Being Fit means Different Things to Different People, at Different Times. For some simple examples:
For a teen (teenage person), being Fit might mean Excelling in a Sport that they are involved in.
For a 20 something Sports person, say for an up and coming Mixed Martial Arts fighter, in addition to being obviously skilled in various Martial Arts, being Fit probably means being Strong enough to throw Effective Punches/Moves, to Counter Opponents Punches/Moves, to stay at their preferred Body Weight and to be adequately Conditioned to able to stay Effective through 3 (or 5) rounds, each of which lasts 5 minutes.
For a 30 year old Executive with a Sedentary Job, being Fit might mean being able to walk the stairs without losing breath, keeping a reasonable body weight etc.
For a 50-60 year old person, being Fit might mean Controlling some of the Diseases they are afflicted with (Blood Sugar levels, Blood Pressure levels and such).
For an 80-90 year old, being Fit likely means to be Ambulatory and to be able to do daily activities by themselves without needing assistance.
Training Plan
Running is a Good Exercise…however, as with all forms of Exercise, you need to understand what it does for you and what it WILL NOT do for you. It also needs to be Trained for with a properly Programmed/Designed Training Plan which takes into account your Health/Fitness Goals.
Some things to Ponder
- Keep in mind that ANY ACTIVITY is WAY BETTER than NO ACTIVITY, (Being Totally Sedentary is NOT GOOD).
- All humans start to lose muscle (Sarcopenia) as they age… This loss starts at around 30 years and accelerates as we age.
- Bone Density is quite important, especially as we get older.
- Sense of Balance (Proprioception – awareness of our body and body parts in space) is even more important as we age.
- Losing a whole lot of Lean Body Mass (Everything Minus Fat) is NOT GOOD.
- And, BEING STRONG, is what will help you the most, with your Daily Chores…and again, this gets more important as you age. Being Strong, does not necessarily mean lifting 150 kilograms. But, are you able to move the couch easily at your home, when needed. Are you able to take a can of water and tilt it over the water dispenser at your office, when needed. Are you able to get 5-6 bags of fully loaded groceries out of your car and maybe climb a couple of levels of stairs, when needed, without feeling like a truck was placed on your chest. Even more importantly, do you think being able to do these things will be necessary, as you grow older? Think about what Exercises/Activities will help you Get Stronger and will also help you Remain Strong.
- Consider also, the “free” time you have that can be scheduled for workouts. And, what kind of time requirements are needed for various different Exercise/Sports Activities.
- Also consider, if choosing the particular Exercise/Sports Activity will get you Interested, Excited and will therefore, get you to Persist with it for a long time. If you are very interested in running, then, yes, of course you should take up running, because, your interest will get you to continue to do it.
- If a group of your friends are attending Gym workouts, then, since they are your friends, just by becoming a part of the group doing workouts at the gym, might get you to continue/persist with doing it.
- If you are very Good with (Skilled in) Swimming for instance, then, obviously, you will persist with swimming activities.
- To build muscle (not talking about Bodybuilding type muscle), there is nothing that matches a Properly Designed/Programmed Strength Training (think of lifting weights) Regimen. Besides obviously increasing your Strength, it also helps improve your Sense of Balance (so, you won’t fall) and will also improve your Bone Density (so, bones will not break easily).
- Strength Training needs to be undertaken (only) about 2-3 times per week, for about an hour and a half (max two hours) on each of these days.
So, think of what the various Exercises/Activities will do what for you and what they will NOT do for you. As another example, Yoga for instance, will get you to be very Flexible. However, it will not get you to complete a Marathon… Nor will it make you very Strong!!!
Whatever your Health/Fitness Goals are (so, it is important to first think about this and decide on what your Health/Fitness Goals are), the above points are some of the things you might want to think about, before deciding to take up Running or any other Exercise/Activity.
But again, DOING ANY ACTIVITY IS WAY BETTER THAN DOING NOTHING.
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