Is she right or wrong? Well, I strongly believe that she is wrong almost all the way.
Physical fitness offers so much for the body and the mind. It promotes overall health, it helps us become a better version of ourselves.
If we break down physical activity into elements, we'll see which are the parts that fitness consists of:
- Cardiorespiratory fitness. In simple words: healthy heart and lungs. If you walk or climb the stairs and you feel you can't breath, well... something's wrong with this part. A strong beating heart can support you in the best possible way. You'll be able to walk, run, jump and do whatever else you want freely.
- Muscular strength and endurance. As you become more active and focus on certain muscle groups while training (abdominals, legs, shoulders, etc), you increase your strength (the maximum force that your muscles can produce) and your endurance (the length of time your muscles can perform). That means that you become stronger and healthier.
- Body composition. Physical fitness plays an important role to the way your body forms. When you are more active (by performing cardio workouts and strength training) you tend to change the way your body looks and feels; You gain more lean mass and less fat mass.
- Flexibility. Activity helps you improve your range of motion. By becoming more flexible (functional training is one of the best ways - such as pilates, yoga, etc) you decrease the possibility of becoming more susceptible in back, leg and neck injuries. Stretching is an important help factor of flexibility - it also helps you look and feel taller.
- Balance. Working out has a major plus. It increases your stability thus preventing from losing your balance and falling (especially in older ages and elderly people).
- Reaction time. As you train and improve your overall fitness, you obtain better reflexes. You can react more quickly to stimuli.
- Power. Power can be found as strength or speed. It can also attribute to the way you feel your body; it's more strong, dynamic, energetic.
- Agility. It's the ability of your body to move and change direction in an efficient and effective way. Agility can be obtained through balance, co-ordination, reflexes, speed, endurance, flexibility. Well, guess what! You can improve your agility by engaging in a life where training and exercise is more than welcome.
So, which are the benefits of daily or systematic physical activity?
Physical fitness:
- increases well-being
- helps in controlling weight
- aids in weight loss and prevents from unwanted weight gain
- improves sleep patterns
- boosts the immune system
- prevents from heart disease
- builds strong bones
- aids in controlling stress and anxiety
- helps people that suffer from depression
- contributes to memory
- supports self-confidence
- reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome
- helps in maintaining younger skin
- boosts your sex life
It's never too late to start working out. Even 20' of walking 3-4 times per week will help you see results in your overall fitness, energy, stamina, mood.
Just give it a try. There is no such thing as you can't do it. If you take the first step and start, then you'll see the difference.
Say "Yes", and yourself will say "Thank you" later on.