This was a question that came up on a beautiful day that my partner William and I spent on a yacht sailing Moreton Bay and enjoying some adventure activities.
It was magnificent weather – the sun was shining, a warm breeze was blowing and there were even a few dolphins splashing about the bay. It was one of those experiences that makes you savour being alive and being able to enjoy such simple pleasures in life.
There were two activities planned as a part of the trip – one was snorkeling in the bay around some wrecks off Tangalooma, and the other was sand-boarding down some HUGE sand dunes! Both of these required some physical activity – and there were a few people who had come on the boat trip who unfortunately weren’t up to it.
I’m not trying to sound judgmental here – but what I wanted to do was point out how being unhealthy can inhibit the pleasure you get out of life. The group of people not able to join in were all very obese and obviously not used to doing much exercise or activity. They stayed on the boat while the rest of the group snorkeled, and again didn’t leave the boat when we went on the sand-boarding excursion.
Now, the sand-boarding was not for the faint-hearted! Firstly we had to take a hike for about a kilometer along a bush track which was mainly uphill and quite a strenuous walk. Then when we reached the inland sand dunes, it was another kilometer walk through the sand before we reached the bottom of the most enormous sand dune!
Looking up it was hard to see exactly how you reach the top – but we were keen so started the uphill climb. And it was hard work! William and I are both pretty fit – but half way up the hill we had to stop to catch our breath. We were panting heavily and our calf muscles were protesting from the almost vertical sand climb!
But once we got to the top it was worth it! We screamed down that hill on the board and it was SO exhilarating!
Three times we went up and down that sand dune, before we headed back on our 2km hike across the sand and the bush to get back to the boat. Once on the beach we dived into the beautiful clear water and swam for a while before heading back. It was an experience I wouldn’t have wanted to miss out on!
Health means many things to many people – but for me one of the primary reasons to stay healthy (besides avoiding the medical profession!) is to be able to participate in life – to be able to have experiences that challenge, energise and excite. Life is short and I want to cram as much as I can into it – and being unhealthy means I only get to live half a life because I can’t do the things I want to do.
So if your health / weight / attitude is holding you back from living the life you want to live – then do something about it today! Because everyone should be able to experience flying down a sand-dune a million miles an hour 🙂
Leisa
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