The Most Important Investment A Dad Can Make

One of the first things I did when I became a Dad was invest in life insurance.

It just seemed like the most responsible thing to do now that I had to care for and support another human being.

But ironically, I didn’t think too much about investing in my health.

I mean, how do you find the time to exercise when you’re getting up so early, taking care of your child, getting yourself ready for work, go to work all day and then come home and then take care of your child until you put them to bed?

I convinced myself there just wasn’t enough time and exercising just didn’t seem important enough. I thought of it more as a luxury than a necessity. So it wasn’t high on my priority list.

The problem is if you tell yourself you will make your health a priority “when you have more time”, you will never make it a priority and you will make things really hard for yourself down the road.

But more importantly, the more you put it off, the more you are putting your family at risk. Sure some people can totally neglect their health and live to 100. But those people are outliers and do you really want to take that chance?

Don’t get me wrong, I am writing this as much for me as I am for you. Last week my doctor busted my chops because I stopped in to get my cholesterol checked for the first time in 2 years.

I joked about how I just don’t think to come in regularly and he said:

“You really need to start. Before you only had to worry about yourself, but now you’re a father and you have a responsibility to Leah. Do you really want to take the chance of someone else raising her?”

Whoa! That hit me like a ton of bricks. The guy who is all about getting in amazing shape and helping other Dad’s do the same is getting reprimanded about taking his health seriously!

But he made a great point.

I owe it to Leah to do everything I can to make sure I am here for her for as long as possible. So I decided to make all aspects of my health a priority and I will make sure to see him regularly now.

As Dad’s, if we are not making our health a priority because we don’t think we have enough time, we need to think about what that could cost us.

Isn’t it worth it, to “invest” a little more time on our health each week so we can increase our chances of being around to raise our kids?

We have to look at our health as an investment because just like investing money, if we do a little bit consistently over time, we will reap big rewards.

But if we neglect it, we can get ourselves into trouble and could miss out on some of the most important things in life, like seeing our son’s first baseball game or our daughter’s first dance recital or worse….we may not be there for them in those critical moments when they need us most.

Investing in life insurance doesn’t buy you that. It doesn’t replace you.

Nothing can replace you.

The investment doesn’t have to be huge. Baby steps are the key.

Just get started in some small way….your family will thank you for it.

8 thoughts on “The Most Important Investment A Dad Can Make”

  1. Investing in your health is the smartest and most financially responsible decision you can make. Not only can you avoid sickness in the first place-you save money and time. It also allows you control in life. If you’re in a hospital-everyone else calls the shots.

    People often balk at the cost of good food for gym memberships. They don’t see the deferred costs. I don’t think they can afford NOT to invest in their health.

    P.S. I eat six eggs a day- I don’t think my doctor would like my cholesterol, but it’s a stupid measure of health anyway. Eat lots of cholesterol-it’s good for you 🙂

    -Armi

  2. Armi,

    When I’m on a serious bulking or cutting diet, I also eat 6 eggs per day… except I do 1 egg yolk per 5 egg whites. Many weightlifters and bodybuilders do this to cut down on the cholesterol intake 🙂

  3. @ArmiLegge Armi, so true. The cost of food has soared over the past couple of years and I totally understand concerns how much we spend on food BUT, we have to think about what we are doing. Do we just want to shove cheap stuff into our bodies or do we want to put good nutrients in our system that will give us more energy and better health…which as you say, will help you fend off sickness and therefore save you time and money.

  4. @Kevin_Velasco Kevin, thanks for stopping by! I’ve done that as well, 1 whole egg plus several egg whites. However, lately I’m back to whole eggs, usually about 3-4 per day. There is evidence that the way the cholesterol is processed in the body does not increase cholesterol. But, like anything else, you have to do your research and decided what makes the most sense to you.

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  6. @Kevin_Velasco

    I love eggs:)

    I also consume a ton of eggwhites, but not to cut out cholesterol.

    there is actually no evidence that total cholesterol levels affect heart disease risk. The small dense LDL particles are the only ones shown to be atherogenic. Make cholesterol your friend:)

    There have been several studies showing that cholesterol levels below 150 (the “healthy” range for people over 65) can actually increase risk for heart disease.

    just some food for thought…

  7. @murphtim @ArmiLegge

    absolutely right man. I think we could save not only a huge amount of money, but many years in peoples lives by focusing on nutrition and prevention.

    great work!

    -armi

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