Haven't we heard time and again that exercise is extremely important for health and that if you're inactive, things can get rather difficult for you. Well, it turns out that you may need to actually go see a doctor before you decide on a workout regime if you've been inactive for a while. But is it really necessary, you ask?
Jeff Coombes, professor of exercise says, "It's a balancing act." "We don't want to put up barriers to stop people from starting exercise programs, but at the same time, we want it to be safe." So, when exactly does one need to go to the doctor to get a go-ahead for their exercise routine? "The major event we're trying to avoid is a cardiovascular event — a heart attack or stroke," he says. Basically, if you have certain heart conditions or you did in the past then it becomes mandatory to see a doctor before opting for some exercise.
If you're unaware of what heart problem symptoms are like, a few of them include chest pain and dizziness or loss of balance. While the risk of having a heart attack while exercising is pretty low, it goes up by a significant percentage if you're a heart patient or have heart-related problems. "The more risk factors you have, the more the risk goes up," Professor Coombes says.
"But the risk of developing narrowed or blocked vessels in the first place is around one half for those who are physically active. "Therefore, we need to be doing everything to encourage and support people to exercise." He also suggested that the best way to incorporate exercise into your lives would be to start slow. So, one could opt for light to moderate intensity activities with bouts of 10 minutes. So, you start with only 10 minutes of activity and then work your way up.
"You could then try to build that up to maybe two bouts of 10 minutes or 10 minutes plus five," he says. "Start trying to do this every second day — so three times a week — and work your way up. "Your goal is to eventually complete 150 minutes each week at a moderate intensity."
