Importance of Fitness: Diet and Exercise - Research Paper Example

Importance of Fitness: Diet and Exercise Regular physical exercise is essential for the wellbeing of an individual’s health. Physical idleness is the most widespread threat factor for heart diseases. Heart disease in men and women can be linked to a lack of physical exercise. Lack of exercise gives rise to a number of physical ailments including obesity (Lack of exercise) The number of diseases and variety of diseases are increasing day by day amidst the huge advancements happening in medical science and technologies. Lots of new diseases which were unknown a couple of decades before, are spreading on earth and many cases, medical science remains clueless in how to tack le such diseases. Heart problems, diabetes problems, breathing problems, cancers, different kinds of arthritis etc are common even in some of the most developed countries like United States. Many people are of the view that technological or scientific advancements have negatively impacted the human life in some ways. This is because of the fact that many of the technological advancements succeeded in reducing human efforts considerably. For example, the developments automobile technology resulted reducing the human efforts needed for transportation. Those who were ready to walk two or three kilometers daily to reach their offices, are now using vehicles for reaching their offices. In other words, human efforts have reduced considerably for the time being and people started become obese as a result of the shortage of fat burning from our body through physical efforts. The unhealthy food habits are another major reason for health problems. Current generation is more interested in fast food rather than homemade foods. Majority of the fast foods are rich with fat content and are tastier than the conventional food items which forces the people to rely on fast foods more frequently. The accumulation of fat in human body can cause lot of physical and psychological problems to a person. Thus lack of physical work outs and unhealthy food habits contribute heavily to lack of fitness and increasing the chances of diseases. This paper analyses the importance of fitness in maintaining good health and the importance of exercise and diet in maintaining fitness. Contrary to popular belief, your mental, as well as your spiritual health, greatly impacts how you feel physically. But it is not only your mental and spiritual health that effects your physical wellbeing, it can also work in the opposite way. It all starts with your home fitness and the fitness exercises you do regularly. What are doing or not doing that you should or shouldn’t be? Home exercise can and should be easily done as part of effective workout plans, even if for only a few minutes in the morning with some meditation and a 10 minute brisk walk (Fitness Exercises, Fitness Training, And Fitness Tips For The Body & Mind). Physical exercises keep the physical and mental health of a person. Many people have the false belief that physical exercises may increase the physical health only. However, it should be note that physical exercises not only burn out the excessive fat contents from our body, but also increases blood circulation. Better blood circulation and increased flow of oxygen to brain systems are necessary to keep them intact for better functioning. Better functioning of the brain systems will encourage better thinking and it can also enhance the memory capabilities. In the absence of physical activities, blood circulation to our brain could be slowed down and subsequently our thinking and memory abilities would be adversely affected. Mind is the driving force of body. In other words, proper coordination between our body and the mind is necessary for taking decisions and doing a particular activity successfully. If the mind goes in one direction and the body goes in the other direction, while performing an activity, the activity may often end up in failure. A sound mind may rest only in a sound body. A sound body can be developed or maintained only through physical works outs and healthy food habits. Exercise increases the rate at which your body uses energy (kilojoules) and burns up stored energy (fat), promoting weight loss. Increasing your level of physical activity will not only decrease the amount of fat your body is carrying, it will also improve your overall fitness — that is, the function of your heart and lungs (Why is exercise so important?) Many people believe that one of the major reasons for the increase in number of diseases is the changing life styles of the people. Earlier, people were not reluctant in walking longer distances to reach distant places. However, current generation uses vehicles even for reaching a place located hardly one kilometer away. Moreover, the entry of televisions, computers and internet, forced people to spend more time in front of these medias. Before the introduction of these digital Medias, people were much more interested in playing some games during their leisure times. The interest for playing games which needed physical effort is considerably reduced with the entry of easier computer games and videogames. In a survey conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates found that: “43% of all adults qualify as "Less Actives," (those who fail to engage in vigorous exercise even two times a week) irrespective of young, old and, better educated or less educated, A