Raise the Hammer

Not sure where to start on this one. As a bit of a fitness freak, my opinion puts a lot more burden on the individual rather than the community. Which, in many cases, goes against many of my usual viewpoints.

That said, having worked in damn-near every occupational category, I would say that unskilled (but somewhat automated) jobs as well as anything involving shift work makes it exceptionally difficult to integrate a fitness regiment into the schedule.

I'm not saying its impossible, but I'd wager a strong correlation between these kinds of jobs and obesity. Layer on the fact that, stereotypically, these are also areas where image-consciousness may be less of a motivating component.

I'm less inclined to believe that lower income (by definition ) means less access to nutritious food and exercise. Veggies are generally pretty affordable. And, eating at a grocery store salad bar, for me, is about the same price as a typical McDonald's meal.

I also know that it doesn't cost me a whole lot to go for a run or do a pile of burpees.

Alas, when you're unhappy in your job, home, neighbourhood, town, situation - you generally don't care about yourself. So, if any one of these are prevalent in a community, there's probably a good chance you'll see some rolls.

Optimistically, working in a creative industry (advertising) seems to correlate with physical fitness. Where I work, a pretty significant number of people regularly attend boot camps, play competitive sports, or are regular gym rats. My theory is being able to express (even minimally) our inherent desire as humans to be creative leads to higher life-satisfaction scores. Hence, the desire for personal improvement.

The continuing growth of the arts in Hamilton -- and hopefully more jobs in creative fields -- will result in a more physically fit city.