The world has become heavier since the start of the pandemic.
It was a patient who taught me the new meaning of COVID-19. He was referring to the 19 pounds he gained in the first year of the pandemic.
Pandemic weight gain is another world-wide phenomenon. The American Psychological Association Stress in America survey conducted in February 2021 found 42% of American adults reported undesired weight gain over the past year. The average weight gain was 29 pounds.
If you’ve gained weight over the past two years, don’t be hard on yourself. You are not alone.
Almost everyone has become more sedentary. Many have been out of work. Those lucky enough to be working from home have been spending most of their time sitting.
With health restrictions affecting our community centres, team sports, gyms and pools, most of us fell out of our usual social and recreational routines.
Our eating habits changed as well. Many of us have found some solace from stress with comfort foods, and having food delivered has become the new normal.
If you’ve become more sedentary and are now ready to take the first step to better health, start with walking. It’s the easiest gateway physical activity. As little as 30 minutes of walking each day has been shown to improve fitness, bone density, muscle strength, endurance and emotional health. Walking has also been shown to help prevent and manage diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure.
The annual Walk30 Challenge is a friendly competition between Burnaby and New Westminster to inspire everyone in our community to walk every day. It runs from now until May 15.
Walking is the easiest way to improve your health. It’s good for our bodies and our environment. It connects us with our neighbourhoods and one another.
Walk every day for five weeks and track your progress.
Signing up is free and easy. Simply register at www.best.bc.ca/walk30registration.
As part of the Burnaby Division of Family Practice’s Empowering Patients public health education program, I’ll be giving a free online talk on What You Should Know About Healthy Eating at 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 21.
You’ll learn why you are what you eat – the powerful effects of diet on health, the essentials of a healthy diet, healthy eating on a budget, making lasting positive lifestyle changes, and the updated Canada Food Guide. I’ll also talk about the potential benefits and cautions around intermittent fasting, keto and paleo diets.
For more information or to sign up, please check https://divisionsbc.ca/burnaby/for-patients/empowering-patients
Dr. Davidicus Wong is a family physician. His Healthwise Column appears regularly in this paper. For more on achieving your positive potential in health, read his blog at davidicuswong.wordpress.com.
