Health, Diet, and Physical Fitness

Health and Diet

Two major factors determine the physical appearance of a person, how they feel, and their weight. Diet and exercise are great mediators in the way a person looks, weighs, and feels. Your diet will greatly impact the way you look, the way you approach things, and the amount you will be able to do physically. A well-balanced diet consists of the five major food groups. No single food can provide all the essential nutrients needed for good health and well-being.

The five major food groups are Bread and Cereal, Fruit, Vegetables, Meat and Meat Alternatives, and the Milk Group. Bread and Cereal are recommended for six or seven serves per day. Fruit is recommended for two to three serves per day. Vegetables are recommended for four servings per day. Meat and Meat Alternatives are recommended for one serve per day. The Milk Group for a young or still growing person is of much greater importance than when the person has stopped growing. The reason for this is that while growing, your body needs fats and dairy products for energy and nutrients. After growing has stopped your body will store this as fat because the need for energy and nutrients is not as great.

If you follow these plans to eat [above and below] you will look and feel great, you will also be able to participate in more physical activities such as running, skipping, and swimming. The food groups are broken up into three other groups: Eat Most, Eat Moderately and Eat Least [as seen in the chart below]. They eat most food groups consisting of foods such as wholegrain cereals, bread [preferably wholegrain], pasta, rice, vegetables, and fruit. Eat moderately food group consists of foods such as milk, cheese, yogurt, lean meat, poultry, fish, nuts, eggs, and pulses [e.g. so ya beans]. Eat the least food group contains foods like butter, margarine, oils, and sugar. Also, to compensate for the fluids lost through perspiration, expiration, and urine and feces we should drink two to three liters of water per day. These ideas may contribute to general health and well-being if put into practice.

Exercise will also help you lose weight and have higher self-esteem by burning kilojoules that will in turn make you thinner. Exercise will also work your muscles and make you more flexible and agile. By participating in sport and exercise, you develop physical skills and group loyalty.                                                  

Protein and sporting performance 

Protein is an important part of a training diet and plays a key role in post-exercise recovery and repair. Protein needs are generally met by following a high-carbohydrate diet, because many foods, especially cereal-based foods, are a combination of carbohydrate and protein. 

• For the public and active people – the daily recommended amount of protein is 0.8–1.0 g/kg of body weight (a 60 kg person should eat around 45–60 g of protein daily). 
• Sportspeople involved in non-endurance events – people who exercise daily for 45–60 minutes should consume between 1.0–1.2 g/kg of body weight per day. 
• Sportspeople involved in endurance events and strength events – people who exercise for longer periods (more than one hour) or who are involved in a strength exercise, such as weight lifting, should consume between 1.2–1.7 g/kg of protein of body weight per day.