Fitness?
Physical activity helps to control your weight by using excess calories that
otherwise would be stored as fat. The food you eat and the number of calories
you use each day determine your weight. Everything you eat contains calories,
and everything you do uses calories, including sleeping, breathing, and
digesting food. Any physical activity in addition to what you normally do will
use extra calories.
Balancing the calories you use through physical activity with the calories you
use through physical activity with the calories you eat will help you achieve
your desired weight. When you eat more calories than you need to perform your
day's activities, your body stores the extra calories and you gain weight.
When you eat fewer calories than you use, your body uses the stored calories,
and you lost weight. When you eat the same amount of calories as your body uses,
your weight stays the same.
Any type of physical activities you choose to do - strenuous activity such as
running or aerobic dancing or moderate - intensity activities such as walking or
household work - will increase the number of calories your body uses. The key to
successful weight control and improve overall health is making physical activity
a part of your daily routine.
The future of fitness?
| |
Past |
Present |
Future |
| Apparel |
Cotton exercise garments, like
shirts, shorts, sweatpants |
Moisture-wicking materials that
keep you dry and cool |
Clothes with computers that
control temperature to keep the body cool during exercise or warm when in
the cold |
| Outdoor wear |
Rubber slickers |
Fabric designed and engineered to
keep water out but allows water vapor to escape |
Aside from futuristic apparel,
there will also be reality simulators that mimic outside weather conditions
for specific training. |
| Accessories |
Your dad's wristwatch |
Multifunction watches with
altimeters, barometers, thermometers, heart rate monitors, global
positioning devices, and cadence counters. |
Wrist mounted computer devices
for full physiologic monitoring, plus geographical and online weather data. |
| Footwear |
Canvas sneakers |
Custom built athletic shoes and
off-the-shelf sneakers with cutting edge material and design for sport - and
foot - specific cushioning and stability |
Footwear with computer chips that
allow shoes to mold to user's foot; self - adjusts cushioning and stability
according to need; provides data on foot and leg movements |
| Training machines |
Free weights, strength - training
machines, treadmills |
Full - range - of - motion
machines, muscle - specific machines |
Portable, risk-free machines that
offer full range of motion exercises; employ gravity for strength training;
incorporate muscle - specific exercises; and can be tailored to an
individual's needs |
| Sports nutrition |
Pasta, fruit juice, muffins,
nuts, raisins, chocolate bars |
Sports drink, energy bars,
special diet, creatine, androstenedione |
Complete nutrition in small,
portable forms, such as tablets or cubes |
| Training methods |
Training at high altitudes |
Range - of - motion machines,
such as combination stationary bike - trainers, elliptical, ski and rowing
machines. Muscle - specific machines, such as abdominal and thigh
exercisers |
Combining strength and
cardiovascular training with genetically engineered athletes to find the
limits of physical performance |
| Sports medicine |
Knee braces and rehabilitation to
treat ligament damage |
Strips of fascia to replace
damage knee ligaments |
Tissue grown from stem cells to
replace knee ligaments, broken bones, lost blood |
