Effects of Intermittent VS Continuous Exercise on Lipid Profile
Obesity refers to the excess accumulation of lipids in the body and is said to increase the weight of an individual by 20% above what is considered to be the proper weight of the individual. The international indicator of obesity is Body Mass Index that compares the weight, height, age, and gender to show the ideal weight of a person and determine whether the individual is overweight or not. Obesity is rampant among children and adults who feed on excess sugary and junk foods, leading to an increase in lifestyle diseases such as hypertension, cancer, heart failure, diabetes, cancer, and arthritis. Overweight complications can be prevented by avoiding junk foods, eating a well-balanced diet that is cholesterol free, as well as regular physical exercises. The paper looks at the impact of continuous or intermittent physical exercise to the level of fat content in obese children.
The creation health model consists of 8 principles that describe a holistic approach to treatment that cures body, mind, and soul. The eight principles are a choice, rest, the environment, activity,trust, interpersonal relations, outlook, and nutrition. The research correlates with the activity part of the creation health model in that it states that physical exercise – either continuous or intermittent – helps to improve the health of children by reducing fat content in the body. However, the decision of whether to exercise or not is a personal choice that is a fundamental principle of the health model. For an individual to exercise effectively, the environment – the aspect of life that surrounds a person internally or externally – must be conducive. For instance, the climate and terrain of the locality affect individual’s decision of whether to exercise or not. Good nutrition is essential toliving an active life as exercise requires much energy for an individual to remain fit after physical activities. Much calcium burns during exercise,and, therefore, a person requires eating a balanced diet to maintain physical fitness and lead an active life. For instance, an individual should take milk, legumes, fruits, and grains and make a choice of avoiding sugary food.
A safe environment coupled with correct nutrition and favorable environment can help a person in leading an active life. Physical activities both continuous and intermittent have the ability to reduce lipid contents in the body as well as improvements in blood pressure, aerobic fitness, and plasma lipoprotein. For the efficient application of the research findings by clinicians, precise procedures from recorded evidence should be available for appropriate prescription to be made. Despite the existence of empirical evidence on the benefits of exercise on health, controversy occurs due to little evidence favoring the recommendations. As a result, the rationale for recommending different modes of exercise to separate individual remains unclear (Ogden CI, 2006). Before recommending continuous or intermittent exercise to an individual, a nurse should consider the feeding habits of the individual as well the surroundings of where the person resides. From the knowledge of findings in this research, the nurse may also encourage a person to make a choice of abandoning the sedentary lifestyle and embrace an active lifestyle to avoid cases of overweight and related complications.
In conclusion, it is important to note that both intermittent and continuous physical activities reduce fat content in a person’s body. However, intermittent exercise depletes lipids level in children at a higher rate than continuous exercise. Therefore, to reduce obesity cases and also lower the prevalence rate of lifestyle diseases in the future, intermittent exercise such as walking in children should be encouraged.
References
Ogden, M. (2006). Prevalence of obesity in America. Journal of Physiological health, 1549-1555.