Fitness plans and exercising are something relatively new in human evolution, and yet, the overweight rates in population have skyrocketed since then.
Find out which was the efficient "exercise" to be fit that most of the people practiced before the fitness revolution started.
The vast majority of the people have busy schedules these days. Work and family responsibilities take up much of our time. Our days are full of obligations that leave us little space to enjoy.
In addition, in today's society, we have recently created new "obligations" that we did not have before. One of them is fitness plans.
We have turned what should be a joyful activity to disconnect into yet another obligation to get done in our busy schedules.
We routinely follow repetitive exercise plans with a defined goal, without realizing that in case we do not reach the goal, it will make us feel unsuccessful and defeated. Totally the opposite of what physical activities should bring us, as joy, better social life, and a stress reliever.
To be fit and healthy we do not need a fitness plan with 3-4 work-outs per week while the rest of the time we are sitting working at the office, commuting in the car or resting on the sofa. It is enough to rewind to our primal essence as a human being, that is, to move more throughout the day.
Furthermore, some research has shown that even for people who exercise regularly the odds of developing dementia is higher if they are sedentary most of the day, compared with people who are less sedentary. Read the conclusions of the research here
"Our body is designed to be in constant movement, and yet we have built a toxic environment where we are sedentary most of the time"
The technological and industrial revolution created a world where machines do the work that our muscles used to do, and our bodies are still not adapted to this change. All the non-congenital diseases that are killing us today are rooted, in addition to our diet, in this sedentary environment we are living in.
Challenging this toxic environment by moving more in our daily lives is the key to being fit and, therefore, staying healthy. This "exercise" was widely spread before the technological revolution, and it was the most efficient way to lose weight and keeping a good health without the need to follow fitness plans. It was our lifestyle, where moving throughout the day was the foundation of our fitness, and it was efficient, as overweighted people rates were much lower than today.
We have to differentiate being healthy from having an appealing fit body and following a training plan to achieve a specific appealing body shape. Today's society is obsessed with having a perfect body with a specific body shape, and many follow a training plan to try to achieve it. But our body can be fit and healthy, regardless of aesthetics. One thing is health, and the other an obsession for perfection.
I find it ironic when I see people in the office who have been sitting all day getting up with their gym bags by the end of the day and heading towards the elevator instead of the stairwell. We have totally messed it up with movement and health.
I'm not against fitness plans, as long as they don't lead us into a stressful schedule and an obsessive perfectionism spiral.
"We must recover common sense and rewind to our origins, incorporating movement into our lives in a natural way, modifying our routines, as the foundation of a fit body and a healthy lifestyle"
We have created a sedentary lifestyle that threatens our health and to fix it, instead of shifting towards a less sedentary lifestyle, we have added a new obligation to our already too busy schedule, making us live permanently stressed.
If, additionally, we do not achieve the goals of our training plan, we will feel bad with ourselves. And even if we achieve them, we will either set a new one or will return to a total sedentary lifestyle until we start over again.
Some scientists and researchers are already warning about this problem. Based on scientific evidence, they are helping cities to create new environments that encourage the residents to move more for their daily to-dos. A good example is the Blue Zones project, which redesigns cities favoring these environments.
Even fitness trainers are switching to training plans focused on high-intensity, and functional movements instead of muscle-specific exercise charts, which are becoming outdated.
Technology has changed our lives, and in many cases for the better. But we need to make people more aware of its risks due to misuse, as we have done with tobacco and alcohol. Policymakers, for instance, could force companies to include the terms "risk of sedentary lifestyle" or "chronic disease potential risk" in the name and packaging of technology products.
"This way, we would have on the stores "sedentary lifestyle risk" electric scooters, or video consoles where it can be read "potential risk of developing chronic diseases" in the packaging"
Educational programs in schools would also help dramatically to change our lifestyle, teaching children the importance of incorporating movement into our daily lives as the foundation for good health and physical fitness.
Sports activities should be an extra that provide us joy and better socialization, not stress and obligation
The first change, however, is individual. We cannot wait for the politicians to listen to the scientists and help us out of this situation.
Unfortunately, there are too many industries with strong interests in this not happening, which also play their role.
We must change our routines to make them more dynamic, taking more breaks to walk, jump, or breathe. Using, for instance, our waiting times in the kitchen or the office to move our body weight, with some functional movements as squats or pushups.
Everything adds up, no matter how long we move each time. Latest research has confirmed that every moment of moderate movement counts as exercise time, even the time we spend doing chores at home. Read the research here
We must try to be more creative when it comes to incorporating more movement into our routines or adding more resistance to our normal movement like walking. Have you tried power walking with the baby stroller? Or why not trying chimpanzee walking when moving indoor at the office or home? Just lean your hips back and slightly bend your knees when walking around. It's lots of fun and a good strength training!!
To start taking action, the next time you enter a building, look for the stairwell instead of the lift. Then, repeat it every time you enter a building, until it becomes a new habit. Then add more of these habits to your daily life. Your health will improve dramatically with no time investment.
What other ideas do you have to add more movement into your daily routines?
Add them below in the comments!
Comentários