Benefit Of Physical Fitness

Fit to Serve: Churches offer fitness classes as part of ministry

These were some strong Christians. A cursory glance at the women in the Thursday morning exercise class at City View Christian Fellowship would tell you that.

Donna Henthorn, nearly 60, held a 5-pound weight behind her, guiding it in an "L" shape.

"At my age, I figure you gotta keep moving," she said before class.

As Henthorn kept moving, instructor Kathy Schneider offered encouragement. A certified personal trainer and black belt in karate, Schneider volunteers her expertise while leading classes four days a week at City View.

The classes range from kickboxing to the pilates and strength training class Henthorn muscled through.

Classes addressing physical fitness have cropped up in Hub City churches, nestled in the panhandle of one of the nation's most religious and overweight states. More than two-thirds of Texans are obese or overweight, according to state statistics.

Lubbockites might be beginning to do some soul-searching on physical fitness.

The difference between this class and those at a gym is subtle, but meaningful for Henthorn. She enjoys the Christian music Schneider plays as background music to the workout, and the prayer the participants share at the end of the class.

Schneider sees the class as a ministry going beyond physical benefits.

"The community and the fellowship that it makes feeds the soul, too," she said.

Schneider and Henthorn aren't the only ones who see the benefit of addressing physical health at a place of worship.

Ann Moore jumped on the bandwagon years ago. A 12-year survivor of breast cancer, Moore began a yoga class at Unitarian Universalist Church about 23 years ago as a healing therapy.

Before one Saturday morning class, her auburn bob is a blur as she zips across the room to welcome familiar faces.

"This is not an exercise class," she said before beginning. "It's a healing therapy."

Pat MacManus has attended faithfully the Saturday class for about a year and half. He mentioned the spiritual origins of yoga, which, long before it became a trendy workout, was practiced as part of a spiritual discipline within Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

MacManus appreciates that mind-body-spirit relationship.

"I don't think you can break that connection," he said.

Deby Nichols, who attends St. John's United Methodist Church, finds the class helps more than her back pain.

"I think it just helps my mental attitude so much," she said.

Amazing Physical Fitness Benefits Worth Noting | welcome to ...

Physical fitness benefits can be enjoyed by everyone, but only a minority of people make fitness a part of their actual lives. It all comes down to the personal choices people make about how they want to live. Pursuing a fitness program and sticking with it can make an almost unbelievably big difference in the quality of your life. Don’t let this important truth slip by you! People who are not used to physical activity are advised to see their doctors before starting an exercise program. When you’ve gotten permission to do so, begin right away. Make your goals achievable ones, and work on them a little bit every day, or at the very least three times per week. It won’t take long for you to start noticing benefits and feeling stronger, and then you’ll want to do even more. If you study the physical fitness benefits that follow, you should be able to get motivated to start your own regimen. Your physical fitness benefits are determined by the exercise program you choose, so if you are lifting weights, you are going to do something different than a distance runner or a jogger. It stands to reason that you can increase your strength and overall flexibility with the right kind of exercise. To improve the strength of your tendons and ligaments as well as your joints, you should find a proper approach to stretching. To decrease your incidence of injury you have to follow a good stretching routine. If this type of font seems blurry, try on a pair of lafont eyeglasses . The fact that fitness exercise can be fun is one of the most overlooked benefits. Physical activity can even be fun for the whole family. And you do the same thing when you’re single. Groups activities can be arranged to have a fitness component. This is a two for one type deal – you get have fun and get in some exercise. And you also get to socialize and network. Not every work out needs to be like boot camp. You can take care of several things while still getting in a good work out. It’s hard to argue with the overwhelming evidence that exercise, such as the aerobic kind, can be extremely beneficial. It’s important to note that the latest findings indicate that you can get important benefits without going to extremes. You can gain a lot by following a routine based on fast walking, for example. It doesn’t take that much for your heart’s cardiac output to increase. Cardiac ejection fraction is an important number, as it indicates how efficiently your heart, which is actually nothing more than a very complex pump, is working. If you want to know this number, you’ll have to ask your doctor to arrange a test. Another measurement is cardiac stroke volume, and this is concerned with the quantity of blood pumped by your heart with every beat. A fitness program can help you to improve these numbers. The benefits that you reap from your physical activity will depend on what activities you choose to do. You are more likely to stick with an exercise program if you’re doing something that you enjoy.

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