It’s August and many of us are looking at our summer fitness goals and seeing what progress we’ve made. If you are looking to finish your summer strong, we have some extra motivation for you!
We came across a neat video this week called “23 ½ Hours.” It’s authored by Dr. Mike Evans, a physician focused on preventive medicine, and it includes some encouraging evidence-based health information that was just too good not to pass along.
Our top 5 favorites:
- One treatment has shown positive results in reducing symptoms for people with arthritis, dementia, diabetes, osteoporosis, anxiety, depression, and fatigue. This same treatment reduces your risk of death and increases your quality of life. What is the treatment? Walking! Just walking, 30 minutes a day. You don’t have to be a marathoner or an Olympic weightlifter to achieve health benefits – you only have to walk! So head on over to champaignparks.org and find a trail, or an indoor track, near you!
- It is better to exercise and not lose any weight than it is to remain obese and inactive. Many of the negative health outcomes associated with obesity are reduced by exercise. So stop looking down at the scale and start looking up information about your local parks, trails, pools, sport courts, and dance classes.
- More activity is better for fitness, but to reduce negative health outcomes, you only need 30 minutes. What’s even better news is that you can break those 30 minutes up across the day – 10 minutes in the morning, 10 at lunch, and 10 in the evening – and still get the same health benefits! Take the stairs, park farther away in the lot, or stroll around the park during your lunch break – you can do it!
- Dogs really are man’s best friend! About 67% of dog walkers get the minimum recommended exercise simply by taking their pup for a stroll. From paths and trails to the dog park, we have great places for you and your best friend to get the exercise you need!
- Analysis of data from the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study, a well-respected longitudinal study of health outcomes, researchers found that low fitness levels were a stronger predictor of death than smoking, high blood pressure, or heart disease. That may sound grim, but the good news is that by taking only 30 minutes out of your day – you can increase your longevity and quality of life doing something enjoyable that feels good! Need a little motivation? How about a membership to the new Leonhard Recreation Center or registration in one of our group fitness classes?
The most important takeaway from Dr. Evans’ talk is that we don’t have to master CrossFit or taking up running to be fit. We don’t even have to lose weight! All we need to do is limit our sitting and sleeping to just 23 ½ hours and we’ll gain so many important health benefits that will ensure that we live longer, higher quality lives. Now that’s encouraging news!
See Dr. Evan’s video here:
Author credit: Megan Kuhlenschmidt, PhD
