What are your future plans?
The next part of the letter concerns the future. What plans do you have with regard to physical activity? Do you want to increase or maintain your activity level?
You mentioned in the questionnaire that you have plans to increase your physical activity level to 5 days a week for 30 minutes a day. You also indicated that you want to execute this plan within the next 6 months. This means that you seriously plan to change your activity level. The following information about the advantages of being more physically active may help you in your preparation.
You indicated in the questionnaire seven reasons why increasing your physical activity level would benefit you; that if you are physically active 5 days a week for 30 minutes a day:
- you will consider yourself a better person;
- you will consider yourself a 'sporty' person;
- you will be proud of yourself;
- you will feel younger;
- you may lose weight;
- you will decrease your chances of cardiovascular diseases;
- you will meet new people.
There are good reasons why increasing your level of physical activity is important: your health as well as your physical condition will improve. After 30 years, your muscle and bone strength declines. This is a natural process, but is substantially delayed by being physically active. This means you will be less likely experience bone fractures and will stay lithe.
Other advantages: being physically active positively affects your metabolism and bowel movement, and your risk for cardiovascular diseases and some types of cancer decreases. People who increase their level of physical activity consider themselves better people, are proud of themselves, and feel younger and sportier.
Finally, increasing your physical activity level is also good for your appearance and social contacts. Your chances of meeting people when out walking is higher than when watching a quiz show on television!
You also mentioned two disadvantages of increasing your physical activity level. You indicated that, if you are physically active on at least 5 days a week for 30 minutes a day:
- You run the risk of an injury. If you decide to increase your physical activity level, we recommend that you start easily. Take a break when you become tired – it is not a competition. It is also important that you wear good, solid shoes for walking.
- You will sweat. If you increase your physical activity level, your muscles produce more warmth. This warmth has to be lost to prevent your body temperature getting too high. Fortunately, you lose warmth by sweating; therefore, sweating is absolutely necessary to maintain a healthy body temperature. We recommend that you wear clothes with good ventilation when you exercise.
We hope that reading about the positive and possible negative sides of physical activity has reinforced your plans to increase your activity level in the next six months. We conclude this letter with advice that may help you achieve your goal.
First, it is important to choose the type of physical activity that suits you. We asked you in the questionnaire how you might increase your physical activity level. You indicated that:
- You want to use your car less. We often take the car without thinking, for example, to go shopping or to work, though these distances may also be easily walked or cycled.
- You want to take a fast or brisk walk each day. This is a very good idea. If you try to walk at a fixed time each day, this increases the chance that it will become a regular part of your day. By doing this, you can make physical activity a healthy habit.
- You want to be more physically active in your spare time. You may probably have some ideas about this. What one person likes, another might find boring or annoying. This also goes for physical activity. It is therefore important that you choose a type of activity that suits you; otherwise, the chance increases that it will not get past the planning stage, or that you will quit.