With today's ever expanding waist lines, the obesity epidemic is growing at an alarmingly rapid pace. The ever modern western world seems to have one of the biggest problems.

Being overweight can leave you with a multitude of obesity related health problems. In medical speak, if you have a BMI, body mass index, of 30 or more, then you are considered obese. Now, that feels like an awful label to own. Your BMI is determined by assessing your height and weight and then comparing those two numbers. The proportion of height to weight makes up your BMI. Guess what, the higher the number the more at risk you are for obesity related health issues.

The condition of obesity simply means there is just way too much fat! Wow! That is s fairly simply concept to grasp. Keep it up, the obesity problem is going to become an obesity epidemic.

The health concerns related to obesity are obvious and completely evident. It puts an incredible amount of strain and pressure on the joints. Over time obesity will actually cause so much pressure on the joints that they can actually break down leaving you with arthritis and lots of pain.

So here is the thing...when you gain excess weight, your body is going to begin to struggle against the extra weight and will begin to push back. You will develop aches and pain and struggles that you never knew existed. Then the rabid circle begins and you become less active and gain more weight, repeating this over and over again until something finally gives.

Besides the daily strain that your obesity exerts on your body's joints, the general lack of activity and poor eating habits, will place added pressure and strain on your heart and on your blood vessels. This puts you at a higher risk for a stroke since the extra strain on your blood vessels puts you at risk for developing high blood pressure. Your obesity can also put you at risk for developing sleep apnea so that you actually stop breathing during sleep. Ok, now just that one fact alone should be enough to get you up off the couch and exercising! Do you want to stop breathing while you are sleeping! Is that chocolate cupcake really worth that risk!

So if you have crossed the line and actually gone from fat to obese, then you have a long struggle ahead to conquer the beast. By the time you reach obesity proportions, then you have raced so far just being fat that you are probably also battling self esteem issues and self confidence issues that make the fight all that much harder. You can win the fight but you must be committed to the long term race and not just the next quick fix diet scheme.

Talking with your physician is the best place to start if you are obese. Be honest and then suck it up and agree to stick to the plan to diet and exercise as laid out by your physician. You are going to have to work at it to reclaim your health. So step up to the plate and just do it!

Being so fat that you have now waddled into the pool of obesity is a time bomb waiting to happen. Your health simply will not hold up under all the stress and strain of that much extra weight. You have to work closely with your doctor so that you are back in control of your body. You can win the battle of obesity, you just have to decide deep in your soul that it is a battle that you really truly want to win.