The Tom Rath book Eat Move Sleep has to be the best health book I’ve ever read.

The other 2 books I recommend are How to Be Well and The New Rules of Aging Well by Frank Lipman, M.D.

In Eat Move Sleep Rath asserts that sitting in a chair without getting up to move frequently is thought to be as unhealthy as smoking.

Not only is “sitting the new smoking” the reality is that loneliness is as harmful as smoking too.

Not getting enough sleep is often the root of modern-day ailments as well.

I would say if you read only one health book make it Eat Move Sleep. It’s a short book that can be read in two or three days depending on how long you read it for each day.

According to Rath most common diseases can be prevented with lifestyle changes like the ones recommended in the book.

No one should be popping Xanax as a rule or taking Ambien to fall asleep.

That said fitness should not be a “blame game” played against people who don’t exercise and eat right.

If you ask me what happens to a lot of people is “the luck of the draw.”

We cannot hold others responsible for their ill health. Not when they have a genetic mutation for cancer. Or develop leukemia when they’re 65 like a friend of mine.

Yes I firmly believe that lifestyle choices are under our control. Only so much of what happens is not within our reach to prevent.

Lastly I will say that it’s my contention that a person should take The Long View.

Not exercising for a week or two doesn’t matter. Getting back into exercising is what counts.

Hitting a plateau or having a fallow period in your life with your goals or with any kind of mental physical or emotional setback is to be expected.

I will remind readers that I might have talked in this blog about my “little bites” philosophy of not biting off more than you can chew. Of being consistent.

The beauty of following the Eat Move Sleep plan is that small changes can make a big difference.

Expecting or wanting quick-and-easy dramatic results is foolish and dangerous.

We all of us have our whole lives to live.

Giving up hope is a mistake. Having a concrete plan with clear specific SMART goals is the solution.

Come to think of it as I’m typing this I think it’s time to devote a blog entry to setting long-term goals.

So this will be coming up after I talk about The Myth of Buying Organic Food.