wrote on Apr 28^th, 2010 at 9:11pm:

S_T I had a co-worker that smoked, knew I was always active and stayed in shape. I was just doing stuff I enjoyed. He experienced a mild heart attack. But it was bad enough to get him to stop smoking and start walking. He dropped some weight and felt great. Funny thing was he was MAD at me for not telling him how much better he would feel if he took care of his health. I had to laugh. You know people had been telling him that his whole life, he just didn't want to hear it. IMO There's nobody more on a fitness soapbox than an ex-smoker. At least that was true of this guy. Probably one of the hardest things to kick. Heck I have trouble giving up a bad girl friend. Maybe cigarettes are the 2nd hardest thing to quit.  ;D

Michigan, my home state has always been in the top ten WORST health states in the nation. Until the manufacturing base collapsed , our state had a good per capita income per worker. Money in your pocket and a two income household meant for many people dining out more than most and almost unlimited trips to the fast food outlets.

Now, many of my friends who laughed at me for my exercising/eating habits, have lost their health coverage or seen it severely cut back, with limited doctor visits and higher co-pays.

Now many of them are exercising and being proactive because its a way too avoid higher health care costs. I just smile. While I applaud anyone who makes a healthy lifestyle change, I get a kick out of some of my friends who now want to tell ME about a healthy lifestyle ;D

It's much easier to get in shape the younger you are, and waaay easier to stay in shape once your there, than start over, especially the older you get.  Your body is a wonderful piece of equipment. Smokers who haven't developed emphysema or other diseases will find that after 6 months or so, the lungs will clear themselves out and be the way they were before you started smoking.
 Loss of lung function doesn't happen overnight. It takes years. Just like getting out of shape. Soon you adapt to your diminished capacities. IF you could take a smoker or out of shape person, snap your fingers and give them 24 hours of what they had before, they would never go back to what they are now. Sadly most people take better care of their car than they do themselves :(  

I think that many who don't believe in exercise/healthy lifestyle and enjoy their trips now, would be amazed how much better they would be IF they were experienced from a healthy perspective.

But hey, ultimately everyone has to make the decision on their own.
Just remember YOUR health effects others not just yourself ;)