“How do I lose all this fat? ” “How do I get a six pack of abs like the MMA fighters I watch on T. V.? ” After reading this paper you will have answers to questions like these. You may even find some things you are doing are not healthy, or you may find ways to becoming healthier. What is fitness or being in shape? Well, it is a state of well-being, evidenced by vitality, maximized physical potential, health, strength, and a robust shapely body. Our society however, has changed the way fitness is viewed. If I’m not sick then I must be in shape.
Wrong! Over the past few generations, our society has transformed from the active, exercise-intense lifestyle that we once believed so heavily in, into being lazy is now ok. How many of you when you are done eating something, set the plate down and say, “I’ll get it later. ” Well folks that is called laziness. We all have times where we are lazy. But this should not stop us from remaining active in our lifestyle. We now consider it O. K. to have a minimally functional, weak body. We seem happy to just maintain ourselves just enough so we aren’t sick.
There is even a new word for this. We call it “Wellness”. So many people are happy to say, “Nope I’m not sick, I’m in great shape. ” All the while their belly hangs out so far to where they can hardly see their toes. We have lowered our physical expectations, and focused our attention on not being “sick”. Now our society is struggling just to not be sick. (Staying Fit. livingstrong. com, Retrived 3/11/13, from http://www. livingstrong. org/FitnessFacts. htm) This paper is being written to maybe encourage people or just make them see that hey I’m not as fit as I can be.
Did you know, Canada’s healthcare system could save almost 5$ billion if there population would increase their activity by just 10%. (© City of Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada 2013) Let’s look into this a little more. Illness would be described as your condition if you are sick, feel terrible, are in bad shape, poor health and are inactive. Wellness would be described as your condition if you are not sick, feel OK but are out of shape, consider yourself of average health, and are weaker than you should be. Fitness would be described as your current condition if you are thriving, in great shape, have optimal health, and are firm and strong.
Take a minute and ask yourself, “Which one of these categories do I fall in? ” Don’t cheat yourself either. (Staying Fit. livingstrong. com, Retrived 3/11/13, from http://www. livingstrong. org/FitnessFacts. htm) Now let’s focus on Fitness. I found a quote I had to put in here, “Physically fit people generally live longer, perform better, and get more out of life,” (Arnold Schwarzenegger, Chairman, President’s Council on Physical fitness and Sports, 1991) That encourages me to stay fit. “So, how and why do we do this? ” There are many reasons to stay fit.
It gives you a stronger heart, reduces blood fat, could possibly reduce blood pressure, reduce the risks of cancer, boosts the immune system, potentially prevents most forms of bone loss which accompany aging, helps keep joints flexible, and promotes fat loss while preserving muscles. And those are only the physical benefits. There are also mental benefits such as, improves sleeping habits, decreases stress, able to enjoy leisure time, improves quality of life, and the big one, improves self-confidence and appearance. Now, to me, that sounds like the life I want to have.
How about you? (Source IHRSA, Staying Fit, startracusa. com, Retrieved on 3/11/13, http://www. startracusa. com/t-customer-service-fitness-facts-article2. aspx) There are many ways to stay fit and be in shape. You don’t have to be Anderson Silva from the UFC or Bautista from the WWE, but we can all stay in shape and be healthy. Being healthy can be as simple as watching what we foods we eat. Everyone loves McDonalds Number #1 (Big Mac), make that a Large or some KFC Crispy Bucket of white breasts. But come one, is that really healthy for us. No.
I’ve done the research; A Big Mac has 560 calories plus another 570 for the large fries and another 310 for a large Coke. That adds up to 1440 calories. And people still drive through McDonalds, sometimes getting this twice a day. And how about 380 calories per chicken breast, that’s 3800 calories every bucket, but “Hey man, you want to get a bucket of breasts and some beers for the game tonight? ” The calorie counter in my head is just ticking right now. If you are one of those people who need something quick, I understand, but why can’t we eat something healthy, pack your own lunch.
I can make a steak with sautéed peppers, mashed potatoes and a Yoplait yogurt for just less than 600 calories provided I follow the serving size. Now let me ask, what sounds better steak or the same old burger? This also means we have to not be lazy and cook our meal the night before it is needed, but we have to do things to be healthy. We can’t be lazy. (for my calorie count I used calorielab. com) Some other ways to stay healthy are just simple work outs. Go on a jog, play some one-on-one, play catch with your son or daughter.
Flicking the remote to change the channel does not count. As you become more physically fit, most people feel physical activity gives them more energy than they had before. Also, when our family and friends start to say, “Have you lost weight? ”, or “Wow, you have really toned up, you look good. ”, we are motivated to stay healthy. Social support from family and friends is consistently and positively related to being active and staying fit. You will look better and feel better about yourself when you are active, as well as preventing health risks. “Being physically inactive has the same impact on your health as smoking a pack of cigarettes each day. ” (Dr. Nick Busing, College of Family Physicians of Canada) Well, I have presented many facts on why staying fit and healthy is important. Now it is your decision on whether you want to be or not. Just remember, next time you go to McDonalds or KFC and order a huge meal, or cheat yourself and tell your boy or girl you have something else to do when they ask to go play catch, that you are the only one who can choose to stay fit and live a healthy lifestyle.
