Physical Fitness: Practical guide for adolescents

PHYSICAL FITNESS AND HEALTH

WHAT IS PHYSICAL FITNESS? 

Physical fitness is a state of health and, more specifically, the ability to perform aspects of sports, occupations and daily activities without getting too tired. Physical fitness is generally achieved through proper nutrition, moderate-vigorous physical exercise and sufficient rest. So, basically, eat well, move your body, and get plenty of sleep.

The three pillars to achieve a full state of health for adolescents

1. PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?

Regular physical activity is one of the most important things you can do for your health. There’s multiple scientific evidence to support that regular physical activity in adolescents contributes to develop:

·      Healthy musculoskeletal system (bones, muscles and joints)

·      Healthy cardiovascular and respiratory systems (heart and lungs)

·      Healthy body weight

·      Neuromuscular awareness (better coordination and movement control)

Also, physical activity helps adolescents to reduce anxiety and depression while improving their social development, building self-confidence, self-expression, social interaction and integration.

If that’s not enough, recent studies show how doing regular physical activity improves attention, memory, which leads to a better academic performance and brain health, meaning that we learn better when we are active! 

We could be mentioning benefits of regular physical activity forever, but we will finish this section with the most relevant health benefits that keeping an active life have on our current and future health: Reduce the risk of hypertension, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, breast and colon cancer, depression, obesity… so basically it increases dramatically your chances of living a longer and happier life.

KEYS TO DO IT WELL

Ok, now we know that regular physical activity is very healthy, but let’s see what kind of physical activity is more appropriated for you, how often you should do it, and the keys to plan and maintain your own physical activity routine.

Adolescents should accumulate at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day. But remember: doing less is better than doing nothing, and doing more will give you additional health benefits.

To determine how intense that physical activity should be, let’s take a look at the Heart Rate Zones table. Remember that heart rate is a good indicator of the intensity, and you can take your pulse very easily while you do physical activity.  

Heart Rate Zones help you to identify the benefits of exercising at different intensities.

The target zone (the zone in which physical activity has greater benefits for our health) are the blue, green and orange. The grey is better than doing nothing, but you should push yourself a little more; and the red is too intense, which can be good for elite athletes, but it’s not the safest nor the healthiest.

What about the type of physical activity?

Depending on your starting level, you should consider and choose accordingly what type of physical activity is most suitable for you. The goal is to get more and more used to higher physical activity levels and reach those daily 60 minutes (or more) so that our body makes the healthy adaptations we’re looking for: bigger and more efficient heart, improved respiratory system, brain development, and the long list of benefits we described before.

As a general rule, most of those daily 60 minutes of physical activity should be in the aerobic zone (moderate intensity), and we should add a routine to strengthen muscles and bones, at least 3 times per week, in which the intensity of the exercise is hard. With physical activity, as with anything, we shouldn’t go from 0 to 100. The body needs to adapt gradually to a higher amount and intensity of exercise. The key is to find our starting level and from there, make little but consistent improvements until we reach the recommended 60 minutes per day in a healthy, safe and enjoyable way. So let’s get started. Find your level and start making changes! Remember it’s not about where you start, but where you finish!

Level 1

If your only physical activity comes from the Physical Education class, and maybe walking to school or walking the dog, you should start with long brisk walks (fast pace walking), easy hikes, bicycle rides and try playing some individual or team sports until you find one that you like more, and maybe join the local team for that sport. As you become more active, jump to level 2 and keep increasing your activity levels!

Level 2

If you are used to doing more than the PE class, because you enjoy sports, outdoors activities, maybe you go to school by bike, or you usually meet your friends to play some games, then you should consider joining a cycling, running, swimming, or hiking group, to do those activities more regularly and improve social skills. Also, consider joining a sports team and practice 2 or 3 days a week playing your favorite sport, plus having some competitions on the weekends. Jump to level 3 when you’re ready!

Level 3

If you are a very active person that is already participating in an individual or team sport, practicing 2 or 3 days per week, you should consider making your own fitness plan to strengthen your bones and muscles. This plan should include at least 3 work-out days per week, with mainly body weight exercises (such as planks, push ups, pull ups, lunges, sit ups, etc.) and some exercises with elastic bands or adding some light weights (2 or 3 series of 15-20 reps), always in safe positions for your back (keeping a neutral spine). 

2. GOOD NUTRITION

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?

