Wiki Page, Child Development : Benefits of Physical Fitness

Wiki Page
2014-09-16T21:47:03-06:00

[T]he goal of health-related fitness is to optimize your quality of life.

The benefits of physical fitness contribute to your total wellness and, as Dr. Jeff Cherubini stated in his podcast, the goal of health-related fitness is to optimize your quality of life. There are also other factors that make up your total wellness, such as mental, emotional, social, and spiritual wellness. These all can be enhanced by your physical wellness.

In an article titled "Exercise Improves Math Scores?!," Dr. Gwen Dewar describes a study by researchers at Georgia Health Sciences University. The study looked at sedentary and overweight children ages 7 to 11 who engaged in fun, playful exercises that raised their heart rates to 79 percent of their maximum. The scientists used tests that measure abilities such as planning and academic skills to identify brain activity before and after physical activity. After engaging in physical activity and play, the children showed an increase in complex thinking and decision making, areas of the brain used in math. Even just 20 minutes of physical activity per day proved beneficial, but the more the children exercised, the more their brains benefited. Intelligence scores increased an average of 3.8 points in those exercising 40 minutes per day for three months. This study shows that being physically active can help children reach their full academic potential.

Exercise fills your brain with oxygen, and you become more alert. Exercise gives your brain a boost. There is also much publicity about how important exercise is to relieve stress in your life, and with tough economic times, it is even more important to exercise regularly. Even a quick 10-minute walk will help you to relax. You can't escape stressful situations, but you can control how you respond to them. There are so many benefits of exercise, the list could be very long; however, here are a few of the most important ways exercise can enhance your life:

Exercise will:

Lower your risk of heart disease and stroke

Lower your risk of chronic diseases and illnesses

Give you more energy

Help your mood

Increase your ability to focus

Improve your overall appearance

Help you sleep

Help you keep a normal body weight

Firm and tone your muscles

Improve your posture

Help slow down aging

Help prevent or control diabetes

Strengthen the cardiorespiratory system

Help to reduce high blood pressure

Help to maintain healthy bones

This is a pretty impressive list of health benefits.

As was mentioned earlier, this class could be life changing for you. It is often said that it only takes 21 days to make a behavior into a habit. This course will get you closer to an optimum quality of life.

How would a personal fitness program enhance your current lifestyle? Do you think you could devote 21 days to make exercise a habit?

National Health Objectives and The President's Challenge

Every ten years, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services releases a list of objectives for preventing disease and promoting health. Since its initiation in 1980, this ten-year plan has helped instill a new sense of purpose and focus for public health and preventive medicine. These national health objectives are intended to be realistic goals to improve the health of all Americans. Two unique goals of the 2010 objectives (a) emphasize increased quality and years of healthy life and (b) seek to eliminate health disparities among all groups of people. The objectives address three important points.

Personal responsibility for health behavior. Individuals need to become ever more health conscious. Responsible and informed behaviors are the keys to good health.

Health benefits for all people and all communities. Lower socioeconomic conditions and poor health often are interrelated. Extending the benefits of good health to all people is crucial to the health of the nation.

Health promotion and disease prevention. A shift from treatment to preventive techniques will drastically cut health care costs and help all Americans achieve a better quality of life.

(Source: National Health Objectives 2010 (taken from Lifetime Physical Fitness and Wellness by Werner W.K. Hoeger, Sharon A. Holger) Publisher – Yolanda Cossio, Tenth Edition, 2009. Pages 23, 24.)

To implement these goals, many agencies have become involved at the national level, including the Food and Drug Administration, National Institutes of Health, and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. These agencies will enlist support from business leaders and initiate town hall meetings across the country to promote the Healthy America Goals.

In addition to the National Health Objectives 2010, The President's Challenge has offered fitness test challenges since 1956. Programs are offered to youth and also to adults. One of the programs is called The Active Lifestyle Program, which encourages youth and adults to make staying active part of their everyday lives. In this program, an adult needs to be active 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. A youth under the age of 18 needs to be active 60 minutes a day. You can choose from a list of many activities and record your activities on an activity log for a total of 6 weeks.

If you can do this, you can earn the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award. Once you receive the award and certificate, you can continue with the program and receive additional stickers for each 6-week period. If you are already active, you can participate in the Presidential Champions program, which has challenges for you to see just how high you can raise your activity level. There is even a special option for performance athletes and others who train at more advanced levels. These programs are a great way for you to continue your fitness program after this class is over. If you want more information on this, go to The President's Challenge website and read about those opportunities.