Physical fitness is the part of true health. The true health is not the state of mere absence of diseases but a dynamic state of well-beings in terms of physical, mental and behavioural aspects of life. It is the pre-requisite to the success in life.
In every field of life the great men of the world possessed sound physical and mental fitness. If one searches for happiness, one will discover it coupled with the physical fitness. It is the best positive feature of humans. It is unique possession for the life. It is wealth. It makes life worth living. The importance of physical fitness cannot be described in words. Its necessity has become an inevitable feature of modern society.
It is all true. Humans are gifted with the faculty of reasoning and logical thinking. They are judicious creatures. Their dominance over other living things lies in their advanced brainpower. In fact, humans have been able to control Nature due to their highly developed intelligence or the brain. But, for the improvement of the mental power, it is indispensable that the body, too, should be hale and hearty.
‘A sound mind in a sound body’ is an oft quoted proverb. It emphasizes the importance of the physical fitness in our life. The mind can never be healthy, if the body is sick. The death of the body is the death of the mind; also. It is obvious that for intellectual development, the physical fitness is vital.
It is also important for the nation. Healthy and able-bodied citizens who bring athletic distinction to the nation at the international level are the priceless possession of a nation. In order to understand the importance of the physical fitness for a nation, the poignant words of the Father of the nation, Gandhi ji should be mentioned here. He said ‘India lives in the village and the strength of our nation depends upon the health of the rural folk, our richest heritage.’ Our country is not developed nation because of our effectiveness. Our effectiveness is very low in comparison to the effectiveness of the people of other country. When the effectiveness is low, the production cannot be increased and the prices cannot be lowered. So if we wish that the production of the country should be increased and consequently the goods should become cheaper, the fitness of the worker must be improved. Clearly, it has become the life-blood of the economy of a country. If we realize that the physical fitness is the noble wealth and maintain it, the whole earth will seem to be a paradise; otherwise the paradise will be lost.
The evolution of the living things and the creation of the variations are outcomes of the physical fitness. The theory of the survival of the fittest had its implication on the basis of physical fitness. The scientists know the value of physical fitness in the survival strategies of organisms ranging from smaller to the larger one. New diseases which are often a threat to us can be under the control only if we can develop the immunity against them. Undoubtedly, the physical fitness provides the power of resistance against diseases. This makes the need of physical fitness quite clear.
It is well known that our government is spending lakhs and lakhs of rupees for providing medical facilities. It is busy in fighting various diseases to make society free of them. But medical facilities alone can never solve this problem. It is also well known that diseases attack only those who lose their vitality and vigour. People with sound health may live even in poverty, but they never fail ill. So our people need physical exercises if they want to have disease free bodies.
Our body is thought to be made up of five elements: earth, water, fire, air and sky. Actually these are the things which are needed to survive in this world. We need the most fertile earth or soil for cultivation of the food grains and other objects of uses. We need clean water for drinking and performing other functions in which it is required. Similarly, fresh light, fresh air and open sky are also needed for our survival. Deficiency of any of those elements of life may cause our extinction. An ideal state of all above five elements is the state of the physical fitness.
For the students, its importance becomes many folds. Students have to do several mental works and to sit for long hours during studies. All these require energy and proper training for maintenance of good body postures. Otherwise, their posture becomes defective. They can neither sit nor stand properly. Their body begins to look very gauche. The backside does not remain upright but develops a curvature. Thus their spinal columns get ill-treated. So for our educational institutions, the management for physical exercise is very important. It is the only way; the students can maintain their health. For this very reason, other persons also, who carry on deskbound activities, must take some physical exercise each day.
Our forces need more and more young man with stout physical condition. Once our late Pandit Nehru said, “Every child of India shall have to be a soldier of freedom.” Only people with sound health who are sparkling over with heroism and patriotism can fight for their country’s sovereignty. It is only through physical fitness.
In our country the rate of infant mortality is quite high. The weak health of the parents is its main reason. Sick and diseased parents can reproduce only feeble and unhealthy offspring. The parents must be healthy, if they want to have healthy children. They must take some physical exercise daily.
Morning walk is good for health. It is the best form of exercise that keeps our body fit and active. It costs nothing yet it is very useful for our health. Those who live in towns and cities must take morning walk to get fresh air and energy. It makes us healthy and strong. It refreshes our mind. It strengthens our body. It saves us form many disease. It improves our digestion. We feel a good appetite after a long walk. It is equally good for the young and the old. It keeps us fresh for the whole day. It develops in us a good habit of rising early. It awakens in us love for nature. So it keeps us fresh healthy and energetic. Hence, it is of great advantages to us.
To be healthy we keep our houses clean. It should be well ventilated. It must get light from the sun. Our food plays an important part in the constitution of our health. It is a fuel for the body. In order to be healthy, food must be balanced. Besides these, body needs exercises. Regular exercise keeps us active. Rest after work is also necessary.
To be brief, for the individual as well as the social point of view physical fitness is very crucial. It is the constitutive ingredient of contentment. It makes our life fascinating, significant, intense and worth living. Even in paucity, one can enjoy peace and satisfaction much more than those of the rich. An exercise is the only way to maintain the physical fitness besides Yoga. Mental, emotional and physical development of the people can continue efficiently only if they take physical exercises. So, wherever possible, physical exercises must be made unavoidable.
