Let's Get Rightsized™

Cities and Communities Need to Get Rightsized™!

We’re seeing more and more research that proves that the environment we live in has a big impact on our health. Studies have linked living in an urban area to an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and even depression. But it’s not just the big cities – even small towns and rural areas can hurt our health.

A lot of it has to do with the way our cities and communities are designed. If there’s no place to walk or bike, we’re more likely to drive everywhere. And if we don’t have access to fresh, healthy food, we’re more likely to eat processed junk food. But there are things we can do to change that. When you start your Get Rightsized™ Journey you will find that you will need to keep shrinking your portion size until you start losing weight. This will make you realize that the portions you are consuming are just too big for what your body needs. You will be faced with a choice to keep shrinking your portion size or adjust the type of foods you are eating.

Your community can help by providing services that help you figure out which items in the diet you can substitute for the items with very high CDM. Chances are that these items are available and you just need to find them. Good community maps can help you locate where you can find the Rightsized portions and foods that are healthier. These maps can show you where there are safe spaces for you to add more activity and movement to your life.

We can demand that our cities and communities provide us with the infrastructure we need to be healthy. We can fight for better public transportation, more bike lanes and pedestrian-friendly streets. Communities can request that restaurants and supermarkets provide multi-portion-sized options. They can help educate the public about the importance to Get Rightsized™ to live healthier lives.

Many healthier states or cities that have the lowest rate of obesity are those that are more affluent and make an effort to increase access to healthier foods. We know that we can’t always control where we live, but we can control how we fight for our health. Getting Rightsized™ is a movement that is growing, because when it comes to our health – we deserve better.

We can also make changes in our own lives to improve our health. We can choose to walk or bike instead of driving. We can cook more meals at home using fresh, healthy ingredients. We can get involved in our community and fight for the changes we want to see. Involving community organizations in the Get Rightsized™ movement can help everyone to work together to get us all healthy. It’s up to us to create the healthy cities and communities we want to live in. And it starts with each one of us choosing to be healthy.