FITNESS CULTURE: CHAPTER 5
JOGGING FOR FITNESS
Jogging is an excellent way of keeping fit physically as well as mentally. In addition to helping in weight reduction and control, it keeps the heart in a healthy condition by making the heart muscles stronger and more enduring, lowering elevated blood pressure levels, and contributing significantly in controlling or eliminating cardiovascular diseases. Jogging also helps in making the lungs stronger and healthier, and has a calming effect on the mind, and thus reduces mental stress levels. By virtue of enhancing and improving blood circulation throughout the body, jogging is a magical natural remedy for many bodily disorders.
Jogging is a slow form of running at an even pace. Why run slow, and not fast? It is because, fast running would tire you out quickly, and demand more oxygen and blood supply to the various body parts, which the lungs and heart may not be able to supply, unless you have been a habitual runner. Fast running may also lead to dehydration in persons who have led sedentary lives for many years. As a result you may start feeling overtired, and may stop exercising. On the other hand, slow running (or jogging) helps tone up the heart and lung muscles in a gentle and systematic way. It helps in reviving those sluggish organs of the body that have been inactive for sometime due to negligence or sedentary lifestyles. And also, by slow running, you avoid excessive fatigue, and within a few days of starting to jog regularly, you would begin to feel fresher and much better than before.
Another benefit of jogging is that it has the potential to stabilise a condition known as tachycardia or palpitation. The pulse rate of persons with tachycardia is higher than normal even in a state of rest. This condition is indicative of an overworking heart, and an inefficient state of blood circulation. It is usually the result of sedentary lifestyles, smoking or wrong eating habits. Tachycardia exposes a person to risks of heart attack, stroke, paraplegia or early death. The slow, even and uniform action of jogging has the potential to normalise the heart rate, and to make the heart work in a more relaxed and efficient manner. (However, it is essential for persons with a long-standing condition of tachycardia to consult their doctor). The relaxed and efficient functioning of the heart not only fixes tachycardia, but prevents heart malfunctioning and premature ageing as well.
Regular jogging for 4 or 5 days in a week, and for 30 to 45 minutes every day is a wonderful and powerful tonic for the whole body and can be a major contributor in keeping your body fit and healthy, can greatly increase your energy and stamina levels, and help prevent ageing and keep many diseases away. However, one problem that many people encounter with jogging is that it can give rise to knee soreness and knee ligament problems. For this reason, it is necessary to use good shoes, and avoid jogging on hard surfaces. It would be a good practice to jog on sand (if available) or on plain mud or grass rather than on concrete or tar roads. If your knees start hurting, it would be wiser to switch over to switch to walking instead of jogging, or just give it a break and continue after a few days when your knees are normal.
To make jogging a pleasant exercise, you may combine it with music-listening, in the same way as explained in Chapter 4 “Walking for fitness”. However, you should ensure that precaution is taken about keeping the audio-volume level low, and thereby protect your hearing system and avoid brain fatigue. As long as you take this precaution, you will find jogging an attractive feature of your routine, and you will look forward to doing it dedicatedly without negligence.
WISH YOU A PLEASANT JOGGING TOWARD FITNESS !
Article written by: Saikumar Iyer
Dated 24th September 2012
