I am by no means am a health expert. Hell, I weigh 259lbs, love sugar cookies, fried food, and have been fat since middle school. So I do not want to come off as if I know everything. With that said: I think people (including myself) make too many excuses as to why they can't lose weight. One of the most popular excuses I have used and hear people using is that they can't afford weight loss.


"When I get the money, I will"- This is the most common excuse people, in my opinion and including myself, use to deter themselves from pursing a weight loss journey, though I am convinced that the real reason is much deeper than this. "Afford what?" is my question. We are told by advertising giants that we have to have the best exercise equipment in order to lose the most weight or to be serious about fitness goals. The consequence of not having all the crap they advertise is a feeling of inadequacy and defeat.

Another popular claim is that gym prices are too high. Though gyms can be expensive, there still are locally owned facilities or modified ones (like Curve) that may have lower rates (my mom belongs to one for $10 a month), or special deals that usually occur around the new year or changing of the seasons for larger gyms.

Paying for weight loss programs like Weight Watchers seems silly to most people. After all, shouldn't we be able to do this on our own? So paying for them seems crazy and then to pay $12 a meeting for weight watchers or $39 dollars a month at a discounted rate plus online tools, seems just out of the question. But I would argue that people should really look at what they are getting for their money with these programs. Some offer food, consultation, dietary restrictions, tools, or a different way of life and so you really have to evaluate what's the best bang for your buck and how you lose weight the best.

I've spent countless dollars on my weight loss set ups in the past. I've had sneakers, exercise balls, free weights, pedometers, food journals, mats- you name it I probably had it. Guess what? I'm still fat. All that crap has not helped me lose one stupid pound because it isn't the equipment that makes it happen, its me. This is also my second time on Weight Watchers (the first I lost 5lbs) and I am willing to do it again because Weight Watchers wasn't the problem, I was.

This over all theme about not being able to afford weight loss or the products that go with it is just insane, I think. Because as corny as it sounds, how much is your health and happiness really worth?


My Financial Start Up

Brooks Running Sneakers with the gel insole throughout the entire shoe: $100 @ Dicks Sporting Goods

Weight Watchers Monthly Membership with online tools: $40

Weight Watchers Points Calculator: $12

Total: $152.00

So the common thought with this financial breakdown is that many people may be able to afford the initial cost of $150 but it's the monthly expense that they cant afford.

Monthly Break Down

Weight Watchers Monthly Membership with online tools: $40
Gym Membership:$30.00 at the YMCA

Total: $70.00

That still seems like a lot but I'm going to break down my monthly costs for eating out.

Monthly Break Down for eating out

Lunch x3 a month at $8 dollars (standard meal price at fast food places depending on drink and size of meal)= $24.00

Bags of chips (usually $1 a bag), and/or sodas (usually $1.50) and/ or candy (usually $1) twice a month= $7.00

Going to dinner with Mozart at $14.00 each plus tip once a month= $35.00

Total: $66.00

That of course doesn't include tax or if we decide to go out to dinner more than once a month for any number of reasons (because we want to, celebrations, dinner with friends, etc.)

I on average spend about $66.00 a month on just food that doesn't even go inside my fridge and the average American spends about $40.00 a month on dining out. So for me it's just a measly $4 extra dollars to put towards my weight loss attempts but for the average American it may be about $30 extra towards the same services I'm paying for. But don't fret, there are other places to take the money from.

Other areas to take from so you can afford your weight loss? Clothes, entertainment, DVD/CD/Video Game buys, cell phone bills, etc,.
But maybe you don't want to take from those areas and I actually thought the same thing until I hated the way I looked in all my newly bought clothes, over ate at every place we went to for entertainment (movies, bowling, theaters), stared blankly at DVD/CD/Video Game collection that had about an inch of dust on it, and realized that I wanted a more simple life and that my life wasn't that busy for a high priced cell phone with all the bells and whistles.

What I'm saying is that if you want to lose weight and are serious about it but claim you can't afford it, take a look at where your money is really going and see if it can be shifted to a cause that is more worthy than a too tight shirt, an extra pail of popcorn, or a DVD that you only watch once a year.