Balancing Diet and Exercise for Health
Dr. Roshan Jayawardhane
Can I just eat healthy and not do any exercise, but still stay healthy? Can I just work out to compensate for anything I eat and stay healthy?
Those are two questions I frequently encounter during my practice. And my answer to both questions is a NO!
Healthy eating and regular exercise goes hand in hand in keeping a person healthy. While proper nutrition brings about a certain set of healthy benefits, regular exercise benefits a person in few other ways. And both together give a boost to a person's overall wellness and health.
Let's dig deep into this.
A healthy diet is when your diet contains all the necessary macronutrients and micronutrients in the right proportions. For this, the diet should contain whole grains, vegetables, a source of protein (Fish, meat or eggs) and fruits. While preparing the meal, it is best to use healthy oils like olive oil or canola oil, and minimize refined sugars and sugary drinks. Drinking around 3 liters of water per day is necessary. And consuming fruits and vegetables of different colours is important in obtaining micronutrients which are vitamins and minerals.
With respect to exercise, moderate to vigorous exercise about 30 mins per day for an adult has shown a plethora of benefits. These include prevention from many diseases like type 2 Diabetes, Hypertension and Dylipidemia. Exercise also improves strength of joints and muscles and this is of great help in old age and that's the importance of working out in a gym. A gym has equipment to workout target muscle groups.
Regular exercise also has a profound effect on mental health, It improves attention span and also helps with anxiety and depression.
And of course, if someone gets on to specialized physical training, the nutrition requirement depends on his/her target achievements, which is a diffrent topic altogether.
However, for any adult a healthy diet and regular physical activity are two unparalleled ways for a healthy life.