Did living in New Albany save my life? While this question might seem a bit dramatic, I will let you be the judge.
Philip Smith
I moved my family to New Albany in February 2007. My wife, Ellen, and I fell in love with the look of the community and the wonderful amenities that the city provides.
I have been physically active on and off most of my life. I had purchased a road bike a number of years before we moved here, but never really rode it, and when I played golf, I more often sat in a cart instead of walking. I would work out some and do a bit of running – nothing really regular – and I never watched what I ate. I would eat whatever I felt like when I felt like it.
In addition, I race my 1991 Camaro, very old school, with the Sports Car Club of America at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The SCCA requires physical exams to maintain your racing license. In 2008, when I got my physical, my doctor informed me I had high blood pressure. In disbelief, I asked him to take it again, and he did – with the same results. I couldn’t understand what was going on. I never had high blood pressure, although I do have very bad family history on my father’s side. He had high blood pressure for most of his life and died of a heart attack at age 55.
My doctor immediately wanted to put me on blood pressure medications, but I wasn’t interested. I asked him what else I could do. He mentioned the usual: lose weight, cut down on salt and get more regular exercise. He said, “You can try, but come back in three months, and we will put you on the medication at that time.” He didn’t provide any advice or suggest reasonable goals. I left his office pretty determined to “fix” this problem.
I found the book Body for Life by Bill Phillips, and decided I would give it a try. No one else had any better suggestions, so I figured what the heck. I also mentioned my goals to some friends and my family, and I went down this road with their amazing support. This really wasn’t that hard. I started working out every day with a combination of aerobic and strength exercises. In addition, I started to watch what I ate, which included lots of lean protein, vegetables and minimal junk food carbs. I also really paid attention to how much I was consuming of the high-fat foods that I loved.
I lost about 50 pounds in 90 days, and when I returned to the doctor, my blood pressure was normal. He was shocked. He then mentioned that losing weight is the easy part; keeping it off is the challenge. I thought, well great. I did all this work, and I felt like I was just getting started.
This is where living in New Albany comes in. We are a very healthy and active community. As a result of working out, I was able to develop great friendships with neighbors and others that have allowed me to continue to be very active. New Albany provides amazing access to great cycling and running, and it seems like everyone is always doing something which really provides the support to stay active. There is always a group lining up at Starbucks to do a bike ride or a friend who wants to go on a run or a walk.
It has been six years, and I have been able to maintain my weight and have had no issues with blood pressure. I am certain that the amazing community that we live in provided the motivation to maintain my healthy lifestyle.
Philip Smith is a New Albany resident. Feedback welcome at ssole@cityscenemediagroup.com.
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