It never ceases to amaze me whenever I am talking with someone about good habits on health issues and they come up with the saying "well I'm going to die anyway." His usually is in reference to a bad habit like smoking or poor eating habits.
If that is how you feel about taking care of yourself why not just check out immediately, why prolong your time on earth? It may sound harsh what I am saying, but to the people, who have told me that, I really think they need to have their heads examined.

When we are born, we are given one body. Some of us treat our bodies very well and exercise and eat good foods, and try to have as little stress as possible in our lives. Others seem to want to challenge their bodies to see just how much they will take.

If I were to sit here and tell you that always I have taken care of my body, I would be lying. What I have learned is that all of us who desire to live a long time here on earth should begin immediately at any age to start to treat our bodies with a little bit more respect.

Health begins in the mind. It begins with valuing your own body and mind. If you don't feel good about yourself, the chances you treat your body less than favorably are high.

But let's assume you do value your life and are working to be the best you can. What types of habits do you engage in related to your health? Do you overeat, over drink, smoke or take drugs? (I include prescription drugs here too).

As a side note, I know that more and more adults are taking prescription drugs to lessen their anxiety and help them to "get through life." And what's worse is that many adults are getting their children acquainted with prescription drugs at earlier and earlier ages because they are just acting like kids.

This is very sad to me, and I do not have enough room to discuss that issue in detail. Let's just say that taking pills is not meant to be an excuse for dealing with your problems. What types of habits do you have that are good to your body?

Good health is a mindset and a belief. It is then followed by appropriate habits that support your beliefs. For example, both my wife and I workout regularly and watch what we eat. We are not extreme as some, but for us it is easy to eat healthy because we have programmed ourselves to care about our bodies.

Everyone is different and there is no perfect diet or workout regime that exists. More often than not, your body will tell you when it is happy and when it is sad.

One of the biggest problems we face today is that a lot of people are not getting the proper amount of sleep. Studies have shown that our young people are really not getting enough sleep. When this sort of thing happens we should take a look how we are spending our time and what we can afford to eliminate in our schedules.

Living healthy is a choice, just as having respect for one's own body is a choice. What if all of a sudden there was a procedure that allowed you to live to 200 years of age but you could only get the procedure if you took care of your existing body, would you qualify?

Bill Holderby is president of "Success Strategies Seminars" a company with the mission of "Helping you achieve what you want out of life." Holderby conducts workshops and seminars for companies and private organizations, and he does personal one-on-one "Success Coaching." For more information on one-on-one coaching, visit his Web site at <www.Esuccesscoach.com> or e-mail questions and comments to <Bill@Esuccesscoach.com>. You also can call 305-255-5595.