June 5 is National Health and Fitness Day! It officially falls on the first Saturday in June every year. This couldn’t come at a better time! Right now, with gyms closed and people feeling a bit isolated, focusing on your health and fitness is a great way to manage stressors, boost your mood, and feel so much better.

National Health and Fitness Day was proposed to help make Canada the fittest nation on earth. This day provides a great opportunity for municipalities and all Canadians to celebrate and promote physical activity. The objective of the day is to inspire and motivate everyone to become more active and fit, which in turn could result in reduced health care costs by preventing diseases related to being inactive.

It all came about coming off the Vancouver 2010 Olympics as an initiative to promote the spirit of the Games and hopefully motivate Canadians to improve their health. Former Senator Nancy Greene Raine actually introduced a Private Members Bill (S-211) to recognize National Health and Fitness Day. It was passed through the Senate in June 2014.

I have lived in Burlington a very long time. I started my career in health and fitness here in Burlington 31 years ago at Exclusively Women’s Fitness Centre. I personally feel that the citizens of Burlington have always been great at being active and staying active. I have also witnessed more and more people walking, biking, roller blading, and just wanting to focus more on their health in the past year. I am very proud to be a part of such an amazing active community. Now is the best time to promote physical activity to the younger generations so we keep this trend going in Burlington.

Regular physical activity for children and teenagers can result in improvements in cholesterol levels, blood pressure, body composition, bone density, physical fitness, academic achievement, and aspects of mental health including self-esteem. On the other hand, sedentary behaviour, like time watching T.V. and/or playing video games, can be linked to obesity, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, and less positive scores in psychosocial health indicators like body satisfaction. As adults, being positive role models for our youth is very important and can give them more self-confidence in their bodies and lives.

That being said, as Canadians, we are encouraged to get out and get active! We have to respect and maintain social distancing while finding ways to be more active outdoors or at home. You can get more information on how to participate and celebrate the day at https://www.nhfdcan.ca/.

Use social media to post pictures of you doing what you love to do that keeps you active or shows that you are starting to be more active. Use the hashtags “#ShowUsYourMoves” and “#NHFD2021” to promote the challenge on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. You can also follow NHFD Canada on Twitter and Facebook and tag them in your posts.

Let others in your life know about this initiative and encourage them to participate. The more we do this and support others in doing it, the more we may motivate those who are struggling to add movement into their life.

Exercise and movement have many benefits far beyond weight loss:

  • Decreases aches and pains
  • Improves circulation
  • Lowers blood pressure
  • Decreases LDL (bad) cholesterol levels
  • Improves muscle strength and mobility
  • Lowers visceral fat (fat around your organs)
  • Keeps bones strong and healthy
  • Increases energy levels
  • Lowers the risk of diabetes and cancers
  • Improves balance, lowering the risk of falling as we age
  • Improves body confidence and image
  • Helps manage stressors
  • Improves levels of the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine, which create more positive moods and improve sleep

As you can see, the benefits of movement are amazing and can drastically improve the quality of your life, enabling you to do all the things you want to do and enjoy doing it!

Sources:

Janssen, I., and LeBlanc, A. G. 2010. Systematic Review of the Health Benefits of Physical Activity in School-Aged Children and Youth. International Journal of Behavioural Nutrition and Physical Activity 7, 40. Url: https://ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1479-5868-7-40 (accessed May 19, 2021).

National Health & Fitness Day. Url: https://www.nhfdcan.ca/ (accessed May 19, 2021).