Health: It might mean the same, but different generations have different connotations to it. Our grandparents thought of health as a treasure that would pass from generation to generation, and it was not considered anyone’s fault except parents if the child was unfit or sick. Whereas our parents have always related the term ‘Healthy’ with ‘Not Sick.’ We millennials might agree with our parents, but that is not our parents, but that is not it; we relate it with exercise, healthy eating habits, a good sleeping schedule, and a sorted mindset.
What is health?
Mahatma Gandhi wonderfully said, “It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.” Generally, health is confused with physical fitness to be the same. They might provide a similar mirage but are quite different.
‘Health is wealth.’
Physical fitness is a subset of health. Health has three components: physical, mental, and emotional. Health is the well being of all the components as mentioned above and the absence of illness.
Modern classification of health
You must be thinking of how a fundamental characteristic of the human body can be classified. The classification might not be French to you, but the classification concept may be new. Health can be classified into two categories – the first one is Physical health. This is the kind that gained our ancestors, grandparents, and parents ( society as a whole). Though nowadays, Millennials have started paying a little more attention to the second category but still the awareness about the second category is not equal to the first one. The second category is commonly known as mental health. Yes, this is the same topic you might have read while scrolling on various social media platforms.
Most people do not know that physical health might be cured or even maintained (again) if it has been devastated, but mental health, if devastated, might also trigger physical health to a dead end.
Physical health and Mental health exist independently but are still co-dependent at times of adversity.
READ ABOUT: DEMENTIA
Tips for Good Physical Health
‘A sound mind rests in a healthy body.’
These are some of the quotes that we have grown up hearing. But do you believe in them? If you do not believe in them, it is high time to start thinking. If you already believe in them, here are some tips for you-
Exercise
Starting with a basic yet essential aspect of tips – Exercise.
- Workout at-least thrice a week
- Start with basic workouts and increase the intensity with time to make your training hard.
- You are in your competition. Don’t compete with others as everyone has their own pace.
There are different body parts to work on; everybody part needs specific exercises. You might have commonly heard about branches for the abdomen, push-ups for the upper body, running stamina (heart’s strength). Now, I will suggest you certain exercises for specific areas. The body parts will be focused on the North-south direction of the body.
- Face- There are specific yoga exercises for facial features. For example- look at the ceiling and pretend to chew a piece of gum, do a fish pout for a minute, smile the broadest stretching your lips and tensing your cheekbones, and massage your face in a circular motion.
- Neck- It is the most used part of the upper body and somehow even neglected the most. Some neck exercises are rotating your neck in clockwise and anti-clockwise directions, stretching Your neck to either side of your shoulders.
- Shoulders– this is the part of the body that carries the weight of the accessories such as backpacks, purses, et cetera. Some exercises for the shoulder are stretching your shoulders and backward and forward direction with the help of your hands, standing right next to the wall with your back and elbows touching the wall, and your arms resting in front of the border with your biceps stretched to the wall.
- Arms- Arms generally have strength-building exercises. For example- push-ups, rotating your arms freely in the air in a clockwise and anti-clockwise direction, pulling a stretch- rope stuck to equipment, pull-ups, chakras, etc.
- Abdomen– This is the most famous area, which also needs the most workout. No one likes a bulging belly. Some exercises our branches, bicycle kicks, reverse crunches, mountain climbers, leg raises, standing high knee jumps, etc.
- Thigh and Butt- Whatever sin a person might have done, but he or she still deserves a cute butt. Some exercises for transforming into a cute butt are – squats (sumo), lunges, side hip openers, standing kickback lunges, side lunges, etc.
- Legs- The carves on the legs are aesthetic and good looking. They might not be easy to achieve, but they are worth it. Some exercises for killer legs are cycling, running, step-ups, box jumps, speed skater jumps, etc.
‘Our body is our temple of worship.’
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Diet
To maintain or keep a healthy body, diet is the most vital element. Every trainer, athlete, or sportsperson would tell you the same. Your body is 70% diet and 30% exercise. You become what you eat there for a healthy body; we need a balanced diet.
If you have a rigorous schedule, you would need more carbohydrates than others. If you are a bodybuilder or a frequent weightlifter, you would need an increase in protein intake in your meals as muscle break before getting toned. Consumption of fat is essential for a sumo wrestler.
A person on a diet, especially fibres ( for weight loss), needs a regular intake of vitamins and other supplements.
Sleep
Sleeping hours may depend on person to person and the kind of schedule they follow. Oh, how can we forget their age! It is pretty much known to everyone how the age of a person is inversely proportional to the sleeping hours of the person.
Sleeping hours may vary from 6 to 10 hours for an average healthy person. But if one has a rigorous schedule, one might need more sleep than others. Kindly do not follow the sleeping norms set by others; everybody has to follow a different pattern.
For better functioning of the body, rest is essential. It is not important how hard you work out, but how your body responds to your workout sessions’ intensity.
Tips for good mental health
Instagram was flooded with, ‘it is okay not to be okay,’ ‘I will happily listen to you rather than listening to the news of your demise’ and similar other stories.
Agreeing to disagree with these -you must know something – ‘Happiness is a choice, a choice which is intrinsic .’
Here are some tips for a Good, Positive, and healthy Mental Health-
Meditation
It might sound basic and mainstream but what it is not is overrated. To know a practical and convincing approach to it, you may ask any spiritual person who may be close to you.
Meditation might not come easy to you. But meditation is something that is needed for the ones who don’t find meditating easy.
Some easy ways to meditate-
- Count 1 to 100 and repeat.
- Listen to soothing music and think about a green landscape.
- Keep a check on your breath.
- Keep a check on your pulse.
Yoga
Yoga functions as a self-cleaning process for the hectic and anxious mind. It is considered beneficial and soothing for your nervous system. It decreases the release of cortisol ( stress hormone) in the body. Asanas and Pranayamas have scientifically proven to be efficient when performed under the guidance and proper breathing controls.
Good Books
Books have been man’s best friend for ages; good books can be called best friends.
Not every book can be helpful, but some self-help books can turn out to be excellent and useful. Such writers are Robin Sharma (The monk who sold his Ferrari, who will cry when you die); Sadhguru ( Life and death in one breath et cetera ); humble the poet(Things no one else can teach us, 101 simple truths for a better life), etc.
Many tips can be given to improve health, whether it be physical or mental. But, it is one’s personal choice to maintain good health. If one is not born with an unhealthy body or mind, then there shouldn’t be any excuse to improve the condition even being in the worst situation. So far, we have discussed the concept of health, its classification, tips for it, but it is you who has all the potential to maintain and create good, healthy, and prosperous surroundings for living.
I hope this article turned out to be useful to you. I wish you all a happy and healthy life ahead.
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