Run on all fours with a baby, quicken your pace to catch the bus, bathe in the cool water of the lake, play ball with the children, dance, climb ten steps, take a walk after a meal, pushing the grocery cart, picking up leaves in the fall and even brushing your teeth isphysical activity.

The human body likes activity because it is not made to live while sitting; he often even cries out his impatience through pains of tension. Provide him with various opportunities to move will make it a “happy body”¹.

L’physical activity can be a great source of pleasure! To be convinced of this and to experience it, you have to erase from your mind all the unpleasant images (for yourself) to which you have been able to associate physical effort. Are the gyms getting you down? Do not go. Do you hate promiscuity? Forget aerobic classes. Are you bored alone? Jogging is not for you. Shortness of breath makes you panic? You can very well avoid it.

If your “active” activities provide you with fun, you will win on all counts. And when you’re in good shape, everyday activities – like taking out the trash or washing the windows – are much less strenuous.

Active movement is a natural way to stimulate the phenomenon known as the “relaxation response”. Symptoms of anxiety (dry mouth, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, etc.) are attributable to excessive activity in the sympathetic branch of the nervous system, known as the “accelerator”. However, physical activity stimulates and strengthens the parasympathetic branch of the nervous system, called “the brake”. As Dr David Servan-Schreiber writes in Cure : “Since the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems are always in opposition, the more we stimulate the parasympathetic, the more it strengthens, like a muscle that develops, and it simply blocks the manifestations of anxiety. “²

We also know that a good diet helps the body to better manage physiological stress reactions; however, people who exercise naturally tend to choose more nutritious foods³.

Among the followers ofphysical activity energetic like joggers, the following fact is well known: after 15 to 30 minutes of sustained effort, the mind reaches a slightly euphoric where thoughts are spontaneously positive and even creative. The phenomenon is attributable to hormones called endorphins which are released in the body during exercise. In a chapter where he explains the effect of endorphins, the D^r David Servan-Schreiber asserts that this phenomenon does not fade over time: “The more the natural pleasure mechanism is stimulated [in this way], the more sensitive it seems to become. And people who exercise regularly get more fun little things in life: their friends, their cat, their meals, their reading, the smile of a passer-by in the street. “⁴

Research shows thatphysical exercise may be as effective, if not more, than drugs for treating depression^5-9 . The dosage of activity is important – both in intensity, duration and frequency – too much is not better than not enough. The consensus among researchers seems to be that 20 minutes at medium intensity, three times a week, is enough to have an effect on the part of the brain that modulatesmood¹⁰.

Le weight, it’s like a bank account: when you deposit (calories ingested), it goes up, when you withdraw (calories expended), it goes down. However, our metabolism has developed over thousands of years when humans were very active; as we still eat every day, the only way to avoid weight gain is to “exercise”. In fact, the morephysical activity, the more we can eat without gaining weight. Research in obese postmenopausal women found that regular exercise of moderate intensity was an effective way to lose weight¹¹. Walking (briskly) and aerobic dance without jumps (low-impact) are good choices.

But there is better: the type activity aerobic (with increased heart rate) allows you to lose weight without having to significantly reduce the intake of calories, provided that it is practiced diligently. It is that such a practice transforms the organism into a “burner”: the body then increases the rate at which it burns calories, not only during the activity itself, but all the rest of the time (according to, of course, , duration and intensity of the activity)¹².

The belief that you are “too tired” to go for a walk (or skate, swim, etc.) is based on a misperception. Because humans who have enough to eat have, in their accumulated fat, an almost inexhaustible reserve ofenergy, at least to indulge in low-intensity activities¹³. This kind of “fatigue” is more akin to nervous tension, that is to say stress. However, the benefits of physical activity are also immediately apparent: 15 to 20 minutes ofphysical exercise precisely relieve stress and fatigue, and increase energy. Let’s just mention that by ensuring better circulation of oxygen, exercise frees the body from “sand in the cogs”, such as mental heaviness and muscle tension.

The quality of sexual life depends in particular on general health, the ability to relax and a certain cardiovascular endurance, three factors in which physical activity plays an essential role. It takes energy to make love (even to want to make love) and an active life gives energy!

When healthy but sedentary men start to exercise for 1 hourphysical exercise 3 or 4 times a week, they report less erectile dysfunction, more sustained sexual activity and more fun¹⁴. And a 14-year survey of more than 30 American men found that the two main factors to play in maintaining a good erectile function are physical activity and slimming¹⁵.

Research shows that regular physical activity substantially reduces the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disorders, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, colon cancer (and possibly breast cancer and prostate cancer)^16-21 . While the most convincing data obtained so far concern serious illnesses, we know that the preventive and curative effect of physical activity is not limited to these illnesses.²². For example, several specific exercises (including those that strengthen the abdominal muscles) would be a good way to prevent back pain.^23,24.

In addition, many existing health problems can be relieved, or their symptoms alleviated, by regular physical activity – chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, asthma, type 2 diabetes and arthritis, in particular.²⁵. Even breast cancer recurrence can be thwarted byexercise physical^26,27.

THEphysical exercise moderate would help to increaseimmunity. First, by improving blood circulation, it is believed that cells and other substances of the immune system can circulate more easily in the body (essential to prevent infection of a wound, for example). Also, it has been observed that certain immune components are stimulated by physical activity.^28,29. But beware, overtraining could have the opposite effect²⁹.

Research shows that half of the loss ofautonomy observed from the age of 30 to 70 years is attributable to a lifestyle sedentary, and not to aging per se³⁰. The data is clear: physical activity is effective in increasing longevity^31,32. In addition, a few studies indicate thatphysical exercise practiced regularly by the elderly helps prevent the decline of immune functions^33-36 .

Even a small increase in activity has significant positive health effects: a little is already a lot. Because thephysical activity minimum likely to have a preventive or curative effect is not as high as that needed to improve athletic performance (but the benefits wear off quite quickly when activity ceases).

It has recently been discovered that it is not necessary to have uninterrupted activity for 30 or 40 minutes, as has already been believed; three 10-minute periods during the day provide as much benefit as a single 30-minute period²². In addition, if a minimum of 10 minutes at a time is required for long-term health benefits, short activities (climbing the stairs, for example) remain effective for short-term benefits (strengthening muscles, flexibility, etc.).

Remember that all kinds of types and natures of activities are part of what is called ” physical activity »: Walking in daily commuting, work-related activities, playing with children, household maintenance, gardening, sport…  

Kino-Quebec

Where, when, how, why, how much, with whom… to get active.

www.kino-quebec.qc.ca

Physical activity – Healthy Living Unit – Health Canada

Physical activity, for children, adults, seniors, at work, at home, at leisure, everywhere, always.

www.phac-aspc.gc.ca

American Council on Exercise

Everything about getting in shape.

www.acefitness.org