Men, read this!
It’s Men’s Health Week this week.
This is an important week as it highlights all the things we as men tend to hide from.
We like to think we are infallible and that the different health scares and things we see and read about could never happen to us.
We have grown up in a society where talking about your feelings is largely frowned upon and is a show of weakness if we do it. But that isn’t the case.
We are neither infallible or weak, most of the time we are stupid or afraid or some combination of the 2.
So, it’s time to man up and start taking care of our physical and mental health.
If you are in a bad place mentally, talk to someone.
There is only a 50% chance that men who are feeling depressed would talk to someone about it.
We can view this as a sign of weakness and this leaves us in a place where we bottle it up instead of telling someone.
Don’t leave things until they are too late.
Hiding things from your partner or family or friends might be what we tend to do, but it isn’t manly and it sure as hell isn’t smart.
Talk to your partner
Talk to your G.P
Talk to a colleague or friend.
Just talk and don’t try and deal with things on your own.
Ireland has one of the highest obesity rates in the world.
38% of Irish men are obese and it is growing each year.
While being overweight is becoming ‘accepted’ and is being normalised, it is NOT normal and there are worse things that come from being overweight or obese.
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Some cancers
- Gallbladder disease and gallstones
- Breathing problems, such as asthma and sleep apnea
- Osteoarthritis
- Gout
All of the list above are obesity related diseases, and while some might not be caused by it directly, if you have a family history of any of these, being overweight makes it more likely that you will be affected.
Gaining weight and getting unhealthy as you grow older is NOT growing old Gracefully.
After the age of 35;
- Your Metabolism will slow down.
- Your testosterone levels will drop
- You will lose muscle mass
- You will find it easier to gain weight
This, however is no reason to give up.
Eating healthier and exercising will offset all of the above and make a huge difference to your overall health.
Men, you need to look after yourselves right now and even more so, when you pass your 30s
- Start exercising.
- Lift weights
- Reduce alcohol consumption
- Increase protein and veg in your diet
- Do some cardio
- Drink more water
- Get more sleep.
- Get a yearly MOT
All these things will help you to maintain a healthy lifestyle well into middle age.
If you haven’t had a health check ever or haven’t had one in years, stop sitting on your hands and get checked.
It’s a great Irish trait to say ‘ah, it’ll be grand’ and that’s fine until it isn’t.
So, it’s time to Man up and get checked out.
If you’ve found something and are scared to say, tell someone NOW.
If you are a father and have kids, you need to realise that they are great mimics and that they will copy and learn from us and what we do.
If you don’t exercise, have a bad diet and spend most of your day in front of the television, you can’t question why your kids are doing the same.
So, time to pull up the big boy pants and prove you’re a real man.
Stop with the excuses, man up and start being a hero for your wife and kids.
Start exercising, start eating better and let’s use this week to change old habits.
There is a list of contacts in the Men’s Health Forum in Ireland
If you need to talk to someone about a health issue or for anything you might need, you can find all
information through the link above.
#leanin2018