majority of the Less Actives are under age 45, and 46% have attended college.” While only 21% of Less Active Americans report that they are in excellent or above-average physical shape, a 51% majority of More Active adults (those who exercise vigorously twice a week or more) rate their fitness at this level. Similarly, 59% of More Actives say they are in excellent or above-average health, which is well above Less Actives' 41% figure (Peter D. Hart Research Associates, p.2-3) Lack of exercises has often been lead towards the entry of unwanted physical and mental diseases. Most of the cardio vascular diseases, high blood pressure diabetics, etc are occurring because of the lack of physical exercises and unhealthy food habits. American heart association recently urged people to increase their activities like Swimming, cycling, jogging, skiing, aerobic dancing, walking to reduce heart problems. Increasing heart failures is a major problem in America at present. In most of the American families, each family member may have a vehicle for his/her own personal use. Thus, Americans mostly use their own vehicles to for their transportation purposes which reduce the chances of walking in their life. Our body is similar to a machine. If a machine is unused for a particular period of time, its parts may stop its functions. Same way physical activity is a mechanism given to us by nature to keep us fit all the time. If we fail to obey the natural laws, our natural ability to keep our body parts in a healthy condition could be damaged. Robert Longley in his article, have you been working out? has quoted a new report from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) which shows that “about 1 in 5 American adults engage in a high level of daily physical activity, while about 1 in 4 engage in little or no regular physical activity”. The above statistics clearly shows the lack of interest among American people in doing physical exercises which increases the chances of diseases like heart defects. “Every day, more than 4,000 adults are diagnosed with diabetes and about 200 people die from the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention” (Payne). National Diabetes Statistics, (2007) shows that in adults, type 2 diabetes accounts for about 90 to 95 percent of all diagnosed cases of diabetes and moreover the Total costs of treating type 2 diabetics patients in America is around $174 billion in 2007 which include the direct cost of $116 billion (National Diabetes Statistics). Diabetes is a chronic disease which occurs mostly because of lack of physical exercises and unhealthy food habits. Sweetly food consumption is cited as the major reason for causing diabetes. Sweetly foods are favorite food items for most of the people irrespective of children, youths or old people. The sugar contents in sweetly foods are more compared to other food items. Increased sugar content may decrease the ability of pancreases in producing insulin. Insulin is essential for many of the bodily activities and lack of insulin may create lot of physical diseases to a person. The 60% population in USA is tagged as inactive. This percentage increases from 60% to 70% in the UK. These people do not indulge in physical activities. If these people start working out to keep their body fit, most of the time, energy and resources that are required to cure diseases can be diverted to constructive and fruitful activities. Just like our mind craves for a change in life, the body also needs movements in the form of exercise to keep it working in a better condition. Most of the young population (18-30 years) do not realize that their body systems (joints, muscular strength and many things) won't work in the same way if overworked or 'abused' during the youth. To keep the systems in a fine condition for a long time, it is necessary to maintain the health by doing some sort of fitness training (Importance of Fitness) In today’s society, some people engage in over exercising while others not much keen in exercising. Most of the sports personalities have a sound physical figure. For example Tiger Woods, David Beckham or Michael Jordan has better physical appearance when we compare their appearance with that of some of the younger generation of their age group. This is because of the fact that these sports personalities are undergoing vigorous physical workout session daily to stay fit. Same way many of the film personalities are also keener in maintaining their physical fitness. This is because of the fact that a good figure always helps a person to appear as a youth always. On the other hand, most of the working professionals are not ready to spend some time for physical workouts. They are busy all the times and do not have the willingness to spend some time for burning out the excess content from their body. Working professionals are mostly interested in sweetly and fatty foods which may deposit huge amounts of sugar and fat contents in their body. The accumulation of these things may destroy their health even at a younger age. That is why some of the working professionals who shows little interests in exercises, are facing more severe health problems than other who spend at least few minutes daily for maintaining their fitness. Obesity or overweight is another health problem associated with lack of exercise and unhealthy food habits. The number of obese children in America is growing day by day. Obesity generates physical problems as well as