Stay Fit

Keeping the body in shape with regular medicines is no right way to stay fit, save and except for a few diseases like heart ailment, aggravated cases of diabetes or high blood pressure etc. What I want to say is that popping up pills every now and then is no good. That is what I was telling my mother today, who is seventy-six, an arthritis patient, and still a workaholic.

Primarily the well-being of our body depends upon how we spend our days and what we eat. This should be primarily kept in mind. Regular medicine makes the body work artificially. There is no denying this fact. That should not always be the way out, though it is the easiest way out. When no other option remains, we have to take recourse to medicine. But before that, there are so many options available. We fall prey to this easiest way very easily, because planning and following the tasks of the day and eating healthily according to the needs of the body requires patience, control and strict discipline. But once that grows into a habit, it becomes the best solution to stay fit.

Older people seem to understand the need for routine physical exercises more. Younger people seem to overlook this aspect. Youth provides them the extra bit of energy to stay fit, and at young ages people indulge into a lot of activities, which give them a good exercise.

Things start going wrong as age progresses, particularly after forty-five. A time comes when certain medicines become an absolute necessity. If men could be taught to practice forbearance or temperance, to control desires, to restrain impulse and to stay away from going for the excess, then a whole lot of well-being can be incorporated into life, both physical and mental.

These days we see so many people falling prey to mental illness, leading to anxiety, depression, phobia and such other diseases. If men could be taught to understand his own self, and avoid mimicking others, then a check can be put upon mental illness to a great extent.

Our body goes one way, our mind goes another. We must aim for a proper coordination between the two, keeping in mind that going into disarray and subsequent decay is an inherent part of this universe. Depletion, resulting from normal wear and tear, on account of daily use is applicable to everything, starting from a grain of sand to the tallest mountain range. Our body is no exception. In the short span, things do not decay, but go into disarray and disorder. If we arrange the books and other things on our study table in a tidy manner, after a few days it again looks untidy. This is because during these few days, we have not looked after its tidiness. This is true for everything, everything.

This is true for our body also. The study table does not need constant attention, but our body does. It tries its best to stay fit, trying to adjust with, and rectify problems. It gives us signals in subtle ways that we seem to ignore. When it fails to take further care, it revolts. It raises the alarm in the form of some pain, or fever or whatever it is.

Right food at the right time, work, a little bit of exercise, some kind of meditation by indulging into something that one loves to do (yes, this is also a kind of meditation), adequate sleep, taking less stress by depending upon the grace of God with respect to things over which we do not have any control, are a few useful tips to stay fit. Eating the food with a peaceful mind is very necessary. Food, eaten slowly and peacefully, works as a medicine also. Sleep is an invaluable thing. It recharges the body and sets things right that has gone wrong during the day. A sick person's body recovers the most during sleep.

Taking recourse to humour is a great medicine.

The whole thing cannot be accomplished as easily as I have written this. That is true. But this may well be the starting point to stay fit.

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