Physical fitness is described as a state of health and well-being and more specifically, the ability to perform aspects of sports, occupations and daily activities. Physical fitness is generally achieved through proper nutrition, moderate-vigorous physical exercise and sufficient rest.
Before the industrial revolution, fitness was defined as the capacity to carry out the day’s activities without undue fatigue. However, with automation and changes in lifestyles, physical fitness is now considered a measure of the body’s ability to function efficiently and effectively in work and leisure activities, to be healthy, to resist hypokinetic diseases and to meet emergency situations.
Emerald Sowah is young, exuberant, trendy and well-kept-up lady obsessed with her wellbeing. She is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Fab Phancy, an online store which sells quality and affordable range of products including clothes, fragrances, handbags, shoes, lingerie, cosmetics, watches and other female products.
A style icon herself with an eye and heart for colours and fashion, Emerald is a gym freak who visits the gym an average four times in a week and works out for between an hour and half and two hours at each session. It wouldn’t be out of place to describe her as best of both worlds.
Emerald explained that the benefits of physical fitness are numerous, including better health, greater strength, more flexibility, increased energy, improved appearance, and a more positive attitude and mood. Regular exercise leads to both immediate and long-term benefits and physical activity has shown to reduce the morbidity and mortality from many chronic diseases.
“Fitness and Wellness both plays a vital role in our life. Fitness means the ability of a person to perform physical activities. Fitness includes power of body, strength of muscles and joints. If a person is physically fit, it does not mean he is also healthy, so fitness does not mean health. On the other hand wellness means your health. It includes your mental health, physical health, emotional health and so on. So fitness is only about having a good body shape while wellness is about good health”, she elaborated.
She further stated that, “the benefits of fitness far outweigh the inconveniences of regular exercise and to reap the maximum benefits of physical fitness, remember that your program should include all the main five components of physical fitness. There are other health related fitness components like cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, muscular endurance and muscle strength. There are in fact other components of physical fitness but they are skill related”.
Chronicling her journey, she said “the initial idea was to try and better myself – my health but most importantly my body. The first time I entered the gym, it was only to see how far I could take it. I was naïve and thought that I will achieve great results with little effort until my trainers pointed out my mistakes and urged me on. They made it enjoyable by interspacing the energetic exercises with the pleasant ones like dancing. The pain was certainly there but the results were great, and I was soon hooked”.
Emerald started noticing some changes in her body after a while in addition to a significant change in her mood and general wellbeing which got her very excited. She developed love for the gym and cultivated the habit of weekly routines as part of her general lifestyle.
There is currently an attitudinal change amongst Ghanaians towards exercising and healthy living. “Over the years, there has been a wide held perception by Ghanaians about exercise but this is gradually changing with what our perception of beauty is.
“In search for this idea of beauty and being healthy, some unhealthy habits are being discouraged.
An obese man with a protruding belly is seen as a wealthy or a well –to – do individual and for that matter . It can be seen in the youth, an evolving attitude towards exercise and healthy eating. Of course, more knowledge helps but a different understanding of one’s body image/type and desire be healthy is focusing the attitudes on exercise and healthy eating.
By Emerald Sowah
As attitudes change outside the gym, so does attitudes in the gym itself change. We are having all heard stories of abuse of many kinds; of bullying and indecent behaviour or actions perpetrated by people within the gym. I cannot definitively say they do not happen, but I can say though that I am yet to experience any such act or behaviour. The trainers are helpful and competent, helping me and the clients to the best of their knowledge.
I currently work for myself, buying and selling products through the use of social media. It has its difficulties, but I do enjoy it. I can be found @ fab_phancy on ig.