Posted by Winston Salem | Posted in winston salem fitness | Posted on 03-09-2010
What Is Physical Activity?
• Exercise does not need to be strenuous to achieve health benefits.
• Men and women of all ages benefit from a moderate amount of daily physical activity (for example – 30 minutes of brisk walking or 15 minutes of jogging).
• Previously sedentary people who begin exercise programs should begin with short sessions (5-10 minutes) and build up to the desired level of exercise.
Why Is Physical Activity So Important?
• Exercise improves quality of life.
• Exercise extends longevity, protects against the development of CHD, stroke, hypertension, obesity, non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis, colon cancer, and depression.
• Exercise helps maintain full functioning and independence one of the elderly.
• Relationships between exercise and improved health include
o A reduced oxygen demand at any given level of exercise.
o A lowered tendency for blood to form clots where arteries have narrowed.
o an increased elasticity in the arteries.
o Changes in the brain and brain chemistry that may improve mood and cognitive functioning.
The Facts About Exercise
• More than 60 percent of USA adults don’t engage in the recommended amount of activity.
• Approximately 25 percent of United States adults are not active at all.
• A 1993 study concerning causes of death in the U.S. – #1 Tobacco, #2 Lack of exercise/poor diet, #3 Alcohol.
• Chronic illness costs the USA $655 Billion in health care costs.
• In this year, 1.5 million individuals will have a heart attack in the United States and 500,000 will die.
General Guidelines for Exercise
• Control your health status through a medical checkup before starting a fitness program.
• Progress little by little in the fitness program.
• Select primarily activities which engage as large a muscle mass as possible, ie – jogging, cycling, swimming, cross-country skiing, etc.
• Do not forget, it isn’t necessary to be exhausted to achieve betterment in physical fitness.
• the training ought to be accomplished continuously and intermittently.
• the betterment in fitness will depend on your initiallevel of fitness.
• It’s never too late to start exercising regularly.
Exercise Lite
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) (ACSM) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Avoidance (CDC) recommend the following as a means of physical activity
• “Accumulate 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity exercise over the in most days of the week”
• Incorporating more activity into your daily routine can improve your health status
• Daily activities can include
o walking stairs (instead of taking the elevator)
o gardening
o raking leaves
o dancing
o mall walking while shopping
o carrying a grocery basket rather than pushing a cart (when applicable)
o parking in the farthest parking spot and walking to the office or store
o carrying or pushing a golf bag instead of taking a cart while golfing
• Alternately, 30 minutes of activity may come from planned exercise or recreation
Want to know more about exercise?
Make sure to check out the Surgeon General’s Report on Exercise
