What is healthy and fit body? Really?

You'd LIKE being fit like this . Fitness makes American Governors!

Health:

• the general condition of the body or mind with reference to soundness and vigor.

• soundness of body or mind; freedom from disease or ailment..

Fitness:

• The ability of a body to meet the demands of a physical task.

As you see, two very different things. Interconnected and interdependent, yes, but still different.

So what should one target?

In health there can be two sorts of variables. One sort is out of your physical realm of control (e.g. Genetic disorders, cancers, and other such ailments), while the other is mostly under control (e.g. Obesity, diabetes, some heart ailments).

Fitness regimens combined with good diet habits help you keep the latter in major control.

Like a battle and a war (fitness and health respectively :I)

So lets go ahead and try to figure the Fitness bit.

Since, this article is targeted at people starting out on their journey to a healthier lifestyle I will keep to the basics.

Fitness has four components:

• Strength
• Speed
• Stamina
• Flexibility

Further explained:

Strength (men): Can you still help your cute neighbor move in with her boxes full of M&Bs?

Strength (women): Can your punch leave a juicy bruise if you catch him doing the above?

Speed (men): You think your girlfriend saw you ‘helping out’. Can you dart out of view quickly enough?

Speed (woman): Just how long do you think it will take you to sprint down the stairs and intervene?

Stamina (men): How many boxes boy? (U/A rating for this blog please!)

Stamina (women): Can pack all your clothes in one go?

Flexibility (men): Ashtray comes flying from balcony window. DUCK! Can you?

Flexibility (women): Heard of a Split-kick? Recommended.

Hence, as described above, fitness comes in handy and is tested in common everyday situations. Also, there is no YES or NO answer to the question “are you fit?”

There are only levels in fitness and while you could be ‘fit’ in one situation, another might make you feel like Shrek in a coordinated swimming class.

The only way to go is keep increasing your levels of fitness by mixing and matching your exercise schedule to achieve a balance in the four components above. That done, keep raising the bar there-on.

Increased fitness levels > Better functioning of physical systems > A healthier you.

Q.E.D

Please feel free to mail queries at aaditya@fitfunda.com

Cheers!

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