Patience is essential. Don't try to do too much too soon and
don't quit before you have a chance to experience the rewards of
improved fitness. You can't regain in a few days or weeks what
you have lost in years of sedentary living, but you can get it
back if you persevere. And the prize is worth the price.
Patience is essential. Don't try to do too much too soon and
don't quit before you have a chance to experience the rewards of
improved fitness. You can't regain in a few days or weeks what
you have lost in years of sedentary living, but you can get it
back if you persevere. And the prize is worth the price.
In the following pages you will find the basic information you
need to begin and maintain a personal physical fitness program.
These guidelines are intended for the average healthy adult. It
tells you what your goals should be and how often, how long and
how hard you must exercise to achieve them. It also includes
information that will make your workouts easier, safer and more
satisfying. The rest is up to you.
DEFINING FITNESS
Physical fitness is
to the human body what fine tuning is to an engine. It enables
us to perform up to our potential. Fitness can be described as a
condition that helps us look, feel and do our best. More
specifically, it is: "The ability to perform daily tasks
vigorously and alertly, with energy left over for enjoying
leisure-time activities and meeting emergency demands. It is the
ability to endure, to bear up, to withstand stress, to carry on
in circumstances where an unfit person could not continue, and
is a major basis for good health and well-being."
Physical fitness involves the performance of the heart and
lungs, and the muscles of the body. And, since what we do with
our bodies also affects what we can do with our minds, fitness
influences to some degree qualities such as mental alertness and
emotional stability.
As you undertake your fitness program, it's important to
remember that fitness is an individual quality that varies from
person to person. It is influenced by age, sex, heredity,
personal habits, exercise and eating practices. You can't do
anything about the first three factors. However, it is within
your power to change and improve the others where needed.
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