“But I am so busy I have no time for walking,” Answers Ahmed rather curtly in response to my lecture on exercise. “Do you offer prayers?” I ask him in a matter of fact way. “Alhamdo Lillah, yes and at least three of them in congregation!” he replies. “Walking and exercising is as important as prayers for your,” I reveal to him the most well preserved secret. “When there is a will there are lots of ways,” I continue, “so if you want to walk you can always find time for it, just like you find time for prayers even when you are very busy and we also know that if you do not want to do something, you can find hundred of excuses for not doing it.” He agrees to the extent that if he really wants to do it, he should be able to find some time for it.
“I don’t need any exercise, I work in my house the whole day.” Farhat, a fifty year old lady weighing eighty kilos, replies after hearing my minutes lecture on exercise. “I don’t think anybody works harder than me, anywhere in the world,” she throws another spanner. “Bibi, working in the house and office work is not equivalent to exercise, because you cannot accelerate your heart rate rand it is not an aerobic exercise, “ I add and this is applicable to all men sweating in offices and ladies working at homes.
“If you offer just Alhamdo Lillah all day, will it be equivalent to offering prayers?” and falling into my trap she replies in negative. “There are set protocols for doing things; similarly there is a definite protocol for exercise as well! Before you offer prayers you have to do the ‘niat’, similarly before exercise you have to determine beforehand and announce it as well. You have to determine how much distance you want to cover and in what period of time? You also have to set your Qibla and know the direction where you are going to. More so, you have to be positive what you are doing it for?” I explain to the lady who has her mouth opened wide in astonishment and eyes popping out in incredulity. “So your niat should sound like this: I hereby solemnly resolve purely for the sake of my heart to take upon myself to walk three miles which I shall complete in thirty minutes, so help me God!”.
The lecture continues, “And just like prayers you have to concentrate, no chatting and no looking left and right!” “You have to fulfill a solemn duty so you have to focus and try to extract the maximum out of it,” I explain further. “ To keep your self busy and extort something more out of it you can offer a wazeefa or recite Holy Quran. This is to keep your self occupied and perhaps to derive some spiritual stimulation as well!” Another similarity between prayers and exercise is that you have to have special dress code for it, so do not start walking till you have comfortable shoes and proper clothes. I try to make it sound more like a religious duty and a Kar-e-Sawab. Most of the people are very excited about this new ‘revelation’ and the elevation in the status of exercise and at least in the clinical surrounding affirm very positively to start exercising the next day.
Many of our patients claim to walk for hours and when ever we test them on treadmill, their performance is far below than expectations. Determination of speed and total distance are equally important. “Its no use walking like a seventy year old lady, if you have to walk you have to walk like a man,” and I emphasis the work ‘man’, while urging our patients to take up exercise. While waging this war we consider everything ‘fair’ and use all the tools we can lay hands on.
How much to do? It is very important to understand that exercise is like medicine, it has a proper dosage and regimen to follow. Essentially for exercise to confer benefit on reduction of heart problems, it has to be undertaken at least five times a week. During exercise the heart rate should be higher than normal. Every one has a target heart rate which is roughly 220 minus age. Exercise will only be helpful if heart rate is increased to 85% of target heart rate for twenty to thirty minutes. This increase in heart rate is only possible with active exercise. Leisurely stroll after dinner is not very helpful. Preferably the heart rate has to be kept at this level throughout the exercise.
What is the best time for exercise? Any time is good time but it must not be done after a meal. Sometimes exercise taken after food can result in vomiting. For best results it should be done early in morning or in the evening. But for busy people any time specially after office is a good time. Those with exercise machine whether cycle or treadmill can do it any time at home. Some resolute persons make it a point to exercise before meal after office hours. Others do not get food served to them by their better halves unless they have earned it by performing their regular exercise.
Which is the best exercise? Whereas sportsmen and the professionals can devise their own exercises according to their requirements, other can follow simple rules. By and large, aerobic exercises are preferred. This includes walking, cycling, dancing and swimming etc. Walking is perhaps the most preferred exercise as it employs almost all muscles of body. Walking both on treadmill and ground confers similar benefits. Treadmill is preferred for busy people and otherwise as well, as one can exercise at any time. It is safe, informal, no strict dress code to follow, one has to walk at a pre-specified speed, its not dependent on outside weather, and one can make it more interesting by putting a TV in front of it. In many houses the treadmill is first housed in bedroom, moved to adjoining room and later demoted to attic. In many houses it is being used to hang clothes on! One needs determination and the best policy is to have a special time for it and it should not be missed under any pretext.
It is very boring! What can you do to make it more interesting? For a religious person ‘tasbeehat’ can be offered or one can recite Holy Quran during walking. For music lovers a portable walkman is the answer. Placing a TV in front of treadmill and making it a routine to listen to news while being on treadmill is very viable option. To walk in a group is very helpful and enjoyable but here one point is very important and that is adequate speed. A good exercise increases heart rate and makes one a little breathless – just enough that holding a conversation is rendered difficult.
Once one gets used to it one will find exercise very addicting and will feel lost if exercise schedule is not adhered to for any reason. Its more addicting than the morning cup of tea. The benefits are innumerable and there is absolutely no doubt about its benefits on physical and emotional well being. The golden principle is, ‘when there is a will there are lots of opportunities and time for exercising.’ So the important thing is to build up that strong will and the rest is easy!
