Can I Be Healthy Without Exercising?

In our society people are always looking for the easiest and quickest way to get the results they want with their health. For many, exercise is the most enjoyable part about living a healthy life yet for others it is what they most dread. So a popular question is whether someone can still be healthy even if they don’t exercise?

Though it is possible to be healthy without a formal exercise program, you cannot be fully sedentary in your daily life and expect to be healthy through diet alone. Diet is important, but optimal health must involve both a healthy diet and physical activity to maintain muscular and cardiovascular health.

The Dangers of Being Sedentary

If you’re like most people nowadays, you probably spend the majority of your day sitting down. Whether you’re working at a desk, watching TV, or commuting, it’s easy to spend several hours a day being sedentary. Sedentary jobs have actually increased by 83% since 1950 according to the American Heart Association. So more and more people are becoming sedentary in our societies. And while there’s nothing wrong with taking a break and sitting down, doing it for too long can have some serious consequences for your health.

Being sedentary has been linked to a number of health problems, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) ranked inactivity as one of the top ten leading causes of death in the world, contributing to millions of deaths a year (source). One reason is because when you’re inactive, your body doesn’t burn as many calories, which can lead to weight gain. And obesity increases your risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and more. Additionally there are other biological mechanisms at work.

Sedentary behavior decreases cardiac output and systemic blood flow and activates the sympathetic nervous system which creates a stress response. This will eventually reduce insulin sensitivity and vascular function. It also affects the insulin-like growth factor axis and the circulation levels of sex hormones, which can increase the risk of hormone-related cancers. Inactivity also impairs the gravitostat, the body’s weight homeostat. Also, weight gain, adiposity, and elevated chronic inflammation caused by sedentary behavior are risk factors for cancer (source).

Being sedentary will also decrease muscle mass, worsen posture, and reduce bone density which is particularly important for women since they’re more prone to osteoporosis.

Sedentary behavior really can affect all aspects of your health whether directly or indirectly. And studies do not discriminate against those who try to be healthy in other aspects. Simply put, sedentary behavior is harmful for anyone which is why we need exercise and physical activity. Humans have evolved to move and we can’t just stop now.

So let’s define exercise!

What is Exercise?

You may think you are not healthy since you don’t “exercise”. However, exercise is any form of physical activity that helps to improve overall fitness and health. It can include activities like walking, running, swimming, and cycling. But it is simply anything that keeps your body moving. So exercise can be cleaning the house or walking to the store or work. It can be playing with your kids. Whatever keeps you on your feet and off of your butt is essentially exercise.

Do I Need an Exercise Program?

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as the amount and type of exercise you need to stay healthy depends on a number of factors, including your age, weight, and overall health. However, formal exercise programs certainly have their benefits. Typically the most fit individuals do follow a form of exercise program of about 30-90 min sessions 3-6 days a week. The main benefits of a program are to ensure that you at least get in that amount of exercise in the day. However, any good program will also give advice on diet and other activities throughout the day to stay active.

Also, an exercise program will benefit you by pushing your limits by lifting heavy weight and raising your heart rate higher than you would simply by walking or living your life. So it increases what your body is capable of which makes other aspects of daily life easier to navigate. For example, long distance runners will have very lower resting heart rates because they train so long with it elevated that when they rest it is even lower than a typical person. This is because the heart becomes stronger and the same happens with your muscles when you weight-train.

However, you can have an exercise program and STILL be unhealthy. This is because 30 minutes a day can’t correct the other 15.5 hours you’re awake if you spend them doing nothing. So what is more important than an exercise program is an active, healthy lifestyle. So make sure you are moving as much as you can even if you work a desk job. (Read 7 Ways to Stay Fit With a Desk Job) 

A good way to track this is with some form of fitness tracker. It will track your steps and remind you to stand up and move around. It will usually track the amount of active calories burned in a day as well. If you can get 8,000-10,000 steps in a day you will be doing really well. And you can use an exercise program as the cherry on top to increase muscular and cardiovascular health.

In summary, you can be healthy without an exercise program but not without exercising. A sedentary lifestyle is detrimental for your health in so many ways. So instead of focusing on 30 minutes of formal exercise, focus on a whole day of being active and moving around. This will do far more for your long-term health and longevity.