World Physical Activity Day: Heart Foundation partners Gyms, Wellness Centres
The Nigerian Heart Foundation (NHF) urges members of the public to take up structured aerobic and physical exercises with collaborating Gyms and Wellness Centres in six states of the federation and Abuja.
The exercises, which would be offered at no cost to the public, are part of activities to mark the 2021 World Physical Activity Day (WOPAD) on April 6.
Dr Kingsley Akinroye, the Executive Director of NHF, made the call at a news conference in Lagos to announce activities lined up to mark the 2021 commemoration of WOPAD in the country.
Akinroye said that the foundation had partnered some gyms and wellness centers in the states of Lagos, Oyo, Osun, Rivers, Kano and the Federal Capital Territory where Nigerians could go for exercise for healthy heart.
“The public are encouraged to go to the selected gyms and wellness centers to take up structured aerobic and physical exercises at no cost starting from April 6.
“There will be banners indicating the offer at the various selected centers across these states and Abuja,” Akinroye said.
He said that the NHF had adopted “Exercise for a Healthy Heart” as its theme to mark the day.
According to him, globalization and urbanization have brought rapid changes in lifestyle and the consequences of decreased physical activity, increased sedentary living, unhealthy diets and increased tobacco use, with rise in Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).
Akinroye said that NCDs, especially cardiovascular diseases, were the leading causes of morbidity and mortality as reflected in the past 18 months even with the COVID-19 pandemic all over the world.
“Considering the global surge in non-ommunicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and heart diseases among others, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it becomes expedient to reiterate the benefits of being physical active for all generations of people.
“Physical activity when adopted by everyone has the benefit of preventing, maintaining and controlling the complexities surrounding non-communicable disease onset, progression and complications.
“The WOPAD is a day set aside to propagate in stronger terms, the benefits inherent in the adoption of physical activity.
“ The WOPAD, celebrated globally on April 6 every year, features various programs to enhance the uptake of physical activity by the general public,” he added.
Akinroye said that there would health screening, heart enlightenment talks and mini-heart health product exhibition at the gyms and wellness centers.
Also speaking, Prof. Fatai Adeniyi, the Chairman, Physical Activity Committee, NHF and Director, Exercise In Medical (EIM), Nigeria, said that for the 2021, the EIM Nigeria would organize series of events in Osogbo on April 6 and 10.
Adeniyi added that the programs included radio and other sensitization talks, health screening and counseling on physical activity.
He said there would also be group physical exercise sessions in Gyms and Wellness Centers in Lagos, Ibadan, Kano, Port-Hartcourt, Abakaliki and Osogbo.
“The EIM Nigeria, domiciled and nurtured by the Nigerian Heart Foundation, is an agency of the American College of Sports Medicine, with its headquarters in Indianapolis U.S., but with global presence in over 40 countries.
“Nigeria is one of the three countries in Africa with this global presence and we are proud to be part of this global family.
“The WOPAD provides a unique opportunity for the EIM to reach out to the different strata of the community as it is an opportunity to further reinforce the core visions of the EIM,” Adeniyi said.
He said that adequate physical activity could serve as a potent force in the fight against COVID-19.
The expert said that the role of physical activity in regulating immunity and providing optimum health for people with non-communicable diseases are germane in the fight against the pandemic.
According to Adeniyi, the EIM Global Centre and the Nigeria National Centre are profoundly committed to the adoption of health enhancing physical activity among the general population.
He said: “The agency however believes that there is a wide gap between what people know about physical activity and what they practice.
“Therefore, as we celebrate the 2021 World Physical Activity Day, the EIM Nigeria calls on individuals, groups, corporate entities, traditional institutions, government and nongovernmental agencies including all policy influencers and makers to pay more attention to the issues around physical activity.
“This should be done at every level of our daily routines to narrow the gap between knowledge and actual uptake of physical activity,” he said.
