A Healthy View of Health
In this post, I wanted to make two points regarding our current perception of health. First, it is healthy to look good. Second, it is not healthy to look good. Contradictory? Let me explain.
First, there is nothing wrong with wanting to look good. Wanting to look attractive is normal, natural, & biological. In fact, the way one looks is associated with health because in general, looking fit usually means you are fit. When kept in perspective, striving towards looking fit is not materialistic or superficial but simply taking care of your body. In fact, taking care of your appearance is even healthy. Knowing that you are being a good steward of your body & knowing you look well will boost your self-esteem & confidence. Your emotional & psychological health vastly impacts your physical health.
Secondly, looking fit is not the be-all, end-all. In this culture of advertisement, looking great is associated with being healthy. To a certain extent, that is true as I pointed out under the first point. Fit people tend to have a certain look. The athletic look is a by-product of adaptation: as a body becomes stronger & works well physiologically, it will make physical changes that are tangible & visible. However, as I have learned in college statistics, taking associations at face value does not always tell the whole story.
People sometimes can chase the look, throwing their health to the wind, & the fit look doesn’t necessarily portray what is going on physiologically. There are many people out there who have worked so hard to get lean or build muscle, yet destroyed their adrenal glands or joints in the process. I remember being dumbfounded when I was younger. At one point after not exercising for a while, I kept my streamlined arms & shredded abs, yet had a resting heart rate of 90 & was out of breath after climbing a staircase. I looked healthy but I wasn’t healthy.
I think we need a more balanced approach to fitness. We need to take ownership of how we care for our bodies, not hide behind excuses. I want people to take into consideration their total health. Listen & observe your body. Do you look healthy? Do you feel good? Do your body systems & joints function well? Do you breathe correctly, & have proper posture & biomechanics? Do you lead a healthy & balanced lifestyle? Look healthy, but most importantly BE healthy.
The photo used in this blog post is owned by www.runnersworld.com