Healthy nutrition contributes to physical, mental and social wellbeing. Diet has an important role in maintaining health and in preventing diseases such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, strokes and cancer. There’s this old saying “we are what we eat”, and it’s not far from reality. Eating gives us the nutrients and energy we need to live, and our diet affects the energy and mood we have, the way we feel, or the way our body responds to viruses and bacteria. Unhealthy diet and lack of physical activity are leading global risks to health, causing millions of deaths every year. According to the World Health Organization, up to 50% of chronic diseases could be prevented with a healthy and balanced diet.  

Eating plenty of vegetables, legumes, fruits and whole grains is healthier for us and the environment.

 

Also, when we do regular physical activity and we participate in sporting events, nutrition and hydration are crucial to make sure we have enough energy to perform well.

Lastly, but not less important, recent studies show that the way we eat is not sustainable. Right now, over 900 million people (1 in every 8 people on earth) suffer from hunger, while the number of obese adults keeps increasing (over 600 million). In the meantime, we are destroying ecosystems and animal wildlife while running out of drinkable water.  

Recent studies show that the production of meat products have a huge environmental impact for various reasons:

-       Produces lots of contaminant gases to the atmosphere

-       Produces acidification of the soil and damages to the ecosystems.

-       Uses huge extensions of land

-       Requires lots of vegetables production to feed the animals

On top of that, there’s the moral debate about animal suffering because of the unhealthy and horrible conditions in which most of these animals live until they are killed, and the fact that animal products are not really healthy for us, because of the amounts of saturated fats and harmful chemical products they contain.  

On the other hand, plant-based products are much more efficient, environmentally friendly, nutritive and healthy than animal products. Climate change experts recommend to reduce dramatically meat products and consume mostly (or even only) plant-based products, such as fruits, vegetables, cereals, etc.  

So, as we can see, there’s still hope to change this situation, we just have to do some changes in our diet to make it healthier and more sustainable, so we can reduce world hunger and protect the environment.  

KEYS TO DO IT WELL 

To begin with, we must follow a BALANCED diet, including foods with all the nutrients we need (carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, fiber and water), in the right amounts to maintain a healthy weight (check your Body Mass Index to know your healthy weight).

What types of foods should I eat?

As we’ve learned, animal products are much more aggressive for the environment and less healthy than plant-based products. That’s why, as a general rule, we should try to cut as much as possible our intake of meat and other animal products and eat more fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains.

How much should I get from each type of food?

In general, a normal diet should include:

-       50% foods rich in slow-releasing carbohydrates, like legumes, beans, whole grain bread and cereals, brown rice and pasta, couscous, quinoa, potatoes, bananas, etc.  If you do sports or you are a very active person, you should increase the amount of carbohydrates up to 60 or 70%, since they are an important energy source.

-       35% foods rich in unsaturated fats like olive oil, and rich in fats with omega 3, found in avocado, nuts or fish.

-       15% foods rich in proteins, found in legumes, soybean, nuts, seeds and animal products like meats, chicken, eggs and dairy.

-       Plenty of water (2 to 3 liters, depending on physical activity levels), vitamins, minerals and fiber (found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, whole grains…)

Keeping these proportions with quality food for each category will keep us strong and healthy. 

Tips to make my diet healthier & more sustainable

As it happens with the physical activity, it’s not easy to go from 0 to 100, and change completely bad eating habits from one day to another. Now we are going to give you a guide for 10 small but important changes that, if you follow them, your body and mind will be thankful! The more you do, the healthier your diet will be, let’s try to get all of them!

1-    Replace the sugary drinks (coca-cola, fanta, etc) for water, making sure you drink at least 2 liters per day! Water is life!

2-    Eliminate processed food snacks (chips, donuts, cookies, etc) and change them for fresh fruit or nuts, and bring it to school!

3-    Change the sugary cookies or white bread in your breakfast for whole grain toasts with tomato and olive oil, or for a soybean-almond yogurt with oats and berries.

4-    Choose steamed or boiled potatoes over fries whenever you have the chance.

5-    Change white rice or pasta for brown rice and whole wheat pasta for your lunch! And add some vegetables and legumes to make it complete!

6-    Have a light dinner (salads with mixed greens, vegetables and seeds) instead of heavy meals like meats or fried foods.

7-    Reduce or limit the amount of salt that you add on foods! Most foods already contain salt naturally!

8-    Take a bottle of water with you wherever you go, it will help you keep yourself hydrated!

9-    Try to get a rainbow of fruits and vegetables every day. This means eating at least 1 piece of each color, since the color usually indicates the type of vitamins they contain. So by eating a variety of colors you make sure you get all the vitamins you need!

