Would I still.....?

Yesterday I finished a thought-provoking book called The Measure by Nikki Erlick. The premise of the book is how all of our lives would change if it was revealed how long we would live. Would you want to know? And if you found out you have a short life, or even a long life, would that change how you live your life?

I started thinking about the things that I try to do on a daily basis to stay healthy and I asked myself if I knew that I only had a short time left, would I still do the things that I do? Would I stop exercising and start eating more junk food or fast food? Would it be happy hour(s) every day?

So many people have the attitude that you never know when your time is up, so you might as well enjoy yourself and eat what you want and do what you want. If you're going to die anyway, what's the point?

Would I rather sleep in than get up early to exercise? Honestly, I'm so used to getting up early at this point, that even on days that I can sleep in, I can't because my internal clock is used to waking up early. (Same for the dogs!)

Plus, I really enjoy exercising. I like how I feel when I'm done - sweaty and accomplished! Endorphins kick in and I'm ready to seize the day. Would that change if I knew that I only had a short time to live? Probably not, unless all of a sudden, I found myself disliking exercise. But it's really hard to imagine feeling that way.

Would I start eating whatever I wanted? Maybe. A little. If I start eating too much crap, I don't feel good and I definitely don't want to spend the rest of my life feeling like crap. So I might indulge a little bit more with what I ate or drank, but for the most part, I like how I feel when I eat healthy. I don't have stomachaches, I don't feel sluggish, and I sleep pretty well. My mental health is strong, too, when I eat healthy and don't drink too much.

The message that I got from the book is that we measure our lives not on how LONG we live, but HOW we live our lives in whatever time we're given. Wow, that's pretty powerful, right?

So although my healthy lifestyle may not necessarily prevent me from a terminal illness, or stop a bus from hitting me, it will make me feel good, both physically and mentally, for the time I'm meant to have.

Which gives me the gift of spending more quality time doing the things that I love with the people I love.