What is Physical Activity?
Physical activity is defined as any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that require energy expenditure. Physical activity encompasses all activities, at any intensity, performed during any time of day or night. It includes exercise and incidental activity integrated into daily activity.
Why Physical Activity is Important?
Physical activity or exercise can improve your health and reduce the risk of developing several diseases like type 2 diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. Physical activity and exercise can have immediate and long-term health benefits. Most importantly, regular activity can improve your quality of life.
What is the activity of Physical Fitness?
There are 3 types of physical activity aerobic, Flexibility, and muscle strengthening. Let’s explain it:
- Aerobic activities make you breathe harder and make your heart and blood vessels healthier. These include:
- WalkingDancing
- Swimming
- Water aerobics
- Jogging and running
- Aerobic exercise classes
- Bicycle riding (stationary or on a path)
- Some gardening activities, such as raking and pushing a lawn mower
- Tennis
- Golfing (without a cart)
- Flexibility-enhancing activities ensure a good range of motion in the joints. Loss of flexibility can be a predisposing factor for physical issues, such as pain syndromes or balance disorders. Gender, age, and genetics may all influence a range of motion. Flexibility exercises include:
- Stretching
- Yoga
- Tai Chi or Qi Gong
- Pilates
- Muscle-strengthening activities build up your strength. These activities work all the different parts of the body—legs, hips, back, chest, stomach, shoulders, and arms—and include:
- Heavy gardening (digging, shoveling)
- Lifting weights
- Push-ups on the floor or against the wall
- Sit-ups
- Working with resistance bands (long, wide rubber strips that stretch)
- Pilates
- What are the benefits of physical activity? Improve glucose homeostasis and insulin sensitivity.
- Reduce blood pressure.
- Improve autonomic tone.
- Decrease blood coagulation.
- Improve coronary blood flow.
- Enhance lipid lipoprotein profiles (e.g., through reduced triglyceride levels, increased high-density lipoprotein [HDL] cholesterol levels, and decreased low-density lipoprotein [LDL]-to-HDL ratios).
- Reduce systemic inflammation.
- Augment cardiac function.
- Enhance endothelial function.