I know not all of you teamRIPPED faithful are in the USA, but the vast majority of you are. And guess what … we are a bunch of FATTIES! Look at this data from 1998 (just 12 years ago) about the obesity rate in America (as defined by a BMI over 30, which is equivalent to a 5’4″ person being over 30 lbs overweight):
Notice all the Dark Blue! Those Dark Blue areas are states where 15-19% of the population is obese! Not good! Oh, but wait, that was 12 years ago. What’s it looking like these days?
The Centers for Disease Control issued the following Data in 2009. Sad stuff!
There’s only 1 blue state left! We thought blue was bad in 1998 — now we only have one state still in the blue! The rest are way past blue!!! Most states are at least 25% obese!
And I live in Oklahoma, where we are trying to set some sort of FLAB record! One third of my state is OBESE!! Good grief!
That 10 year trend should shock and scare every one of us! What’s it going to look like by 2020? 2030?
Oh, and did you realize that not only are we a bunch of fatties, we are also busting our budgets thanks to obesity-related medical costs Check out these numbers:
State-Level Estimated Annual Medical Costs of Obesity
Estimated Adult Obesity-Attributable Percentages and Expenditures, by State (1998–2000)
| State | (Millions $) |
| Alabama | $1320 |
| Alaska | $195 |
| Arizona | $752 |
| Arkansas | $663 |
| California | $7675 |
| Colorado | $874 |
| Connecticut | $856 |
| Delaware | $207 |
| District of Columbia | $372 |
| Florida | $3987 |
| Georgia | $2133 |
| Hawaii | $290 |
| Idaho | $227 |
| Illinois | $3439 |
| Indiana | $1637 |
| Iowa | $783 |
| Kansas | $657 |
| Kentucky | $1163 |
| Louisiana | $1373 |
| Maine | $357 |
| Maryland | $1533 |
| Massachusetts | $1822 |
| Michigan | $2931 |
| Minnesota | $1307 |
| Mississippi | $757 |
| Missouri | $1636 |
| Montana | $175 |
| Nebraska | $454 |
| Nevada | $337 |
| New Hampshire | $302 |
| New Jersey | $2342 |
| New Mexico | $324 |
| New York | $6080 |
| North Carolina | $2138 |
| North Dakota | $209 |
| Oklahoma | $854 |
| Ohio | $3304 |
| Oregon | $781 |
| Pennsylvania | $4138 |
| Puerto Rico | |
| Rhode Island | $305 |
| South Carolina | $1060 |
| South Dakota | $195 |
| Tennessee | $1840 |
| Texas | $5340 |
| Utah | $393 |
| Vermont | $141 |
| Virginia | $1641 |
| Washington | $1330 |
| West Virginia | $588 |
| Wisconsin | $1486 |
| Wyoming | $87 |
| Total | $75,051 |
What would our founding fathers think to see us eating ourselves to death in this glorious free country they fought and bled to give us??
The foods we eat every day contribute to our well-being. Foods provide us with the nutrients we need for healthy bodies and the calories we need for energy. If we eat too much, however, the extra food turns to fat and is stored in our bodies. If we overeat regularly, we gain weight, and if we continue to gain weight, we become obese.
Obesity means accumulation of excess fat on the body. Obesity is considered a chronic (long-term) disease, like high blood pressure or diabetes. It has many serious long-term consequences for your health, and it is the second leading cause of preventable deaths in the United States (tobacco is the first). Obesity is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of greater than 30. The BMI is a measure of your weight relative to your height. Granted, BMI doesn’t take into account the amount of muscle mass an individual has. So in my case, I have a higher than normal BMI even though I am not at all fat. However, the cases of high BMI due to muscularity is such a small portion of the population that it hardly matters in this discussion.
Obesity is an epidemic in the United States and in other developed countries. More than half of Americans are overweight-including at least 1 in 5 children. Nearly one third are obese. Obesity is on the rise in our society because food is abundant and physical activity is optional. Gone are the days when kids played outside all day. Now it’s video games, TV, and junkfood.
Each year, Americans spend billions of dollars on dieting, diet foods, diet books, diet pills, and the like. Another $45 billion is spent on treating the diseases associated with obesity. Furthermore, businesses suffer an estimated $20 billion loss in productivity each year from absence due to illness caused by obesity.
My question to you is what are you doing to fight obesity? I’m sure we all know someone who can benefit from P90X, Insanity, Power 90, Turbo Fire, or Chalean Extreme. Lets Spread the word and try to help bring this obesity % down!! We can make a difference! It starts with us! We can make the change first in ourselves. Then in our family. Then in our neighborhood. Then in our churches / workplace / etc. It’s a ripple effect. Let’s do it!
Need a coach?
My email: coachwayne@teamripped.com
IG: @wayne_wyatt
