It is fashionable today to hit the gym everyday and make a statement about it. Some people take up fasting as a hobby and a fad just to show others and post it on the social media. These people may believe that hitting the gym or intermittent fasting may help them become fitter than everyone else around them.

I do agree that hitting the gym or fasting may lead to a fitter body but may not necessarily keep you healthy. Good health is a combination of fitness, a balanced diet and mental happiness. A healthy mind leads to a healthy body and the balance between the two keep you happy in life.

No wonder we read about people who maintain a six pack or eight pack body ending up in an ICU with a heart attack ,since they think physical fitness alone may make them healthy. They do not realise that anything done to the extreme could be more harmful to the body, mind and soul. Neither jogging 20 kms a day nor fasting every day would keep you healthy ,although it may make you believe that you are physically fit.

We need to realise that physical fitness alone is not healthy. The day we realise that “Health” is a combination of body, mind and soul, our approach to life will change.

I fully endorse physical activity every day and it is good for our fitness and health. I personally walk for an hour ,do yoga and play badminton everyday. You could also indulge in any physical activity you enjoy everyday ,to keep yourself fit.

But physical activity alone is not good enough. This has to be supplemented by a balanced diet of vegetables, fruits, water, proteins and vitamins in natural forms. This has to be further complemented by mindfulness – a state of mental solace. Health is always a synchronisation of body, mind and soul.

The day we realise this basic tenet of life, we may become healthy. Physical fitness alone cannot necessarily keep you mentally agile and happy in life. Health is a combination of physical fitness, mental soundness and emotional balance in life.

We should not get carried away by advertising models for health and fitness products, which display a fit body but do not necessarily guarantee you ,good health and happiness in life. We can evolve our own daily physical exercise, which we enjoy and can sustain. This can be supplemented by a balanced diet and a happy environ around us ,at work and at home.

When we hear stories of a young CEO of a multinational firm collapsing in a gym or a film celebrity ending in an ICU, who otherwise cared for his physical fitness, we may be taken aback. It is important to realise that physical fitness alone cannot keep us healthy. We need to balance physical exercise with good diet and a happy mind.

I do subscribe to a daily regimen of exercise ,of our choice. This could be supplemented by a well balanced diet of natural source of vitamins, proteins etc through vegetables and fruits. This also needs to be supported by a happy state of mind and soul.

Let us redefine “good health” as the synchronisation of body, mind and a happy soul.

S Ramesh Shankar

7th May 2023