Objectivist Voice

Obesity is the cause of a number of health problems like cholesterol, hypertension, heart diseases etc. and obesity is a sign of an unhealthy lifestyle, which is not a good idea in the long run, both physically and emotionally. If you feel that you should change your lifestyle for the sake of yourself or your family, it’s a big step and we commend you for that because the first step is realizing that you need to make changes. It’s important to note that sticking to a healthy lifestyle is a commitment, it will require you to make a lot of difficult choices but the results are worth it.
First and foremost, decide your goals, list down whatever it is that you’re hoping to achieve out of this lifestyle.

Make sure your goals are realistic and award yourself in little ways every time you hit a milestone. The next step is the difficult one; it’s time to get rid of all the junk food in your fridge and pantry and to replace it with healthier alternatives. Similarly, cut out the amount of takeout you eat, especially processed foods and meats like burgers etc. they are full of numerous chemicals that affect both your mind and your body. You don’t have to cut out sugar and carbs entirely out of your diet, that’ll only lead to weakness. Just use healthier alternatives. Substitute sweet tooth cravings with fruits and protein shakes rather than ice cream etc. Planning your meals beforehand will also help in keeping you on the right track, there are numerous online blogs and forums that teach you how to plan and prepare healthy meals in bulk beforehand.

Try to cut out other unhealthy habits in your lifestyle. If you happen to be a smoker, try to quit because the long term effects of smoking are especially damaging to your health. Similarly, cut down on the amount of alcohol you consume. People who drink regularly are more likely to make unhealthier choices.

Exercising is another important part for a healthy lifestyle. You shouldn’t have to force yourself to go running or to the gym if you don’t like it, since forcing yourself will only decrease your motivation. There are plenty of other alternatives to choose from, you can take Zumba, kick boxing, spin class etc. anything that helps you break out a sweat and releases endorphins counts. Regular exercising will deal with lethargy and laziness, will help to burn off excessive calories and will keep you in a better mood throughout the day.

Make sure you’re surrounded by the right people that will encourage your new lifestyle. A strong support system is necessary if you’re looking to maintain your new lifestyle. If you binged or had a cheat day, it’s alright. You’re going to make mistakes every now and then, however, you can’t take that as a sign to throw in the towel. The road to a healthier lifestyle is a difficult one that requires patience and persistence to reap its long term benefits and rewards.

Content provided by Action Lock

In case you haven’t noted, more and more people have started shifting towards veganism in the past few years. It is no longer considered a defiant act, in fact it has become a norm. Many restaurants now include a vegan section in their menus as they have acknowledged the growing number of vegans in the community. Now contrary to popular beliefs, vegans aren’t just deranged animal lovers, it’s an ideology of its own, a way of life which they consider to be the least toxic to this planet and every being that inhabits it.

A number of people choose to go vegan for moral reasons. They feel that it is cruel to kill animals since animals, like humans have a nervous system and are able to perceive pain the way humans do, so killing them for the sake of eating them is a grave injustice to their sanctity of life. Plants on the other hand lack a nervous system, so they are unable to perceive or feel pain, so consuming them does not go against any morals.

There’s also the fact that due to mass consumerism, the meat and dairy industry treat animals unethically. In the case of dairy companies, they separate calves from their mother within the first 72 hours after it is born so that they do not feed on their milk that is produced for them, calves are instead given milk substitutes and are also killed early in case they do not produce milk or any other reason. Because of high demand, the cows are constantly artificially inseminated and given various hormones so that they keep producing milk and are then slaughtered when they fail to do so. Similarly, the meat industry is known for keeping the animals in crowded rooms without proper space and are killed in a haphazard manner because of which the animal experiences a lot of pain throughout the process, some places are even known to use chemicals on the animals.

Some people choose to go vegan because it is considered more environmentally friendly. Due to the high demands of meat, a large amount of land, water and resources go into growing and raising the animals for slaughter. Mass deforestation is carried out to accommodate the animals and fossil fuel is wasted keeping the industry up and running. While almost 14% of the world population is undernourished, it makes no sense wasting those resources to raise the animals when they can be used to help the undernourished instead.

A diet that consists solely of plants, seeds and legumes is known to have numerous health benefits. It not only means clear and youthful skin. According to research, vegans are less likely to develop cholesterol, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, obesity and even certain kinds of cancer. There also isn’t an issue of not getting enough protein because there are numerous ‘superfoods’ like quinoa, chia seeds etc. that supply the necessary amount of protein, iron and other vitamins and nutrients that are found in meat.

Ayn Rand advocated reason as the only means of acquiring knowledge, and rejected faith and religion. She supported rational and ethical egoism, and rejected altruism. In politics, she condemned the initiation of force as immoral, and opposed collectivism and statism as well as anarchism, and instead supported laissez-faire capitalism, which she defined as the system based on recognizing individual rights.