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Physical Fitness

January 6th, 2015 at 03:05 pm

Is there a relationship between physical fitness and financial fitness? I suspect there is.

I tried a little experiment this holiday season. I weighed myself a day or two before Thanksgiving. My weight was 203.8 pounds. I weighed myself again yesterday. I didn't weigh myself a single time in between. My weight yesterday was 204.0 pounds. I joked that I probably grew 0.2 pounds of hair during that time. Actually, I fully realize that our bodies can fluctuate in weight just during the day, so the two weights are essentially identical. But, I met my goal of not gaining weight during the holidays.

For reference, I'm 6'1" tall, and my BMI is 26.9, which still puts me solidly in the "overweight" category, but not in the "obese" category.

I've had a goal of 185 pounds for several years. I weigh less in the summer time, when I'm more active, But I don't think I've weighed less than 195 pounds for a long time. I was 165 pounds when I graduated high school in 1991, and 175 pounds when I was married, five years later. I've probably been +190 pounds for 15 years.

So, back to my original question - is there a relationship between physical fitness and financial fitness? It would seem that at a minimum, one would be spending less on high cost junk foods if one were trying to lose weight. And, as long as one weren't buying high dollar equipment and gym memberships that one cannot afford, one would save money while trying to lose weight.

But, really it seems to me that the discipline related to keeping weight off would flow right into your financial decisions as well.

I've never been one to make New Year resolutions. It's always seemed silly to me to decide on lifestyle changes just because the calendar shows a bigger number. But, here I am, at the beginning of the New Year, and I'd like to commit to becoming more physically fit, as well as more financially fit. I've got no specific weight goal, other than that elusive 185 pounds that I've had for five or six years. But, let's put this down as a goal for now - that I weigh something less than 200 pounds at the end of winter.

3 Responses to “Physical Fitness”

  1. frugalredhead Says:
    1420564562

    You can do it!! My husband was aout 165-170 when I met him, and by this past May he was up to 207. He likes to joke that he gained all the baby weight from my 2 pregnancies with me Smile After my first son was born, I lost all the baby weight and then some (yay!) but after my second, I still hadn't lost the baby weight and he was 3 years old.

    Instead of buying each other useless birthday presents, we got Fitbits. I was already working out on and off, but wasn't too good about what I was eating, while he hadn't stepped foot on the treadmill in years. We started being more active, cooking healthier meals, and we are very competitive so we were always trying to get more steps than the other person, which was very motivational!

    As of right now, I have lost 18 pounds and he has lost almost 35!

    Now, for your question about the relationship between financial fitness and physical fitness, for me there is absolutely a relationship. When our debt was completely out of control, and it didn't seem like it would ever get any better, the overall feeling of my life being out of control caused me to stress eat. On the flip side, when I was heavier and felt badly about myself, I'd go shopping to try and feel better, adding to the credit card debt. It's a vicious cycle. Now that I see the light at the end of the tunnel financially, I feel more in control of my life, and I have taken control of ALL bad decisions I was making, not just money ones.

    Good luck to you, you can do it!!

  2. creditcardfree Says:
    1420565734

    I think the skills related to being fit financially and physically are similar, but if you don't use the skills in one area or another then...you could be physically fit, but not financially fit. The opposite would be true too. We are fiscally fit, but need a little work on the physical part.

    Do you have a plan how you will get below 200 pounds?

  3. ceejay74 Says:
    1420567758

    I would say there is a relation...you need to create healthy habits/behaviors and be patient to achieve both. And as you say, cooking your own food tends to be healthier than eating out, especially if it's impulsive fast food purchases.

    You also pointed out a similarity in the potential pitfall, which is to spend a bunch of money to fix a problem by buying things vs. fixing the problem by changing mindset and behavior. I'll never forget someone, I think on here or the SA forums, saying they talked to a woman who was going to have her family get out of financial trouble by making home more fun so they wouldn't want to go out all the time. So she spent thousands updating the rec room and getting expensive gadgets and toys. Then there are people who keep buying different financial softwares or personal finance books as if that's going to fix their spending habits.

    People do the same by buying exercise equipment or gym memberships thinking that's going to change their mindset. But really they first should prove their own ability to stick to an exercise regimen before they spend any money.

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