Do they for instance mean that all people who are thin are simply lucky to be that way? Does this imply that thin people never do anything to influence it? And are people who are NOT thin, then simply UNlucky? And does this mean there is nothing that they can do about it either? It may seem I’m being picky re language, yet language – even just in our own heads – is incredibly important. Our thinking shapes what we see, and what we don’t see. It is the root of what we feel, and hence also of what we do and what we don’t do - let alone the intensity of effort with which we either do or avoid something. Someone who genuinely buys into the above, rather simplistic statements, could well be excused for thinking that it’s all hopeless, and hence give up. But the point is that not only are the assumptions simplistic, they are also inaccurate. Could it be that there is in fact some kind of ‘pay-off’ to making such simplistic assumptions? In making them, are people perhaps even creating or maintaining loopholes for themselves to not change…? Reflecting on my own experience, the luck which I certainly did experience was in being born to two parents who were both physically active long before it became the fashion or the norm, and so I had positive role models from early on. The rest however has very little to do with luck. Yes people are born with different genetic make-up, but anyone who eats too much of the wrong stuff and moves too little will put on weight. This applies even to children - let alone those of us in our 40’s and beyond. I have managed to prevent this by doing some kind of physical activity absolutely consistently, since leaving school. I have also made sure that my default is to eat healthily - not obsessively - just to maintain a more-or-less healthy default. This has taken significant effort over a long period of time. But it does get easier – and especially so when you get to the point of making an absolutely non-negotiable commitment to that kind of lifestyle. (In the same way that you have probably already made to going to work, brushing your teeth, looking after your kids, etc). But it’s a mission to get to that point – and don’t let anyone try to convince you otherwise. A client recently sent me this quote: ‘Suffer the pain of sacrifice, or suffer the pain of regret’. I suppose I choose the former. So in conclusion, when we talk about luck in the context of lifestyle, we’re missing the point. For all of us it takes consistent effort, and yes sometimes even pain and sacrifice. But I challenge anyone to try it for a real length of time and tell me that it’s not worth it.