Wellness
I believe it is time for a drastic change across the globe to help educate and introduce participation of healthy amounts of physical activity. I also believe that this must be done at an early age to help promote a healthy lifestyle of fitness. Lastly, I also believe that our governments are failing miserably to
impart the proper knowledge and healthy participation levels necessary for a healthy human body. In general we have become a society ready to hear the latest breakthroughs involving quick fix fitness and health, hoping that we can pop a pill or wrap a belt around us to melt fat away.
Ask yourself if your current level of health and fitness is at a level that you think is generally healthy for you. Are your bones strong enough? Is your heart healthy enough? Are you flexible enough? Are you conditioned enough to carry out your everyday functions at a high enough level to be satisfied? If you were brought into a clinic for an overall health and fitness test, how do you think you would do? Let’s get serious here, how important is your health to you? Now let’s ask the same type of things about your kids and the ones you love. How are they doing?
Personally, I look around at the growing number of diseases, obesity statistics, heart attacks etc. and I know that we are failing as a society to take care of ourselves. Let’s take a look at a couple of the reasons stated in the following recent study findings regarding exercise:
Key To A Healthy Lifestyle Is In The Mind
ScienceDaily (Jan. 18, 2009) - The main factors influencing the amount of physical exercise people carry out are their self-perceived ability and the extent of their desire to exercise. A study of 5167 Canadians has shown that psychological concerns are the most important barriers to an active lifestyle.
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Sai Yi Pan, from the Public Health Agency of Canada, led a team of researchers who carried out a study which examined data from a nationwide series of telephone interviews. She said "Our findings highlight the need for health promotion programs to enhance people's confidence and motivation, as well as providing education on the health benefits of physical activity".
One interview question asked participants how confident they were that they could regularly do a total of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity (PA) three or four times a week and a total of 60 minutes of light PA each day. This 'self-efficacy' score was consistently found to be related to higher PA across gender, age group, education level and family income level. According to the authors, "Confidence in one's personal ability to carry out exercise plays a central role in the direction, intensity and persistence of health-behavior change. People who have higher PA self-efficacy will perceive fewer barriers to PA, or be less influenced by them, and will be more likely to enjoy PA".
Likewise, participants were asked to what extent they intended to be physically active over the next six months. This 'intention score' was another important independent correlate of physical activity.
The strong effects of self-efficacy and intention on PA suggest that interventions designed to increase PA should target these factors. The authors conclude that, "Future research is needed to identify how those influences can be optimally incorporated into interventions that will increase people's belief in their ability and motivation/intention to be physically active".
________________________________________
Journal reference:
1. Sai Yi Pan, Christine Cameron, Marie DesMeules, Howard Morrison, Cora LYNN Craig and Xiaohong Jiang. Individual, Social Environmental, and Physical Environmental Correlates with Physical Activity among Canadians: a Cross-sectional Study. BMC Public Health, (in press)
The reason I wanted to show you this article is that I also believe that the mind is a huge factor in our health and fitness results. I also wanted to show you this article because I wanted to let you know that I will also follow these studies to improve my commitment to helping others. If someone does not believe in their ability to exercise properly or enough, then I want to help them. I want to help educate them and motivate them positively anyway I can. I also want start getting the message out to more people that they deserve to be healthy and fit, and they in turn deserve to reap all the benefits of a healthy, fit body. Unlike many influences wanting you to pop pills, melt fat away in 2 minutes, and drink large amounts of caffeine and sugar for energy, I would love to get society back to the basics of a healthy, fit lifestyle from an early age.
Who are we as a society if we are not healthy? Why are so many things coming ahead of our own health? Why is our government letting our society be bombarded with unhealthy products, services and information? Personally, I am fed up with this and I do intend on doing my part to stay healthy and promote a healthy lifestyle to others.
