In a manner of speaking, fat or being fat is contagious. Not in the literal sense, obviously. You can’t brush up against somebody and “catch” fat. Instead, I am referring to the age old principle that you tend to be like the people you are around. Let’s face it, living a healthy lifestyle is hard enough. You can’t afford any negative reinforcement. If your friends don’t make working out or eating healthy a high priority, it’s going to be that much more difficult for you to do so.
The best way to make difficult decisions is to not give yourself a choice. For instance, if you only buy all natural and organic foods to keep in your pantry, you won’t have to stand there in front of it trying to decide between a healthy granola bar or potato chips. Sure you could get in your car and go to the store just to buy a box of doughnuts, but if you are like most you will not take the time to do so. Don’t give yourself a choice.
Everybody has a breaking point. If you hang out with unhealthy eating people on a consistent basis, you will be much more tempted to eat unhealthy yourself. If none of your friends work out, it’s going to be very difficult for you to go. A recent study showed that you are 50% more likely to suffer from obesity if you are around obese people the majority of the time.
I am not suggesting you go out tomorrow and ditch all your friends because they dont want to go work out with you. These are just some thoughts to keep in mind. Just remember that whether you like it or not, your friends influence you.
