Not by Sports Alone: The Secret of Health and Longevity

Have you been worried for a long time that you don’t go to the gym and do not lead a healthy lifestyle? Do you think that if you don’t do sports, you will never be a truly healthy person?

Forget your gym membership: you already have everything you need to live a long and healthy life.

If you want to be healthy, you don’t have to get on the treadmill or buy exercise equipment for your home. Look at the most famous centenarians. These are people from the so-called blue zones – places on the planet with the highest life expectancy. These people are less sick and live longer. Often they live more than a hundred years. The main “blue zones” are Okinawa, Japan; Ikaria, Greece; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Loma Linda, USA.

They don’t hit the weights, don’t run long marathon distances and don’t go to the gyms.

Instead, they live in an environment that constantly encourages them to move, without even thinking about it. They take care of the garden, walk a lot during the day and hardly use the technical amenities for housework. Curiously, they usually do not avoid alcohol.

Routine natural movements are one of the most effective ways to increase life expectancy.

Of course, in our modern conditions, this seems unrealistic. Most people are now attached to a desk and a computer screen. According to statistics, 100 years ago, only 10% of people had sedentary work, and now this figure is about 90%.

However, there are simple ways to move more. And one of the best is active ways to move from point A to point B. For example, take your children to school on foot, and ride the bike to the store or guests. Ideally, it would be worth getting to work in the same way. Or at least walk to a public transport stop.

According to scientists, the best option to get to work is a 15-minute walk, but any kind of physical activity will benefit. If you are unable to get on foot, set aside time for walks throughout the day. Compared to people who have a completely immobile lifestyle, those who walk six hours a week have a lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease, respiratory system diseases, and cancer. But even two hours of walking a week will help reduce the risk of disease.

In addition, walking is good for the brain. According to Swedish doctor Anders Hansen, author of The Real Happy Pill, daily walks reduce the risk of dementia by 40%.

If long walks are not your thing, take a little walk a few times a day. For example, five minutes for every hour. Set yourself the goal of standing up, or at least getting up and moving throughout the day. And at lunchtime, go outside.

Our body is made for movement.

This does not mean that for health it is necessary to go to the gym or torture yourself with high-interval training. The simple, natural movements that centenarians constantly perform will bring much more benefit. So follow their example and soon your life will change for the better.

Picture Credit: Pexels

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