You don’t waiver or compromise your faith so don’t waiver or compromise on your health. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God, You are not your own (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV). It’s time to stop doing nothing and start doing something. Stop making excuses and start making better choices.
NO: What advice do you have for African-American women who have the highest obesity rate of any group of Americans?
DRJ: Four out of five African-American women are overweight or obese. We can’t accept this as the norm. Let’s put a stamp on it, “Not Accepted.”
The reason why I wrote “Witness To Fitness” was because I had traveled around the world helping people become healthier but my greatest challenge was not overseas it was my family, my community, my church.
I was sick and tired of being sick and tired of witnessing love ones suffer from preventable illnesses like obesity, go to heaven way to soon, know better but not do better and not appreciating good health until they experienced bad health.
My sisters, the most-precious gift you can give to yourself is not getting your hair done, or your nails manicured, not a pair of 4-inch shoes or a fabulous dress, it’s Good Health!
Your health is the power line of your life, and without it, there is no being. Sharon, a middle age woman, went to the doctor a few times complaining about her health and never following the advice of her doctor who told her to be more physically active and eat nutritional meals. Falling on deaf ears he finally said, “Would you rather exercise one hour of every day or be dead every hour of every day.”
It’s time for change and you have the power to change. Change your thinking and your actions will follow. My pastor once said, “You cannot conquer what you are not committed to moving forward.” Let’s not just pray about good health, let’s be about it. See your health as a necessity, not a luxury. I have 28-day program that will help you get started and develop habits that become a part of your lifestyle.
It will work if you work it. In the Bible it says, “Whatever you eat or drink do it for the glory of the Lord.” In other words, treasure your temple don’t trash your temple.
NO: What are some of the greatest myths surrounding Black women and obesity? Are African-American women just thick and big boned? The hook in the popular “Birthday Song” by 2 Chainz, featuring Kanye West, is “All I want for my birthday is a big booty h**.” In a sense, big booties and thick women are glorified.
Donna Richardson Joyner: ‘Losing Weight Is Not Just Physical, It’s Spiritual’ was originally published on newsone.com