10- Don’t drink alcohol (especially binge drinking -“botellón” in Spanish- in the weekends, since it has horrible effects on your brain development), and avoid other toxic substances, like smoking.

As you get older and more independent, you can make healthier choices in the foods you buy and the way you cook them, but for now, following those 10 tips will be a good start.

Make sure your diet is full of foods from the green side! Limit as much as possible the red zone

Curious facts

-       Some people say that we need meat and animal product, but it’s not true. We can perfectly survive with a plant-based diet and actually, be healthier. You should only keep an eye to get B12 vitamin, enough iron and calcium. They make soy-milk or soy-yogurts enriched with those vitamins and minerals.

-       Oily fish (the one containing good amounts of omega 3 fats) are healthy and a good source of quality protein and fat, but you must be careful not to each too much because they are usually contaminated with mercury, and that can be dangerous especially for pregnant woman.

-       Being physically fit from the outside and looking healthy doesn’t necessarily mean to be healthy on the inside. Some people might exercise a lot and look strong and healthy but eat a poor diet and have high cholesterol levels, internal acidity or other issues. Remember that combining the three aspects (good physical activity levels, healthy balanced nutrition and enough sleep) is the key to success. Missing one of them will affect all the others.

3. ENOUGH SLEEP

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?

Together with physical activity and nutrition, sleep is fundamental for your health. There is still a lot to learn about why we need to sleep so much, but one thing is clear: not getting enough sleep affects negatively our health.   

When you sleep, your body goes through an active period in which a lot of important processes occur, such as restore and rejuvenate, to grow muscle, repair tissue, synthesize hormones and consolidate memories. That’s why it’s very important to give yourself enough sleeping time to do all these processes correctly.

For adolescents, the National Sleep Foundation recommends from 8 to 10 hours of sleep. Getting good quality and amounts of sleep has lots of health benefits:

-       Improves concentration and academic performance

-       Improves memory skills

-       Strengthens your immune system.

-       Maximizes athletic performances, improving the functioning of your mental and motor skills.

-       Helps maintaining a healthy weight.

-       Helps with your social life.

On the contrary, as an adolescent, having 7 or less hours of sleep impacts negatively your health:

-       More risk to gain weight or become obese

-       Increases chances of having depression

-       Increases inflammation on your body and cell damage

-       Reduces your ability to interact socially

-       Increases risk of developing type 2 diabetes

-       Worse memory, concentration and general brain functioning.

Nowadays, mindfulness and other meditation techniques are getting more and more popular because they give us a chance to slow down and be more conscious about what’s happening around us. By giving our brains and bodies time to relax, we reduce the stress and tensions that are accumulated, producing multiple other benefits for our health, including helping us to sleep better.  

KEYS TO DO IT WELL

We know how important sleeping is for our health, and we also know that adolescents should have between 8-10 hours of sleep everyday, but…what can we do to improve the quality of our sleep?

Here you find a set of tips that you can follow to ensure you get the best of your sleeping time:

-       Make it a routine. Your body gets used to routines, so if you always go to bed at the same time and you wake up at the same time, it will be easier for you. Count 9 hours back from the wake-up time, and set that as your sleeping hour. For example, if I have to wake up at 7:30, then I should go to sleep at 22:30.

-       Avoid bright screens (phones, computers, tv) in the hour before sleeping. Instead, find a calm activity that helps put the brain in sleep mood, like reading in bed with a soft light. Try to also make that activity a routine.

-       Before sleeping, do a small session of mindfulness or meditation. It helps so much to relax your brain and body and get rid of all the tensions of the day. Apps like “headspace” or “petit bambou” are great for that, guiding you with already prepared sessions.

-       Spend time outside and do plenty of physical activity during the day. That will help you get tired and go to bed feeling that you deserve and need a good amount of quality sleep.

-       Avoid big heavy meals at night, since they disturb your sleep by making your digestive system to work hard. Have a light dinner instead (salads or vegetable creams are a perfect choice), and try not to have it too late.

-       Avoid caffeine products (soda or coffee), since they keep you awake.

-       Play relaxing music (nature sounds, soft instrumental music, etc.) to help you relax and get into sleeping mood.  

-       Don’t change your sleeping habits too much during the weekends. Try not to alter it by more than 1 hour, so your body doesn’t need to adjust to constant changes.

-       If you like having siestas, make sure you keep them short (20 minutes ideally) and don’t have them after 17:00, since they might affect your natural sleep. 

Good quality sleep is fundamental for your health