There’s a new saying that we use around the dojang: “Strong is the new skinny.
I once had a student named Cathy who, unfortunately, was pretty heavy at one point. She lost a lot of weight using a very famous weight loss program. Because she had done such a great job with her weight loss, the company hired her as a counselor.
When she got to my school, Cathy continued to work for this company and continued to go down in dress sizes. But, she actually started to put weight back on because she was developing muscle. And, because of that, they actually fired her!
I felt really bad about it at the time, but Cathy later told me that she was actually really happy about it. She said that even though she was putting weight on, she felt stronger, healthier, and more confident. And, that this particular program (and others like it) was flawed because they only used pounds as a way to gauge success.
The fact is, people are being used by the health and weight loss industry. They’re being set up for failure because many of the things that these programs teach people are quick fixes, intended for short term results. Very often, if people stop eating their food or buying their products, they will gain the weight back, and then some.
Weight loss is a major concern of people these days. But, unfortunately, people think more about simply losing weight, and not about what weight they’re actually losing. They don’t think about things like muscle, body mass, etc.
And, they think if they just stop eating, or go on some special diet, that this is a great way to lose weight.
By taking Tae Kwon-Do at our school, people lose weight through changing their lifestyle. I’m not telling people to turn into a health guru, or to become a gym rat. Instead, we are instilling you with great self-confidence, which allows you to take the first step toward changing. Then, we help you develop self-discipline, which gives you the tools that you need in order to achieve the weight loss. Then, we teach you about your optimal weight and body size.
We also teach people to be less concerned with their body image. Instead, we teach them to be more concerned with their overall image as a person (which ultimately leads to a healthier body image anyway).
It’s kind of funny, because on one of my doctor’s reports, it said “patient is overweight.” According to the antiquated charts that the medical industry still uses, I am considered “overweight” for my size. But, a lot of my weight comes from muscle.
So, you can lose weight, but you can also gain weight and still be healthy. And that’s really what it’s all about.
I doubt that anyone who looks at me will say that I’m overweight.
At least not to my face, anyway.
Master Gorino’s Tae Kwon-Do offers a trial program for individuals and families in Buffalo, NY and the surrounding areas that allows you to get a feel for the different classes, meet our instructors, and experience our dojang. It’s a great way to see if Tae Kwon-Do is right for you. To learn more or to sign up, register online or call (716) 836-KICK (5425) and a member of our team will follow up with you on next steps. We look forward to helping you achieve your goals. Pil-Sung!
