Why it is important to be physically active in your LIFE

Technology has developed to a level that we don't have to be physically active anymore. We can choose to stay at home and you've got all the services to your doorstep. I would have not needed to write an article on this topic 50 years back because people's daily lives were unintentionally active. This post is not to teach you how to build six packs but to be active enough so that we can lead a healthy productive life.

Why it is important to be active?

Being someone who sits in a chair the whole day long (since I'm a software engineer) I felt a big difference in the way I feel overall when I am more physically active. After a workout or a walk in the Galle fort in the morning, I feel energetic and ready to start the day. I can concentrate better and I feel less lethargic. This is really important as a coder because concentration is key to producing great software. You get this positive vibe in your body that keeps you motivated in performing whatever you do. If it needed 5 hours to complete a work, it would take 3 hours now to do the same. Not only that the work you do is of better quality.

I have also noticed differences in physical appearance when I'm active and when I'm not. Your face glows, you look thinner and you look fit and young. You rarely get sick. You can go on hikes, perform any activity without any hassle. I have seen people of my age(almost 28 years now) getting heart attacks. Being active makes your heart stronger. You rarely hear athletes having heart attacks.

How physically active you should be?

The first thing you should know is that it is not necessary to go to a gym to be physically active. But a casual walk in the evening might not be enough as well. So how can we decide the amount of activity needed? Well, what researchers say is that you need to be aware of Body Fat percentage and ideally, it should be between 10-15%. While this topic needs its own article there are a lot of articles on the internet that help you determine your body fat percentage. So if you are on the higher side which most of you would be on, you need to lose fat. To lose fat you need to be in calory deficit which means you need to spend more calories than you take in. You need to have a rough idea about the calories you take in from food you take and you can also track the calories that you spend on your activities. There are a lot of articles on these topics. What you need to be aware of is that you are spending more calories than you take in until you reach the required body fat level. So you might need to run the extra mile or do the extra pushup to burn those calories. But don't ever think going to the gym is enough because you might not be burning the required calories.

Physical activities that I do

I am a CEO of a small tech company and I have a tight schedule. But if you organize your work you can find an hour or two in your daily schedule to perform activities. The one or two hours that I spend on this is never a waste as I continue to work efficiently throughout the day.
Walking in the morning around Galle fort is my favorite activity. The morning sea breeze soothes your body. The fort is not too busy and too lonely in the morning. You can see people walking and doing exercise making you motivated as well. I try my best to hit the gym 3 times a week. Not trying to build bodybuilder-like muscles but to keep the body lean and strong. Most of these activities are not high intensive. So as a high-intensity activity I play football with my friends at the Galle fort.

There are a lot of other activities that you can do. Cycling, running, swimming, gardening, playing badminton, etc. are some you could try. Do activities you love so doing them would give happiness along with fitness goals. There is never a right time to start something. So if you are not physically active start today with a walk in the neighborhood and share with me how you feel. I want everyone to be healthy and beautiful. So Stay Active Stay Healthy! Stay tuned for more posts on lifestyle.