One of my last posts was for my Fitness 101 page. I wrote most of it before realizing that I was not happy with it. The explanation of fitness resembled too much of an expanded dictionary entry for my liking. Since that point, I have done a great job of procrastinating. I have been in a rut trying to produce a more substantive piece.

Today, a series of events helped me out of the rut. On my run today, I started think about treating physiology versus treating neurophysiology (a topic I think about alot and will probably cover in a future post). My mind then drifted to the differences between health and fitness. It then hit me. Instead of trying to differentiate between health and fitness so much, I should also emphasize the overlap. Fortuitously, when I got home I stumbled upon this article at The Manual Therapist’s blog about illness and wellness.¹ This reinforced what I was thinking and gave me some more food for thought.

He starts off the article referencing a continuum of wellness created by John W Travis.²

1. Health issues limit a person’s functional abilities
2. Fitness capacities allow for more functional possibilities
3. An individual’s fitness will affect his or her health
4. An individual’s health will affect their fitness
5. Healthcare professionals focused on health need to consider fitness
6. Fitness professionals focused on fitness need to consider health

As a physical therapist, I feel like I have a foot in both the healthcare and fitness worlds which helps me to see the value of this interrelationship. Healthcare and fitness professionals can both benefit from learning more about this interrelationship. Improved wellness is the goal for both of these parties, but.ultimately, wellness is a subject all people should have a vested interest in.

References:

1. Religioso E. Is Your Treatment Needed to Get Patients Well?. The Manual Therapist. May 2016. Available at http://www.themanualtherapist.com/2016/05/is-your-treatment-needed-to-get.html. Accessed May 31, 2016
2. Jeanne M. House; Courtney Arnold; Dawson Church; Randy Peyser; Barbara Stahura (March 2008). Peak Vitality: Raising the Threshold of Abundance in Our Material, Spiritual and Emotional Lives. Elite Books. 2008.