What does health really mean?

What is health for you?

For a lot of people health is associated with a healthy weight and if you look healthy then you must be healthy, right? I say no, that is not necessary. As an easy and a bit exaggerated example, if someone is at a healthy weight and looks healthy and they exercise regularly but eats low quality foods, fast foods, processed foods, refined sugary foods, drinks a lot of alcohol and is not sleeping enough, I would say they are not healthy and they are not taking care of their health. A different take on this example is, someone who looks healthy but trains a lot, perhaps a serious hobby athlete, but is not fueling with quality food, is not getting enough quality sleep and works too much, they might be a on a scale from 1-10 a 10 on fitness but a 4 with their overall health. 

I think I got my point across with those examples. For me being healthy is a combination of exercise, food, lifestyle and stress. What the ratio is when combining these will depend on the person and what their circumstances are. 

When I work with clients this is something I try to get across. Taking the step to start exercising is a big one but might be the easiest if you compare it with having to manage your work hours, or food habits. 

I have seen throughout the years people ignoring the quality of the food they eat when they appear healthy. I know of adults that are skinny looking  and have been their whole life and still get type 2 diabetes due to their food habits. Perhaps it’s just another example like the one above but just wanted to make the point that being healthy is not only about weight and fitness.