Can I ask you a question?
Does the following story describe you?
You are in your office yearning in your mind that you want to get out of there as soon as possible.
You get home from work and you turn on the Netflix and start binge watching all night long.
You get extremely bored and extremely tired from the same cycle over and over again.
At the same time though, you don’t want it to change and you want to remain in the same cycle over and over again because you are comfortable with it.
I thought so.
What if I told you that if you keep doing that cycle over and over again, you’ll be in for the biggest regret in your life?
Let me explain.
I think this one needs no introduction.
Heart disease is a major problem.
A serious problem that is.
So serious that it is the number 1 cause of death in America today according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
You can verify this fact here.
You might be wondering now “Well, yeah it’s a major problem, but how does being inside relate to heart disease?”
Great question, read on for the explanation.
Chances are if you are inside, you are doing any of the following things:
A) Binge watching TV (aka: your favorite Netflix show)
B) You are on your computer
C) You are on your smartphone
D) Just being lazy and lounging around
E) Walking around in the house
F) Exercising inside your house or at the gym
I’ll tell what happens when you do A) – D) and I’ll tell you what happens when you do E) – F) and the resulting consequences as a result of doing those things inside.
So read on.
When you do anything that involves sitting down, laying down, or looking at your screen, you are not being physically active.
According to the John Hopkins University School of Medicine, your chance for heart disease goes up considerably when you don’t engage in physical activity.
You can read that study here for more information.
That’s pretty intense stuff isn’t it?!
But there’s more.
In another study of 200,000+ people, it was shown that if you sit down in front of the computer or in front of any technology, your chances of mortality and early death go up drastically along with your chances for getting not just cardiovascular disease, but type 2 diabetes.
Talk a double whammy!
You can watch this video here for complete information on this.
I’m sure this video has convinced you to not lounge around for long.
Now you might be asking “What about just exercising inside? Isn’t E) and F) sufficient?”
Here comes the good part.
According for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is more pollution inside than there is outside.
In fact, indoor facilities are more “seriously polluted” than outside.
You can read that study here to confirm the facts for yourself.
But it doesn’t stop there.
According to a study by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), more pollution results in a condition called atherosclerosis, which puts plaque in your arteries and slows down your heart rate.
As a result, less oxygen is transported throughout your body.
The EPA study also found that as a result of increased atherosclerosis, the participants’ risk for heart disease went up.
So what does this all mean you might ask?
It means that with increased pollution comes an increased chance for heart disease as a result of atherosclerosis.
And with more pollution inside than outside, what does that mean?
Eureka!
You need to go outside in order to reduce your risk for heart disease and to live a longer life.
You can read the EPA study here and the atherosclerosis explanation here.
That’s why you need to go outside.
Look, I’m not trying to scare you.
I’m just telling you the reality of the situation so that you can make an informed decision for what you want to do for yourself.
Here are your options as to what you can do outside to avoid heart disease:
1) Go out for as little as 20 minutes.
You are a busy person.
You have a life that you need to take care of whether it’s school or work or whatever else it may be that requires you to be inside.
However, you are not doing all of that work in order to die early.
Besides, what’s the point of working if you can’t enjoy yourself later (aside from surviving of course)?
You now know the reality of the situation with staying inside all day and what it can do to you.
As you can see, it is well worth the price of 20 minutes of work so that you don’t risk dying early and losing out on life and letting work go to waste.
You are going to pay either way with your time, but you don’t want to pay a heavy price do you?
Ultimately, it’s up to you, but take reality into consideration when you do make that decision.
2) Workout at the gym, but spend time walking/running outside
Yes, you might need the gym to workout depending on what exercises you are doing and you should keep that, but as you know now, you must incorporate some time outside in your routine and/or recovery.
I would suggest that instead of the treadmill, take a run or walk on an outside path and keep track of how much you are walking/running.
That should do the trick for you.
3) Walk near the ocean
I think you can agree that this one is a no brainer if you live near a coast line.
No wonder you dream of walking by the water!
If you are not sold on it, read this article here and it’ll convince you otherwise.
The great feeling of being outdoors awaits!
Just Go Outside
We live in a great world full of beauty.
You don’t need to be stuck in a boring (and unhealthy) environment all day or your whole life.
You can change that in an instant.
The only question is, will you open the door to the power of the outdoors?
The choice is yours my friend.
Until next time,
This is Chief Islander Evan signing off.
PS: If you got a lot out of this post, definitely subscribe to Join the Island below with your email and more insightful posts will be sent to your inbox the moment that they are published.
And read this post here to begin the path to greatness. You won’t regret it.
Evan Cruz
Evan Cruz is the founder of Join the Island, the website committed to helping young adults become massively productive and reach their full potential.
He has been featured on Vox, OnlineU, and UpJourney. He has also a cited human relations expert and college expert.
He graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering.
Read more about Evan and Join the Island here.
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