1. GIVE UP JUNK FOOD
2. DO SOME STRECHING EXERCISES
3. GET A GOOD NIGHT´S SLEEP
4. CUT DOWN ON SALT
5. WORK OUT AT THE GYM
6. LOSE WEIGHT
Many people strive to be fit. Fitness, after all, is synonymous with health.
Having a high level of overall fitness is linked with a lower risk of chronic disease, as well as a better ability to manage health issues that do come up. Better fitness also promotes more functionality and mobility throughout one’s life span.
And in the short term, being active can help your day-to-day functioning, from better mood to sharper focus to better sleep.
Simply put: Our bodies are meant to move, and they tend to function better when we’re more fit.
That said, it’s also important to know that there are many different ways to be fit (think of a ballet dancer versus a bodybuilder or a sprinter versus a gymnast). And fitness does not have a singular “look.” In fact, appearance can’t necessarily tell you about someone’s habits, whether they’re actually physically active, or even whether they’re fit at all.
What It Means to Be Fit
According to the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans set forth by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), there are five components of physical fitness:
- Cardiorespiratory Fitness Your VO2 max is a commonly used measure of this. It’s your body’s ability to uptake and utilize oxygen (which feeds all of your tissues), something that is directly related to your health and quality of life, says Abbie Smith-Ryan, PhD, professor and director of the Applied Physiology Laboratory at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
- Musculoskeletal Fitness This includes muscle strength, endurance, and power.
- Flexibility This is the range of motion of your joints.
- Balance This is your ability to stay on your feet and steady to avoid falls.
- Speed This is how quickly you can move.