Fitness or fatness
We are all getting heavier and returning to a healthy weight is for few people. Does sport make sense to lose weight or do you want to exercise better to get fit?
Key message
- To Becoming fit or losing weight are both very healthy.
- In practice, the influence of exercise on becoming fitter is more significant than on losing weight
- Exercising to become fit pays off, even if you do not lose weight
- Also for people with overweight and poor endurance
- But, use it or lose it!
- Sports, exercise & weight loss
If you are overweight, it is very healthy to lose weight. It is then important to eat less and exercise more. This is beneficial for your energy balance. We know from research that food has by far the most effect on the balance. Burning a lot of calories through exercise is not easy. But research also says that people lose more weight if they move more alongside a diet. Exercise thus supports weight loss.
Unfortunately, many (also from personal experience) know that getting your energy balance in order and keeping it is easier said than done. For example, London's King's College looked at the waste attempts of some 300,000 Englishmen. They came to a sober conclusion, many attempts failed. Many experts, therefore, believe that losing weight is not just a responsibility of its own. Measures for the food industry and a more agile environment are needed to make a healthy weight possible for more people.
Sport, exercise & fitness
Is this a call to cancel your sports subscription?
Absolutely No! Sport and workout may not always lead to a lower fat percentage, but it often leads to a higher fitness (endurance). Exceptions left there; everyone becomes fitter by exercising more. We know that fitness contributes enormously to good health, including blood, heart, and vessels.
Not just for athletes
Being healthier by becoming fitter is not only reserved for athletes. Indeed, a growing body of research shows that the people who are the least fit are often the greatest progress books if they manage to move a little more and be a little fitter For many, this may be a more feasible task than losing kilos. This does not mean that there is no more profit for athletes. After all, except for a few exceptions, the fitter the healthier!
Ok, but where do I start?
All the movement that you start breathing faster helps to improve your fitness. Walking, stretching cycling or swimming are suitable activities, but taking the stairs more often helps! The movement guideline is a nice goal but realizes that all small bits help. Is the movement guideline no longer a challenge? Then think of a solid interval training to give your fitness a boost.
Use it or lose it
If 'fitness' (instead of 'fatness') is your exercise goal, then this offers advantages. But just like losing weight, getting fitter does not happen by itself. It costs commitment and perseverance, and above all, you have to maintain it. If you stop moving, you lose the benefits. Use it or lose it!
Why is this good news for people who try to lose weight in vain?
Research shows that fitness, regardless of your weight, reduces your health risk. The health benefits of being fit may well be greater than the health risks of overweight, especially for the elderly. If losing weight does not work, then it still pays to become fitter.
Not just for athletes
Being healthier by becoming fitter is not only reserved for athletes. Indeed, a growing body of research shows that the people who are the least fit are often the greatest progress books if they manage to move a little more and be a little fitter For many, this may be a more feasible task than losing kilos. This does not mean that there is no more profit for athletes. After all, except for a few exceptions, the fitter the healthier!
Ok, but where do I start?
All the movement that you start breathing faster helps to improve your fitness. Walking, stretching cycling or swimming are suitable activities, but taking the stairs more often helps! The movement guideline is a nice goal but realizes that all small bits help. Is the movement guideline no longer a challenge? Then think of a solid interval training to give your fitness a boost.
Use it or lose it
If 'fitness' (instead of 'fatness') is your exercise goal, then this offers advantages. But just like losing weight, getting fitter does not happen by itself. It costs commitment and perseverance, and above all, you have to maintain it. If you stop moving, you lose the benefits. Use it or lose it!