By Riley Schwengel

Contributing Writer

Flip on the television today, turn to any channel and wait for the commercials come on–chances are, a few of those ads are going to be selling a weight loss program, an exercise DVD set or a new diet that is “guaranteed” to make the pounds fall off.  Now go online to Facebook. On the sides of the screen there are plenty of ads proclaiming that you can become the healthy you you’ve always imagined.  Our culture is obsessed with healthy living; the question is, what entails a healthy lifestyle?  What exactly do we need to do to become healthier individuals? 

There are thousands of programs, each proclaiming that it is the “correct” way to become fit, but where is the truth behind the pizzazz?  I always assumed that getting in shape was a huge commitment–that required sacrifice and a lot of hard work.  Popular media also gives this impression.  Just from watching “Rocky,” I believed that I would have to get up at dawn, eat raw eggs, and sprint for miles just to get a good workout.  Is staying healthy really that hard?

In truth, it actually is not.  According to the Handbook of Healthy Living Change,  a moderate intensity workout for 30 minutes, five days a week, is all you need to stay fit.  If you do a vigorous workout, then it is only necessary to  exercise three times a week.  No waking up at dawn, no raw eggs and no crazy distances–just 30 minutes out of 24 hours and five days out of the week.  But if it is this easy, why don’t more people do it?  I believe that most people do not have this information.  They buy into the lie that staying in shape is a huge commitment and that they must sacrifice in order to be successful. This lie scares people away from even getting more information on the subject.

Diets are even worse.  Advertisers promote exotic diets that the average person believes that he needs to access such weird and unavailable food to eat right.  The truth is that diets don’t need to be specialized at all, they just need to be balanced. You can eat whatever you want as long as you get the right amounts of fats, carbohydrates and sugars that our bodies need to function. 

All in all, it’s not that hard to keep in shape.  It doesn’t require the sacrifice and hard work that we all think it does.  Staying in shape just requires commitment, and a relatively small one at that.  The problem is not that it is too hard, but that no one knows how easy it can be.