Dr Ortho Blog

Health and Fitness

Good health and fitness is all about choices. Good health is the heart and soul of human body. We make our own choices. From a variety of options, choosing the options which are best for us makes us responsible for our own choices. We choose Wellness and fitness to maintain good health. Success, happiness, health, wellness and fitness are closely knit parameters.

Success follows the path of good health and happiness. Choosing the right approach is very important in life. Health and fitness is all about the right approach and right state of mind.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has given us most appropriate definition of health.

What is Health?

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (WHO definition).

So health is not just a parameter. It is a combination of various different parameters like physical health, mental health and your social interactions. Absence of disease or physical/mental weakness is good for your health, but it does not indicate that you are healthy. When your physical health, mental health and your social interactions are working in a synchronized way, only then you are healthy.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has made us aware of the term Physical fitness.

What is Physical Fitness?

It is defined as the ability to carry out daily tasks with vigor and alertness, without undue fatigue, and with ample energy to enjoy leisure-time pursuits and respond to emergencies. As with health, physical fitness is not a single parameter. Many other factors make the overall fitness of the body. The different components of fitness are listed below. These eight parameters are as follows:-

Cardio respiratory endurance: It is defined as how long or fast an individual is able to perform an activity. A time constraint is taken into consideration. Parameters like heart rate and oxygen consumption are also monitored.
Flexibility: It is defined by how flexibly a muscle group can be stretched or joint can be moved.
Balance: It is defined as parameter which can be measured by holding on a particular position with or without some type of activity being performed. A stand on one leg can be one of the measures to test your balance.
Speed: All car lovers must have played the game Need for Speed. Commonly known as NFS. Well in practical life, it is defined as how quickly an individual can move from one point to another.
Muscular endurance : Any biceps and triceps builder out there? They must be well aware of the heavy term Muscular endurance.It is defined as the numbers of repetitions of an exercise a person can perform. Pushups are the simple test measure to know your muscular endurance.
Muscular strength: It is defined as the measure of the weight you can move and the number of times you can move it. Squats or bench press are commonly used as muscular strength measures.
Muscular power: It is defined as how much force you can generate during a given activity. Advanced equipments are required to measure muscular power.
Body composition : It is defined as the measure of comparison between your fat on body versus other tissues such as muscle, bones and skin.

These eight parameters are the back and bone of overall fitness of your body. These fitness parameters seem very technical but they are not. We usually ignore fitness apart from if we are a professional sports player or a fitness lover.

It is wrong to miss a deep connection between health and fitness. Let us see the next sub heading to make ourselves well aware of connection between health and fitness.

Relationship between health and fitness

Health goes with fitness and fitness goes with health. A complete picture of overall fitness is only complete with right health and vice versa. In discussing health and fitness, one more parameter comes to play. This parameter is wellness. What is wellness? It is an active process of becoming aware of and making choices toward a more successful existence. Wellness is happiness. Being aware of the latest things going around in the earth zone is very important. Awareness is the key to good health, overall fitness and wellness.

Are you setting the right goals for your health? Transformation does not happen overnight, it needs practice, positive attitude and a right approach. Firstly define your goals, and then take baby steps. After a considerable time you will be capable of setting higher goals.

Extensive research has well established the link between health and physical Fitness. Overall metabolism of the body improves on exercising regularly /keeping yourself. When metabolism of the body improves your health automatically improves.

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), regular physical activity has helped millions of Americans suffering from a variety of illness.

What other parameters help in improving health and fitness?