Coming to the end of a Masters in Sports and Exercise medicine Orla Crosse, Chartered Physiotherapist and Yoga Instructor, reflects on how the course has been a strong reminder that consistency is the most important factor to protect our overall physical health.
Everywhere we turn we see something on our news feed telling us about the latest ‘get fit’ craze. But why does it feel like such an effort sometimes to get some done? Put simply, life gets in the way and certain things and people take priority over ourselves.
I’ll try to break down what we should be doing and make a daily exercise seem like a tiny job to do!
Being physically active is important to prevent many serious health issues.To improve overall cardiovascular health, the American Heart Association suggests at least 150 minutes per week of moderate exercise or 75 minutes per week of vigorous exercise (or a combination).
For moderate exercise that breaks down to 30 minutes a day, 5 times a week.
I think that sounds like an easy goal to remember and achieve.
Here's the GREAT bit:
You will also experience benefits even if you divide your time into 2 or 3 segments of 10 to 15 minutes per day.
So a nice brisk yoga session for 15 mins, combined with a 15 min lunchtime/evening walk 5 times a week, is very sustainable to protect your heart. You can do that. You still have 23 and half hours to do all your other stuff!
If we need any more convincing, an article in the Journal of Applied Physiology 2000 by Frank W Booth et al. states:
"We know of no single intervention with greater promise than physical exercise to reduce the risk of virtually all chronic diseases simultaneously".
Boom, make your plans, go for it!
Orla, a Chartered Physiotherapist, continues to teach weekly Performance Yoga classes in Clonmel and Limerick and has an upcoming workshop in Dublin on Sat 1st April. See www.performanceyoga.ie
