So here we are – January done and dusted; pandemic properly staying, vaccines on their way to SA – and we absolutely need to stay fit and healthy as part of the solution to beating this virus.
Physical activity is good for us – it’s part of our mantra at Planet Fitness – but we aren’t being biased! According to new guidelines released by the World Health Organisation (WHO), physical activity provides a number of health benefits for adults and children.
#1. Build up your immunity!
While South Africans wait for a vaccine – our best defence is to strengthen what nature gave us, and build a healthy immune system. With the summer Covid-19 spike hitting hard, as well as a second strain of the virus to contend with, staying physically active is your number one way to fight the pandemic as it currently stands. It’s also a way to flatten out those unwanted 2020 curves that inactivity has produced!
Covid co-morbidities like diabetes, hypertension and obesity can be addressed with exercise.
In the same study, the United Kingdom collected data from over 8 million member check-ins and while 17 cases of COVID-19 were reported, contraction did not happen at any of the 1300 fitness facilities in the study. And in Australia, researchers gathered over 6.26 million check-ins from 423 gyms and fitness facilities, and while data shows 13 cases of COVID-19, there have been zero reported community transmission cases.
#2. Beat stress with mental fitness
Physical activity increases the flow of oxygen to your brain. Gyming or staying physically active at home will help you to beat stress and gain a more positive outlook on life because it brings on an increase of those “feel-good” chemicals (endorphins). In December, the South African Depression and Anxiety Group reported that call volumes more than doubled to 1400 a day since the start of the Covid-19 lockdown. Staying physically active helps to stimulate a positive outlook on life.
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29 January 2021
Written by:
Lisa Short at LSCommunications for Planet Fitness at 083 738 2811 / [email protected]