Years of research has shown that human fitness and overall health of a being improves when an individual begins to exercise. There are a variety of fitness regimes, including aerobics, muscular strength training, yoga, coordination and flexibility shaping, that increases the metabolism and the overall composition of our bodies. Most importantly, our health improves and we get more resistant to chronic diseases. Some of the most common chronic degenerative diseases of India and the West include hypertension (induced from stress), coronary heart disease and mainly noninsulin-dependent diabetes. I recently read that by 2010, India will have the most diabetics in the world. In all the three cases, the severity of these diseases, have been considerably reduced by physical activity. By burning fat and reducing obesity, one exerts a beneficial influence upon his or her insulin metabolism. Furthermore, increased levels of physical activity have also shown to positively impact virtually all chronic diseases. Exercise is a good means of treating or reversing various diseases and should be considered an essential therapeutic component.
The concept of positive health was first introduced by Hippocrates, who based the idea on the interaction of genetics, dieting and exercising. Positive health requires the basic information of a human being’s constitution, i.e. genetics as well as the value of various foods. Who we are and what we eat defines our body. But this alone is not enough for our health. There must be a discipline of daily exercise, the results of which must be well understood before they are performed. We cannot alter our genetic code; that is constant. But we can control what we eat and how we exercise. It is known that “if there is a deficiency in food or exercise, the body will fall sick”. Genetically speaking, Indians are more prone to diabetes and heart-related diseases due to our bad food habits and sedentary lifestyles. This factor places more emphasis on the need to perform daily exercise. Thus, try to follow this concept of positive health and set yourself on a path to a better spiritual, physical and mental health plan.