Is our obsession of being fit endangers our lives? It is good to have a fit and healthy body, yet balancing between the two extremes of fitness and poor health is the best approach to have a healthy and fit body. Importantly, one must understand that our body is designed to be healthy unless we decide to make it otherwise.
The phrase “Health is Wealth” will remain eternal until the human race exists. The ideas of good health and well being have been with us for ages and it was sage Patanjali who realised that yoga could help people lead healthier lives.
Numerous inventions & discoveries over the last two centuries have made the lives of billions of people easier. In fact, it is not wrong to say that all inventions were created to make people’s lives easier. Yet many inventions have also led people to adopt a sedentary lifestyle, although bad habits have led people to adopt such a lifestyle as well.
Just a few decades ago the importance of health and wellness entered the limelight in India largely because of the poor lifestyle of people. More Indians are suffering from obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, metabolic disorders, and cardiac issues which is the result of unhealthy lifestyle. Since these issues have become common, people are conscious and finding ways to prevent them.
As people’s awareness about health grew (though a very small fraction of people is aware of how to be healthier), they started to make changes in their lifestyles including taking up exercise, practicing yoga, and eating a proper diet and health supplements.
Gradually health & fitness have become a point of discussion everywhere. Now, it’s common to see people discussing – how to stay fit? Joining fitness centres and appointing nutritionists have become common among fitness freaks for wanting an attractive physique. Crash diets, keto diets, and cheat meals are in practice now, which weren’t heard of until a few years ago. However, is this obsession with fitness justified? To answer this question let us first understand and define what fitness is.
A body is said to be fit if, it acts efficiently, productive in all aspects of life, remains healthy and is immune to minor diseases and disorders. The body’s ability to respond quickly (quick reflexes) to stimulus is also a definition that a body is fit.
There are two categories of people. Those in the first category feel that they are healthy and need not be concerned about fitness. The second category feel they are following an unhealthy lifestyle and they want to adopt a healthier lifestyle. People in this category adopt activities like crash diets, keto diets, and rigorous exercise simultaneously. Though both categories of people are at risk, it is people in the second category who pose more danger to themselves.
In the quest to have a fit and lean body, people often end up with Anorexia and Bulimia. Anorexia means a loss of appetite and bulimia is an emotional disorder characterized by wrongly perceiving the body to have a bloated shape. It is accompanied by an obsessive desire for weight loss, eating excessively, followed by fasting or self-induced vomiting or purging. Many people suffering from anorexia and bulimia have poor health and aren’t fit and healthy.
Such an obsession to be fit indicates an imbalance in the body’s hormonal system. Hormones like serotonin, dopamine, and cortisol are important to regulate normal body functions. When there is an imbalance in these hormones, problems arise.
Cortisol is the hormone responsible for maintaining normal homeostasis (normal body functioning). Cortisol is released in the body in response to stress and low blood sugar levels. So when people adopt an improper diet or a poor diet, it induces low blood sugar levels called Hypoglycemia. Sensing low blood sugar, Cortisol is released in the body from the adrenal glands and signals to the body that it is under stress. A chain of reactions is then triggered leading to increased heart rate, high blood pressure, anxiety, insulin suppression etc. Being Anorexic or eating less, keeps cortisol levels high leading to disorders like blood sugar imbalances, weight gain, compromised immune system, heart-related issues, gastrointestinal problems, fertility issues etc.
Many young fitness freaks hit the Gym or take up rigorous physical activity with the purpose of weight loss. While it is a good idea to burn more calories than consumed, it is of the utmost importance to supplement the diet to make up for the calories burnt. If one does not supply the body with the right nutrition, then it endangers the health leading to chronic disorder or immune deficiency.
Mr. Arvind Jain,
Co-founder, AS-IT-IS Nutrition
No. 40, 2nd Floor, Sundar Industrial Estate,
NTY Layout, Mysore Road, Bangalore- 560026
Ph: 91 9741933033
