“Why are we constantly told that health is wealth? Although the answer might seem obvious, read on to find out more.”
Fitness can be defined as the ability of the body to carry out activities without feeling tired. Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is essential to achieve your health goals, whether it is weight gain, weight loss or maintaining medical conditions. Good health and fitness positively impact physical, psychological, and spiritual well-being.
Why Make Fitness a Priority?
1. Feel Physically Fit And Active
Without regular physical activity, your body slowly loses its strength, stamina and ability to function efficiently. Exercise increases muscle strength, enhancing your ability to engage in other physical activities.
2. Happy Pill Minus The Side Effects
Physical activities help to stimulate brain chemicals that relieve stress. This, in turn, regulates mood and makes you happier. Regular physical activity eases stress, anxiety, depression and anger. Exercising regularly can give you a ‘feel good’ sensation. Most people notice they feel better over time as physical activity becomes a regular part of their lives.
3. Boosts Immunity
Regular physical activity promotes more strong muscles and bones. It even improves respiratory, cardiovascular and overall health. With planned exercises, you can maintain a healthy weight while reducing your risk for type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.
Being more active can help with:
Managing blood pressure levels
Boosting good cholesterol
Improving circulation and blood flow
Keeping your weight in check
Prevention of bone loss and osteoporosis
4. Enhances Your Self-Confidence
Fitness naturally makes you feel more self-confident and encourages you to transform yourself into whatever you deem to be. It can promote positive emotions towards yourself and your body. It reduces prevalent diseases, especially heart disease and excessive obesity.
5. Reduces The Risk Of Injuries
Regular physical activity can increase muscle strength, bone density, flexibility and stability. Being active can considerably reduce your risk of injuries while boosting your resilience to accidental injuries, especially as you get older. Stronger muscles and better balance would mean you’re less likely to slip and fall, and stronger bones are less likely to suffer bone injuries.
6. Improves Overall Well-Being
A sedentary lifestyle and low physical activity can be harmful to the body. It can increase the risk for certain cancers, chronic diseases and mental health-related problems. However, regular exercise has been proven to improve your mood and mental health while providing numerous other advantages. Regular exercise can help you improve your sexual life by improving heart beat rate, blood circulation, stamina, hormone stability and muscle endurance.
How Can You Improve Your Physical Fitness Level?
Exercise Frequency
It refers to the number of times one should exercise in a week. It would be best if you aimed for specific amounts of activity depending on your age
Children and young adults should practice at least 60 minutes of moderate-intensity activity daily.
Adults should indulge in at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity 5 days a week.
Older people should also ensure at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise 5 days a week.
If you cannot reach these goals, start small and work your way up to these levels.
2. Exercise Intensity Control
While performing an exercise, the target heart rate must be reached. Age plays a significant role in determining the maximum rate.
For instance, for a 50-year-old, the target heart rate will be the age subtracted by the maximum number of heartbeats, i.e. 220—220-50=170 beats per minute. Reaching 50% – 85% of this rate should be targeted.
You may determine this by tracking the ease and difficulty of exercises. The intensity must be increased if the activity is less intense.
3. Optimal Exercise Time
Exercise time should gradually increase with time. If you wish to drop weight or achieve other specific fitness goals, you will be required to engage in exercise more frequently for longer durations.
4. Change Exercise Type
There should be variation in the forms of exercises you choose to do. If you have been walking for a while, move on to jogging or move to another activity altogether, such as swimming.
The Final Say
We have now established that good physical fitness leads to better health and well-being, reduced risk of several physical disorders and improved overall quality of life. Fitness significantly impacts the muscular system and works to develop and strengthen it. It reduces stress, tension and chances of being depressed. You can better your physical fitness and body composition by making healthier choices in your diet and regularly exercising, both aerobic and anaerobic. So start today!