late. After all, you don’t want to end up like Uncle Mee, do you?
What next?
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