Right now there’s thousands of memes circulating about how fat we’re all going to be after the quarantine is lifted. The truth of the matter is simply that one excuse is as good as another. It’s ALWAYS a good time to get and stay healthy, but now that our immune system is being taxed with a “new” challenge, it’s the very best time ever.

1-As stated above, you need to be healthy now more than ever. Your overall health is the most important factor in the strength of your immune function. Do it up right.

2-It’s about to be HOT! The heat of summer will be much better tolerated at your healthiest weight. Imagine carrying two big bags of dogfood across the desert, the desert will be hot either way but much easier to traverse at a lower weight.

3-Better self esteem is a side-effect of weight management. Now when all kinds of mental and psychological problems are arising in a lot of us due to the stress of COVID-19, better self-esteem is a tool that we can use. It will help alleviate many other issues by promoting excellent self care. It’s hard to be depressed and pampered at the same time.

4-You won’t have as many medical bills. If your income has been affected by this insanity, you need your money for other things.

5-You won’t be bored. Spend your time in quarantine getting fit and healthy. I promise, you won’t have time to be bored.

6-You will spend LESS on food. Yep, I know that you don’t necessarily believe that but you will. Good, whole food cooked at home costs a lot less than drive-thru.

7-You will decrease your exposure to the virus. If you are staying home, working out at home or outside in your neighborhood and cooking at home you will avoid the exposure at the drive-thru. Although the restaurants are being very cautious about food handling, that young lady very well may have touched the hands of the person in the car ahead of you. There you go, exposure. Stay home and cook healthy meals that encourage weight loss and overall health.

8-There is no designated end to the virus threat right now so exactly how long do you think that you can thrive overeating in the darkness of your den in front of the T.V.? How far are you planning to let yourself go? Use this time to go in the other direction and when quarantine is over you will emerge better than you went into isolation.

9-See this time as a chance to achieve a lifetime goal. We often hear that “Right now is not a good time for me. I’m going to wait until…” Again, one excuse is as good as another. See the lack of ordinary life as a reprieve from the burden of over-scheduling and take advantage of this down-time.

10-The sooner you get healthy, the healthier you will be for a lifetime. Sometimes when we let health problems go for a long period of time, they do irreparable damage that we have to live with for the rest of our lives which may not be very long if the damage is bad enough. Take action now to reverse that trend.

You have heard that when life hands you lemons, make lemon-ade. I say that when life hands you lemons, make life take the lemons back. Create your life, lemons and all.