Looking Good Or Fit Has Impacted American Culture

Fitness has grown to a multibillion dollar industry. The idea of fitness has influenced millions of lives whether the correlation was as a career, lifestyle, or an occasional hobby. People globally compete in bodybuilding, physique, and powerlifting meets earning thousands of dollars depending on their successes. Though they seem pointless at first, even the sixty second long infomercials on television advertising the new and approved anywhere gym equipment or perfect diet has made the viewer at least contemplate their health. People often confuse fitness as a sole concept of either exercising or dieting, but fitness depends immensely on both. Some people in the fitness industry manipulate diet and exercise to create the body stature they desire.

Insufficient physical activity is one the leading risk factors for global mortality. Physical activity not only contributes to wellbeing, it is essential for good health. Increasing physical activity levels can help prevent or manage many conditions and diseases; this includes coronary heart disease, diabetes, some cancers and obesity along with improving mental health. According to World Health Organisation (WHO), physical activity is any bodily movement by muscles that requires energy expenditure.

The highest leading cause of death for men and women within the United States is heart disease. The number of deaths for heart disease is 611,105; this is more than half of a million lives being claimed by heart disease. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Leading Causes of Death). This disease tends to be preventable, even though it’s the highest cause of death. In order to prevent one self from having a heart disease, individuals should take the right precautions throughout their everyday lives to reduce the risk of contracting different types of heart diseases; one of the best ways to prevent heart diseases is to engage in exercise. Heart disease involves the blood vessels becoming narrow in the body, which causes restriction

The publics idea of health has evolved over the decades, similar to fashion in that it is continuously morphing and even trends have resurrected with new twists. Recent developments have seen widespread awareness of the importance of regular exercise and many benefits of a balanced diet. Yet despite the plethora of health and fitness methods and resources, the general population has never been so physically sedentary and out of shape. According to the national center for health statistics, America life expectancy has declined despite advances in the fitness industry, concerns over secondary conditions such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes has created an urgency of public health officials as they try to mandate new strategies to fight this national epidemic.

Nowadays, we have so many types of video games and movies that we don't tend to go out as much to do physical activities. Many of us have forgotten about bike riding, hiking, swimming, or simply going to the park. Not many people engage in excising and this is one of the reasons as to why our health rates in America are so poor. According to Livestrong.com, " Even if [we] are at a healthy weight, cardiorespiratory fitness is crucial to your overall health. Researchers at the Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research in Dallas, Texas examined the effect of cardio fitness on all-cause mortality...the study found that lean men with low cardio fitness were twice as likely to die from all causes than lean, cardio-fit men." This only proves the fact on how much cardiovascular exercise makes an impact in our life. It literally is a life or death

There are many trends in American society ranging from popular dance moves to political opinions. Some of them are beneficial and improve the society as a whole, such as the increasing popularity in clean energy. However, there are some on the rise that are not as beneficial, such as American obesity. America is not the only country that faces issues with obesity, but the US has the highest ranking in the world for the total number of people who are overweight. In September of 2014 it was shown, “every state is above 20 percent (1).” It is a very large issue and commonly debated in American culture. Due to the fact that obesity not only increases chances for health problems, but can also cause decreases in confidence and acceptance into society. There is a lot of public interest to resolve this issue, which many organizations have been founded to try and increase awareness for positive body images, and others are trying to decrease the percentage of obesity in America.

It provides information, education for health, and increases life skills. In order, it improves the opportunities accessible to people to exercise more and to take over their own health. As well as control their environments, and to make selections beneficial to their health. Essentially, it allows people to learn throughout their lives, and guide them for all the steps and to deal with chronic illness and injuries. This can be promoted in school, home, work and community

Physical Activity relates to Healthy People 2020 because it accomplishes to having a higher quality of life, living longer, preventing diseases from occurring, disabilities, injuries, and premature death. The objectives for targeted adolescents are having physical activity to improve bone health, cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness, higher self-esteem the reduction of the symptoms of depression.

Surely for years, scientists have emphasized the importance of being healthy through exercise and a nutritious diet. Although a lot of people still pay revenue into the fast food companies and cable companies to sit around and overindulge, many people have made healthy into a new trend. The problem may be, that today many people are jumping aboard the ‘healthy’ train without the knowledge of what healthy really means. Due to the influences of media, people have created body images that define healthy but more so just attractive. People may try to be healthy, however, for many it is simply for the cause of fitting into a certain body image. There is nothing wrong in wanting to look a

In “Fitness Culture: A Growing Trend in America” Sheila McClain succinctly describes the rapid growth of exercise as a part of American culture. McClain states that “Fitness club membership, according to the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), jumped from 20 million in 1991 to over 40 million in 2006” (418). The author uses this statistic, in quick succession with many others, to emphasize the empirical evidence supporting her claim; fitness culture is growing. McClain then begins by emphasizing many of the points with which we are already familiar, summarily: diet and exercise lead to longevity and health. She then piques curiosity in her question that states that everyone knows why they should exercise, and then leads her readers to the

“To enjoy the glow of good health, you must exercise”- Gene Tunney. In this society, which we live in, this population lacks health. According to the CIA’s list of obese countries in the world, America ranks 18. Our population is 35% obese, which is very big compared to the rest of the world. Today I see this fat world, and we can change it. The youth of America is our future. If you want a free fulfilled future it is important to build your fitness.

From my behavior change paper, the main change that I am focusing on is from the physical health behavior. The one question that I’m focusing on deals with becoming happy with my body size and weight; this question was the only question where I scored a one. From past experiences, I would be content with my body by being physically active. However, with the change of environment of being in high school sports to going into a college environment where I have a less physical schedule has strained my thoughts of how I see my body. With this conflict I’m easily accessible to that thought of being distressed and unhappy, so I want to exercise to counteract those thoughts

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2018), good nutrition, physical activity, and a healthy body weight are essential parts of a person’s overall health and well-being. Together, these can help decrease a person’s risk of developing serious health conditions, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and cancer (para.

Due to today’s increased societal demands, a person's increasingly busier schedules mixed with the convenient but non-healthy food choices to accommodate this shift in culture, American's general physical well-being is on the decline. As the populace grows older, the body needs better maintenance to enjoy a high quality of existence later in life. Unfortunately, poor habits are causing problems much earlier on that could have been avoided simply with knowledge and self-discipline. Even if it can be a more difficult path, taking responsibility for one’s own health through regular exercise and proper nutrition should be a priority of all able-bodied individuals to avoid future issues for themselves.

The United States of America has been experiencing increases in body mass and percentages of citizens considered overweight or obese over the past few decades. It has been established that there is an association between obesity and an increase in risk factors for Cardiovascular disease and other metabolic diseases/disorders (Hornbuckle, et al 2012). African Americans in the United States have a higher risk of contracting Cardiovascular Disease and Metabolic Syndrome when compared to Caucasians living in the US. Research suggests that African Americans females may respond differently to physical activity and exercise in comparison to their white female counterparts (Joseph et al, 2014). An overwhelming percentage of the African American