mental problems. Obese people cannot move well like the normal people. Moreover, obese people always face severe comments and bullying at schools, colleges, or at workplaces. Such harsh comments and lack of mobility may destroy their self-esteem. Such people may try to avoid the company of others and in some cases; they will over eat as a defense mechanism to counter their psychological problems. Most of the available foods in the current world enriched with fat contents. Vegetarian foods are not getting enough consideration among the current generation and some people eat only non-vegetarian foods. It is an accepted fact that most of the non-vegetarian foods have increased fat contents. For example, beef, chicken, mutton etc are some of the favorite food items in the world at president. Most of the people do not like the taste and flavor of vegetable foods. However, it is proved that vegetarian foods are more nutritious than non-vegetarian foods. Some of the advantages of vegetarian foods over non-vegetarian foods are given below; They are easily chewable, especially for the elderly who have lost their teeth. Many elderly feel that vegetarian food is more easily digestible. Vegetarian foods are cheaper than non-vegetarian foods. Some vegetables can be eaten raw preventing the loss of nutrients while cooking. Vegetarian foods do not contain as much fat as non-vegetarian foods. (Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian) Many of the new studies have concluded that vegetarian foods are more suitable to human being than non-vegetarian foods. The huge contents of cholesterol and fatty acids make non-vegetarian food extremely dangerous to health if not used in a controlled manner. Moreover, digestion problems and acidity are more associated with non-vegetarian foods than vegetarian foods. On the other hand, vegetarian foods contain increased amount of dietary fibers which helps human body to avoid physical problems like constipation. In short, vegetarian food has definite advantages over non-vegetarian foods. At the same time, it is unwise to avoid non-vegetarian foods completely. This is because of the fact that non vegetarian foods are enriched with proteins, Vitamin B complex, calcium and other essential mineral and needed for maintaining health. In short, it is better to use non-vegetarian food judiciously than completely avowing it. Some of the advantages of fitness and exercises are given below; Maintaining a good level of physical fitness will give you a feeling of better health through increased energy and vitality, making you feel better about yourself and about your life. Being fit helps the activities in your life easier to manage; it keeps your body in shape and keeps you looking good, which in turn provides 'the feel good factor' making you work more efficiently and effectively. Keeping fit can help improve your quality of life and help maintain a good standard of health, preventing or delaying heart related diseases. Exercise helps reduce stress & improves personal performance. Exercise helps you control your weight and body shape. Team sports such as football or rugby can improve your social life (Importance of keeping fit) To conclude, controlled, food and exercises are necessary for maintaining good health. Over eating and lack of exercises often resulted in unwanted diseases and overweight. Controlled Food and exercises can not only maintain our physical health, but also it can enhance our mental health. Since body and mind has sound relationships, whatever the things which enhances the body health may enhance the mental health also. Exercises increase the blood circulation all over our body and all the organs receive adequate amount of blood and oxygen because of that. Lack of blood circulation to brain systems can affect the memory and thinking capacities of a person. Moreover it can affect the memory capacity also. Same way exercises can give the required mobility to body organs. It is necessary to keep all our organs in better conditions all the time and balanced food and exercises may help us in doing that. Physical diseases like cardiovascular problems, diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol and mental problems like lack of self-esteem, depression, etc develop as a result of lack of exercises and uncontrolled food habits. Vegetarian food has definite advantage over non-vegetarian food in maintaining our figure, health and appearance. Most of the non-vegetarian foods are enriched with fat contents which is dangerous to our body. Those who are taking fattier and sweetly food should do more exercises to burn out the excessive energy from their body and to maintain their fitness to optimum level. Works Cited 1. “Fitness Exercises, Fitness Training, And Fitness Tips For The Body & Mind”. 2010.Web. 12 May 2011. 2. “Importance of Keeping Fit”. Web. 12 May 2011 3. “Importance of Fitness”. 2011. Web. 12 May 2011 4. Longley, Robert, Have You Been Working Out? 2011. Web. 12 May 2011 5. “Lack of Exercise”. Web. 12 May 2011 6. National Diabetes Statistics, What is Diabetes?, 2007. Web. 12 May 2011 7. Payne, January W. 6 Common Myths and Misconceptions About Diabetes. 2009. Web. 12 May 2011 8. Peter D. Hart Research Associates, “American Attitudes toward Physical Activity & Fitness A National Survey”. Web. 12 May 2011. 9. “Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian”. Web. 12 May 2011. 10. “Why is Exercise so Important?”. Web. 12 May 2011. Read More