Fitness and health

Fitness exercise that is regular and adapted to individual conditions is currently proven to be the cheapest way to gain health with minimal side effects. However, there is no universal "correct fitness template" and any talk of "optimal exercise programs" that are divorced from individual physical foundations is irresponsible.

Last year, I met two very contrasting acquaintances at a gym near my home. A 40-year-old private company owner spent every day in the strength area for the first three months. He had to do 180 kilograms of deadlifts and squats with the barbell until his thighs were parallel to the ground. He told everyone that "if you don't practice to failure, it's just a waste of time." As a result, in the fourth month, he went to the hospital with a lumbar spur. The doctor said that he had a long-standing problem of straightening of the lumbar spine. He had never done a sports evaluation before and just put on weight, which was tantamount to asking for trouble. The other is a 62-year-old retired teacher. He never goes to the strength area when applying for a card. He does low-intensity aerobics with the ladies in the gym every day for half an hour. He occasionally goes to the constant-temperature swimming pool to swim slowly for a few laps. After a physical examination half a year later, not only did his previous high blood fat drop by two points, but also the insomnia that had been bothering him for many years was mostly cured.

Don't tell me, this situation of "training hard will hurt your body, but moving slowly will reap benefits" is really not an exception. The physical activity and health report released by the WHO in 2023 clearly states that adults who accumulate 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75-150 minutes of high-intensity aerobic activity per week, combined with full-body strength training twice a week or more, can reduce the risk of hypertension by 35%, the risk of type 2 diabetes by 27%, and all-cause mortality by about 20% - but the core premise for all data to be established is "fit between exercise intensity and self."

What's interesting is that the debate in the fitness circle about "how to move is effective" has never stopped. One group is the "efficiency-first party". They claim that HIIT is three times more efficient at burning fat than jogging. Only by building muscle can you improve your basal metabolism. If you don't train with heavy weights or exercise until your muscles are sore, it's a waste of time. There are even extreme views that "low-intensity exercises" such as walking and Baduanjin are not considered fitness at all. The other group is the "moderate sports group" who believe that high-intensity exercise will only produce a large number of free radicals and accelerate joint wear. As you get older, you should move slowly. Zhanzhuang and Tai Chi are better than anything else.

I have been on the "efficiency party" team before. I followed Pamela's high-intensity fat-burning exercises the summer before last. I danced for a week. My knees hurt so much that I was shaking even when walking down the stairs. I went to the rehabilitation department to register and found out that my patella was congenitally displaced. I didn't do a warm-up and I didn't train my leg muscles. If I just jump and jump and do a lot of exercises, I will directly make the cartilage grind the bones. Later, I listened to the rehabilitation therapist and started doing 15 minutes of quiet squats every day to train my quadriceps. When my leg strength improved, I slowly added low-intensity elliptical training. Now I have been doing it for more than a year. Not only has my weight dropped steadily by 8 pounds, but I have almost no back pain caused by sitting for a long time.

I also asked the rehabilitation practitioner who was right between the two factions. He smiled and said that there is no right or wrong, it all depends on who is using it. Young guys and girls in their early 20s, who sit all day at school and work, and have no underlying health conditions, can do some strength training and running three or four days a week. As long as they don't rush around with weight, there will definitely be many benefits. ； If he has knee wear, high blood pressure, or is 60 or 70 years old, if you ask him to do high-intensity intervals, that is not fitness, it is risking his life.

Many people's misunderstanding about fitness is that "you have to go to the gym, buy equipment, and practice for a long time before it counts." In fact, this is not the case at all. My colleague recently lost weight by getting off the subway two stops before get off work and walking home. After lunch, instead of sleeping on the table, he walked around the office building for 10 minutes. In three months, he lost 6 pounds, and his fatty liver disease was reduced by one degree during the physical examination. On the contrary, there is a young man I met before who gave more than 20,000 personal training lessons. He practiced every day until his whole body ached. After training, he went to eat barbecue and drink cold beer, and stayed up late playing games every day. His blood lipids during the last physical examination were even higher than before.

To be honest, fitness has never been a "personal task" that needs to be posted on friends, nor does it mean that the harder and more tired you are, the more effective it will be. If you like running, go for it. If you like to play badminton, go for it. Even if you just go downstairs to play with the cat after dinner every day, as long as you move, it will be 10,000 times better than lying down and scrolling through your phone. After all, health is a matter of steady accumulation and cannot be obtained by one or two surprise trainings.