Eddie Lacy is a NFL running back with the Seattle Seahawks who recently received a $55,000 bonus for dropping below 255 pounds. Ponder that for a moment: $55.000 is more than the median income in the United States.
It doesn’t stop there. Lacy actually has seven weight goals, all associated with monetary bonuses. All of these bonuses could total up to an incredible $385,500, on top of his regular $5.5 million contract.
Since coming into the league from the University of Alabama, 5’11” Lacy has struggled with weight, peaking at a reported 267 pounds last year. There’s even a report that he contacted Tony Horton of P90X fame to help him lose weight in the past, but it didn’t last.
It raises an interesting question: If your career, the livelihood you strived so hard for, depended on you being in the best shape you could be, and your job was worth millions of dollars, wouldn’t you make sure that you were trim and fit?
Many of us might be shaking our heads at this story, but shouldn’t we be shaking our heads at the mirror? Eddie Lacy demonstrates what many of us already know: losing weight and staying healthy is difficult. But it is attainable.
There’s actually a bigger motivator than our jobs in regards to health. I think the Dalai Lama best said it: “He sacrifices his health in order to make money, then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health.”
We all need to work on our health for health’s sake. Unfortunately, that’s often not enough of a motivator as well. Don’t make that mistake. Start getting healthy today before you’re too sick to enjoy life.