In the coming articles we will discuss about some useful devices, with the aid of which much results can be obtained in a little time.
“I don’t need any exercise, I work in my house the whole day.” Farhat, a fifty year old lady weighing eighty kilos, replies after hearing my minutes lecture on exercise. “I don’t think anybody works harder than me, anywhere in the world,” she throws another spanner. “Bibi, working in the house and office work is not equivalent to exercise, because you cannot accelerate your heart rate rand it is not an aerobic exercise, “ I add and this is applicable to all men sweating in offices and ladies working at homes.
“If you offer just Alhamdo Lillah all day, will it be equivalent to offering prayers?” and falling into my trap she replies in negative. “There are set protocols for doing things; similarly there is a definite protocol for exercise as well! Before you offer prayers you have to do the ‘niat’, similarly before exercise you have to determine beforehand and announce it as well. You have to determine how much distance you want to cover and in what period of time? You also have to set your Qibla and know the direction where you are going to. More so, you have to be positive what you are doing it for?” I explain to the lady who has her mouth opened wide in astonishment and eyes popping out in incredulity. “So your niat should sound like this: I hereby solemnly resolve purely for the sake of my heart to take upon myself to walk three miles which I shall complete in thirty minutes, so help me God!”.
The lecture continues, “And just like prayers you have to concentrate, no chatting and no looking left and right!” “You have to fulfill a solemn duty so you have to focus and try to extract the maximum out of it,” I explain further. “ To keep your self busy and extort something more out of it you can offer a wazeefa or recite Holy Quran. This is to keep your self occupied and perhaps to derive some spiritual stimulation as well!” Another similarity between prayers and exercise is that you have to have special dress code for it, so do not start walking till you have comfortable shoes and proper clothes. I try to make it sound more like a religious duty and a Kar-e-Sawab. Most of the people are very excited about this new ‘revelation’ and the elevation in the status of exercise and at least in the clinical surrounding affirm very positively to start exercising the next day.
Many of our patients claim to walk for hours and when ever we test them on treadmill, their performance is far below than expectations. Determination of speed and total distance are equally important. “Its no use walking like a seventy year old lady, if you have to walk you have to walk like a man,” and I emphasis the work ‘man’, while urging our patients to take up exercise. While waging this war we consider everything ‘fair’ and use all the tools we can lay hands on.
How much to do? It is very important to understand that exercise is like medicine, it has a proper dosage and regimen to follow. Essentially for exercise to confer benefit on reduction of heart problems, it has to be undertaken at least five times a week. During exercise the heart rate should be higher than normal. Every one has a target heart rate which is roughly 220 minus age. Exercise will only be helpful if heart rate is increased to 85% of target heart rate for twenty to thirty minutes. This increase in heart rate is only possible with active exercise. Leisurely stroll after dinner is not very helpful. Preferably the heart rate has to be kept at this level throughout the exercise.
What is the best time for exercise? Any time is good time but it must not be done after a meal. Sometimes exercise taken after food can result in vomiting. For best results it should be done early in morning or in the evening. But for busy people any time specially after office is a good time. Those with exercise machine whether cycle or treadmill can do it any time at home. Some resolute persons make it a point to exercise before meal after office hours. Others do not get food served to them by their better halves unless they have earned it by performing their regular exercise.
Which is the best exercise? Whereas sportsmen and the professionals can devise their own exercises according to their requirements, other can follow simple rules. By and large, aerobic exercises are preferred. This includes walking, cycling, dancing and swimming etc. Walking is perhaps the most preferred exercise as it employs almost all muscles of body. Walking both on treadmill and ground confers similar benefits. Treadmill is preferred for busy people and otherwise as well, as one can exercise at any time. It is safe, informal, no strict dress code to follow, one has to walk at a pre-specified speed, its not dependent on outside weather, and one can make it more interesting by putting a TV in front of it. In many houses the treadmill is first housed in bedroom, moved to adjoining room and later demoted to attic. In many houses it is being used to hang clothes on! One needs determination and the best policy is to have a special time for it and it should not be missed under any pretext.
It is very boring! What can you do to make it more interesting? For a religious person ‘tasbeehat’ can be offered or one can recite Holy Quran during walking. For music lovers a portable walkman is the answer. Placing a TV in front of treadmill and making it a routine to listen to news while being on treadmill is very viable option. To walk in a group is very helpful and enjoyable but here one point is very important and that is adequate speed. A good exercise increases heart rate and makes one a little breathless – just enough that holding a conversation is rendered difficult.
Once one gets used to it one will find exercise very addicting and will feel lost if exercise schedule is not adhered to for any reason. Its more addicting than the morning cup of tea. The benefits are innumerable and there is absolutely no doubt about its benefits on physical and emotional well being. The golden principle is, ‘when there is a will there are lots of opportunities and time for exercising.’ So the important thing is to build up that strong will and the rest is easy!
In the coming articles we will discuss about some useful devices, with the aid of which much results can be obtained in a little time.
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Ref: Heal Thy Heart written by Prof: Dr. Muhammad Hafizullah
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