Being slim does not guarantee good fitness, tip of the week 36
Being slim does not guarantee fitness. Many people think fitness is the same as endurance, but... there is more to it.
Fitness is actually another word for overall physical condition. Not to be confused with health, because someone who is physically healthy can also be in pretty bad shape!
Of course, stamina is a good indicator of physical fitness. After all, if you can exercise/sports for long periods at a time, you have good stamina and therefore good physical fitness. But good physical fitness consists of several factors.
Take the heart, lungs, circulation and muscles, for example. When heart, lungs, and muscles are in good condition and the circulatory system is functioning well, you will not tire easily with prolonged exercise.
Heart: If you have poor fitness, the slightest exertion will make your heart work harder, increasing your heart rate and making you more likely to get tired, run out of breath and have to stop moving because otherwise your heart won't be able to cope.
Lungs: When your heart has to work harder, it will also have more trouble transporting blood to your lungs so that they can continue to absorb enough oxygen during the exertion. So you get 'out of breath'. When your condition is very poor, even the smallest effort (e.g. light housework) will quickly leave you out of breath.
Circulation: When you exercise more, your heart will get in better shape and be able to transport more blood to the lungs, which in turn will allow the lungs to absorb more oxygen and pass it on to the blood. So the circulatory system is actually our inner 'transport system'.
Muscles: Your muscle strength also plays an important role in your overall fitness. Weak (and stiff!) muscles will not be able to perform much. So you are also more likely to be tired when you don't have enough muscle strength because our muscles provide us with the energy we need to move properly and to participate in sports. During exercise, the muscles need a lot of oxygen and this too is achieved through the circulatory system.
Exercise important for fitness
When you engage in regular exercise, your body gets used to it and by doing so, you strengthen your heart, lungs and muscles and promote circulation, which will significantly improve your physical condition.
It will also benefit your bones and joints, as someone who moves a lot and regularly is also much less likely to suffer from injuries (back, knees, ankles) or muscle pain. Although 'fitness' is not the same as 'health', good fitness is certainly related to good health.
Good fitness counts even more heavily than just being slim, because slim people who do not do sport and have poor fitness are more at risk of getting sick than a heavier person who does do sport and has good fitness!
So being slim is not necessarily a guarantee of staying healthy. Neither does being in good shape, unfortunately, but it certainly reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, osteoporosis, obesity, diabetes and, it seems, even several types of cancer.
A person who is slim and smokes and/or drinks a lot of alcohol regularly and does not participate in sports can therefore be in much worse physical condition than an overweight person who does not smoke or drink alcohol. So weight is certainly not always a measure to determine someone's fitness (and health)!
Someone who feels good in his skin (good shape) also feels better and radiates this to the outside world, which automatically makes him look better. If your body is not in good shape, it will not be able to properly convert the nutrients it receives each day into energy.
So you can eat healthy, but without exercising you will never really get fit, especially if this includes sitting all day, drinking alcohol regularly and/or smoking.
Symptoms of poor fitness include:
- Quickly tired/little energy
- Shortness of breath
- Insomnia
- Overweight
- Palpitations and other heart complaints
- Little resistance
This week you may also weigh yourself! Click >HERE for handy weighing and measuring tips.
The above text previously appeared in the Balance book. The book is now sold out, but may still be available to order second-hand via the link below.
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