The Benefits of Physical Activity and Exercise for Health Life is known to begin with movement, and…
With modernization, automation and mechanization technology have become part of human life. Every new day brings us a new technological invention, and these inventions enter our lives relentlessly. The conveniences these technological innovations bring to human life are undoubtedly beyond dispute, but we must also be aware that things which are not used appropriately, and which push us toward idleness, restrict our physical activity just as much as they make our lives easier. In other words, we should try, as much as possible, to keep doing the daily tasks that will not overly tire our bodies but will instead provide us with physical vitality.
While the daily physical activity level of people living in the 19th century was around 92%, today this rate has dropped to as low as 28%, particularly in developed Western countries. It is clearly seen that as civilization advances, humans move less and less, and do not even perform natural bodily activities. A sedentary (inactive) lifestyle has become a public health problem, both individually and socially.
Let us now try to explain the negative effects of inactivity on the human body…
The human body completed its evolution amid the harsh conditions of the natural world in the earliest ages. The people of those eras had to be strong in order to survive, to fight wild animals, to withstand harsh natural conditions, and to feed themselves. In that period, life was almost an unending battle for humans.
All these struggles, over time, helped strengthen the human anatomical structure and bring physical endurance to its peak. All the muscles of humans developed enormously. Stronger, faster, and more resilient, people were constantly on the move.
Now let us picture today’s human being… Let us see how we have rendered ineffective and dysfunctional that powerful anatomical structure and endurance inherited from centuries of human evolution!
Today, humans do not need to move much in order to survive. This inactivity in people’s daily lives has given rise to a new group of diseases.
This group of diseases is called ‘Hypokinetic Diseases’ (diseases of insufficient movement). It is hard to believe, but these diseases are today among the leading causes of death. Cardiovascular diseases resulting from insufficient movement and poor nutrition are among the most notable diseases in this group.
During the coronavirus period, we all confined ourselves to our homes and began living a sedentary (inactive) life. During these days spent shut in at home, all of our movement was inevitably restricted. In this process, patients with cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal conditions, and chronic illness in particular were affected even more by inactivity.
In patients with chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, thyroid disorders, and high cholesterol, the progression of these diseases due to inactivity is also inevitable.
Studies have observed that long-term inactivity increases the risk of anxiety, fibromyalgia, obesity, hemorrhoids, osteoporosis, deep vein thrombosis, aging, and cancer in individuals.
In recent times, the risk of disease has been increasing day by day among people who adopt a sedentary lifestyle.
It is in order to cope with this lack of movement, to raise a person’s quality of life, and to make daily activities physically easier for people to perform, that the concept of “lifelong sport” was born.
This concept has been referred to by different names in different periods and different countries. Sometimes “sport for everyone,” sometimes “sport for health,” and sometimes “mass sport.”
If you would like broader information about physical activity and exercise, you may benefit from my book ‘‘Discover Life.’’