Health: Sport and fitness

For maximum realization of human potential, interplay between health, wellness, and fitness is essential. Health refers to a state of complete mental, physical, and social well-being, and not just in absence of infirmity or diseases. Wellness refers to condition of physical and mental health. Fitness refers to a quality that enables someone to carry out a certain role or task. Physical health refers to the state the body is in regarding its compositions, functions, development, and maintenance. The intellectual dimension is the ability to come up with skills and knowledge essential in enhancing our life. The emotional dimension means one’s ability in accepting and coping with their situation, and the feelings of others. Social dimension refers to the ability in building and maintaining relationships that satisfy our needs naturally. This is vital because we are social beings. Spiritual dimension refers to our ability to search for the purpose, and meaning of life.

Factors influencing our health include the economic and social environment, our individual behaviors and characteristics, and the physical environment. The economic factors affect our choices regarding health. The rich can easily access vital services that can help transform health status. Issues explored regarding the physical environment include clean water and air, healthy work environments, good roads, and safe houses with favorable neighborhoods. The individual behaviors for instance social networks are associated with good health. The genetic aspect, as well as the gender aspect are associated with our making, and are essential in determining our health. Accessibility to health services also influences our health in the sense that information and services regarding our health are readily available.

Physical fitness refers to being in good physical condition sometimes referred to as being in condition or in shape. The health related factors to physical fitness include muscular strength, muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Muscular strength is the ability of our muscles to exert maximal force in a given motion range. Muscular endurance is the ability of muscles to exert sub maximal force through a certain range of motion, or at a certain point over a specified period of time. Cardiovascular endurance refers to the ability to go on with training of the system over a longer period of time. The ability of a joint to move through full motion range is called flexibility. Body composition is the ratio of lean mass of body to the fat body mass. The skills related factors to physical fitness include speed, agility, power, coordination, balance, and reaction times.

It is of crucial importance that we maintain our bodies healthy, well, and fit. Measures in maintaining our bodies healthy, well, and fit include engagement in aerobic exercise daily. The exercises increase our stamina and heart health. Another measure is choosing nutritious foods that offer minerals, vitamins, and elements to the body for optimal running. Lifting weight also offers us a way of trimming fat, increasing muscle mass, and boosting the immune system. Reducing stress is also an important option in shaping the health of our minds. Stress leads us to eat for comfort, overeat, sink onto depression, and avoid exercise. These attributes are not favorable to good health. It is vital for us to meet with friends or join community groups in order to maintain good health.

For maximum realization of human potential, interplay between health, wellness, and fitness is essential. Several factors as explored here above are important in determining health, wellness, and fitness in our lives. There seems to be a closer relation between wellness and health, as well as the factors that affect the components. There is also an enormous value in maintaining fitness in regards to the health status attained. Stress needs to be avoided for attainment of highest level of wellness, health, and physical activity.

Sound sleep

Healthy sleep habits can make a big difference in your quality of life. Having healthy sleep habits is often referred to as having good “sleep hygiene.”

Try to keep the following sleep practices on a consistent basis:

Stick to a sleep schedule of the same bedtime and wake up time, even on the weekends. This helps to regulate your body's clock and could help you fall asleep and stay asleep for the night.

Practice a relaxing bedtime ritual. A relaxing, routine activity right before bedtime conducted away from bright lights helps separate your sleep time from activities that can cause excitement, stress or anxiety which can make it more difficult to fall asleep, get sound and deep sleep or remain asleep.

If you have trouble sleeping, avoid naps, especially in the afternoon. Power napping may help you get through the day, but if you find that you can't fall asleep at bedtime, eliminating even short catnaps may help.

Exercise daily. Vigorous exercise is best, but even light exercise is better than no activity. Exercise at any time of day, but not at the expense of your sleep.

Evaluate your room. Design your sleep environment to establish the conditions you need for sleep. Your bedroom should be cool – between 60 and 67 degrees. Your bedroom should also be free from any noise that can disturb your sleep. Finally, your bedroom should be free from any light. Check your room for noises or other distractions. This includes a bed partner's sleep disruptions such as snoring. Consider using blackout curtains, eye shades, ear plugs, "white noise" machines, humidifiers, fans and other devices.

Sleep on a comfortable mattress and pillows. Make sure your mattress is comfortable and supportive. The one you have been using for years may have exceeded its life expectancy – about 9 or 10 years for most good quality mattresses. Have comfortable pillows and make the room attractive and inviting for sleep but also free of allergens that might affect you and objects that might cause you to slip or fall if you have to get up during the night.

Use bright light to help manage your circadian rhythms. Avoid bright light in the evening and expose yourself to sunlight in the morning. This will keep your circadian rhythms in check.

Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and heavy meals in the evening. Alcohol, cigarettes and caffeine can disrupt sleep. Eating big or spicy meals can cause discomfort from indigestion that can make it hard to sleep. If you can, avoid eating large meals for two to three hours before bedtime. Try a light snack 45 minutes before bed if you’re still hungry.

Wind down. Your body needs time to shift into sleep mode, so spend the last hour before bed doing a calming activity such as reading. For some people, using an electronic device such as a laptop can make it hard to fall asleep, because the particular type of light emanating from the screens of these devices is activating to the brain. If you have trouble sleeping, avoid electronics before bed or in the middle of the night.

If you can't sleep, go into another room and do something relaxing until you feel tired. It is best to take work materials, computers and televisions out of the sleeping environment. Use your bed only for sleep to strengthen the association between bed and sleep. If you associate a particular activity or item with anxiety about sleeping, omit it from your bedtime routine.

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