Get active for National Physical Fitness and Sports Month

May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, and Northeast Missouri Health Council wants to challenge you to try a new workout or sport in celebration!

Physical activity provides long-term health benefits for everyone and being active helps you to burn calories that you store from eating throughout the day. While we typically think of being physically active as a rigid workout plan, the truth is that it can be any activity you do throughout the day, such as vacuuming, walking the dog, or gardening.

When you are regularly active and practice proper nutrition, you set the stage for your children and grandchildren to do the same. There has been a significant increase in obesity over the last 20 years, and now about one-third of U.S. adults are considered obese. If things remain the same without change, one-third of all children born in the year 2000 or later may suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives, and it puts the public at higher risk of facing other chronic health problems later in life.

Regular physical activity can produce long-term health benefits. It can help:

· Prevent chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and stroke (the three leading health-related causes of death)

· Control weight

· Make your muscles stronger, reduce fat, and build overall strength and endurance

· Promote strong bone, muscle, and joint development

· Condition heart and lungs

· Improve sleep

· Decrease potential of becoming depressed

· Increase your energy and self-esteem

· Relieve stress

· Increase your chances of living longer

By incorporating physical activity into your daily life — 30 minutes for adults and 60 minutes for children — as well as healthy eating, you will experience positive health benefits and be on the path for a better future.