I was a husky boy when I was young.
I would never admit it then, but I was very heavy. I used to tell other people that I had a thick build or I had big bones. I would show them how thick my wrists were and argue against the validity of the Body Mass Index. The BMI told me I was obese, but I was in denial.
Years later I would find myself digging through a box of keepsakes. I discovered an old photograph. The picture was of me and was shot looking at my back. In it I was shirtless. It wasn’t until then that I finally recognized how overweight I truly was. I decided I needed to do something about it.
After acknowledging I was out of shape, I struggled with weight loss. I understood that my daily diet, which ended in four scoops of peanut butter cup ice cream with crushed chocolate chip cookies and chocolate syrup on top, wasn’t sustainable. In general, my lifestyle wasn’t healthy.
I graduated high school and the random whim of my eighteen-year-old self decided that I wanted to live in Colorado. I didn’t know it then, but it was one of the best decisions of my life.
I can’t say for sure if it was the beauty of the mountains, the crisp clean mountain air, or the proximity to the ski and snowboard resorts, but I felt at home. In hindsight, I recognize it was probably my hormones and the mountain air going to my brain due to the high altitude of the city. Either way, I’ve lived here ever since. That was nearly twenty years ago.
Colorado blessed me with countless resources I was able to draw upon to aid me in my weight loss and fitness journey. There was access to amazing–and free–outdoor activities, as well as Colorado’s consistently beautiful weather. There were plenty of healthier food options; more than I ever saw in my native state of New Jersey.
Finally, and most notably, there was the elevation. The altitude here in Colorado averages above 5,000 feet. In some places just west of the front range the elevation rises to between 9,000 and 11,000 feet. That means that there is thinner air. The thinner air means less oxygen molecules to inhale with each breath.
In extreme conditions, a lack of oxygen can be unsafe, but many people are able to acclimate to living at extremely high elevations. There are 65 towns in the United States alone that are above 8,000 feet in elevation.
Hypoxia, or the lack of oxygen within my body, would go on to be a major ally in my fitness journey. It raised my basal metabolic rate. I needed to breathe deeper and more frequently to acclimate to the altitude and the area’s reduced oxygen.
Through a combination of the clean, crisp mountain air, a more responsible and choosy diet, and a disciplined exercise regime I was able to lose weight. Eventually, I ended up with a body I could be proud of. There are even a few pictures of me without my shirt that I don’t cringe at.
Today I understand that altitude, and the hypoxia it causes, are a major contributing reason to why people are healthier and more fit here in Colorado. Now I kick butt when I head down to sea level to compete. It’s also the reason why professional athletes from all over the world make the trek out here to train.
If you or someone you know is struggling with weight loss or keeping weight off, and it’s not viable to relocate to Colorado, then I recommend checking out MountainAir™. MountainAir™ is a weight loss product developed by Boulder, Colorado company Mountain Air Health. Its breakthrough technology helps bring the weight loss effects of high altitude to anyone at any elevation, even sea level.
Check out MountainAirHealth.com for more information on MountainAir™.
Who knows? A little altitude adjustment may be all you have been waiting for.
#loseweightwhileyousleep
#highaltitudeweightloss
#mountainairhealth
~by John Andreula
John is a mountain life enthusiast and a user of the MountainAir™ Complete System. He is not a Mountain Air Health Employee.