I want to end with an encouraging statement and tell you that yes you can start today and honor yourself and the ones you love by taking better care of yourself. I also believe that as a society we do want to be healthy, and we can all start today and make that happen in our own way. If you do not know how, then I will continually improve my own resources and help you as best I can. That I know I can do. The real question I leave with you is what do you want to do, and what are you going to do?
impart the proper knowledge and healthy participation levels necessary for a healthy human body. In general we have become a society ready to hear the latest breakthroughs involving quick fix fitness and health, hoping that we can pop a pill or wrap a belt around us to melt fat away.Ask yourself if your current level of health and fitness is at a level that you think is generally healthy for you. Are your bones strong enough? Is your heart healthy enough? Are you flexible enough? Are you conditioned enough to carry out your everyday functions at a high enough level to be satisfied? If you were brought into a clinic for an overall health and fitness test, how do you think you would do? Let’s get serious here, how important is your health to you? Now let’s ask the same type of things about your kids and the ones you love. How are they doing?
Personally, I look around at the growing number of diseases, obesity statistics, heart attacks etc. and I know that we are failing as a society to take care of ourselves. Let’s take a look at a couple of the reasons stated in the following recent study findings regarding exercise:
Key To A Healthy Lifestyle Is In The Mind
ScienceDaily (Jan. 18, 2009) - The main factors influencing the amount of physical exercise people carry out are their self-perceived ability and the extent of their desire to exercise. A study of 5167 Canadians has shown that psychological concerns are the most important barriers to an active lifestyle.
________________________________________
Sai Yi Pan, from the Public Health Agency of Canada, led a team of researchers who carried out a study which examined data from a nationwide series of telephone interviews. She said "Our findings highlight the need for health promotion programs to enhance people's confidence and motivation, as well as providing education on the health benefits of physical activity".
One interview question asked participants how confident they were that they could regularly do a total of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity (PA) three or four times a week and a total of 60 minutes of light PA each day. This 'self-efficacy' score was consistently found to be related to higher PA across gender, age group, education level and family income level. According to the authors, "Confidence in one's personal ability to carry out exercise plays a central role in the direction, intensity and persistence of health-behavior change. People who have higher PA self-efficacy will perceive fewer barriers to PA, or be less influenced by them, and will be more likely to enjoy PA".
Likewise, participants were asked to what extent they intended to be physically active over the next six months. This 'intention score' was another important independent correlate of physical activity.
The strong effects of self-efficacy and intention on PA suggest that interventions designed to increase PA should target these factors. The authors conclude that, "Future research is needed to identify how those influences can be optimally incorporated into interventions that will increase people's belief in their ability and motivation/intention to be physically active".
________________________________________
Journal reference:
1. Sai Yi Pan, Christine Cameron, Marie DesMeules, Howard Morrison, Cora LYNN Craig and Xiaohong Jiang. Individual, Social Environmental, and Physical Environmental Correlates with Physical Activity among Canadians: a Cross-sectional Study. BMC Public Health, (in press)
The reason I wanted to show you this article is that I also believe that the mind is a huge factor in our health and fitness results. I also wanted to show you this article because I wanted to let you know that I will also follow these studies to improve my commitment to helping others. If someone does not believe in their ability to exercise properly or enough, then I want to help them. I want to help educate them and motivate them positively anyway I can. I also want start getting the message out to more people that they deserve to be healthy and fit, and they in turn deserve to reap all the benefits of a healthy, fit body. Unlike many influences wanting you to pop pills, melt fat away in 2 minutes, and drink large amounts of caffeine and sugar for energy, I would love to get society back to the basics of a healthy, fit lifestyle from an early age.
Who are we as a society if we are not healthy? Why are so many things coming ahead of our own health? Why is our government letting our society be bombarded with unhealthy products, services and information? Personally, I am fed up with this and I do intend on doing my part to stay healthy and promote a healthy lifestyle to others.
I want to end with an encouraging statement and tell you that yes you can start today and honor yourself and the ones you love by taking better care of yourself. I also believe that as a society we do want to be healthy, and we can all start today and make that happen in our own way. If you do not know how, then I will continually improve my own resources and help you as best I can. That I know I can do. The real question I leave with you is what do you want to do, and what are you going to do?
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Posted on 24 Feb 2009 by Vanda
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