Difference Between Exercise and Physical Activity

Exercise vs Physical Activity
 

Difference between exercise and physical activity can be easily distinguished once you understand that they are two different activities done with our bodies. Doing exercises is a necessity that one cannot wish away. However, there are some who say that they engage in many physical activities in their daily life, and they do not require doing exercises. Nevertheless, this is a misleading notion as there is a great difference between general physical activity and exercise that are aimed at improving the condition or working of different organs of body. This article will deliberate on the topic by pointing out the differences between physical activities and exercises.

What is Physical Activity?

Housework, gardening, moving up and down on stairs leaving elevators, and walking are some examples of physical activities. Once you pay attention to these examples, you can understand that, in general, any movement of the body can be referred to as physical activity. Physical activities have low to moderate intensity. No doubt they lead to benefits, but there are certain health benefits that can accrue only through strenuous physical activity, which is possible only with the help of exercises.

What is Exercise?

Exercise is also a type of physical activity, but there is the intent and purpose of improving certain aspect of health. Exercise is planned physical activity that leads to visible improvements in health and general well-being. Fitness is one concept that is hard to define as it includes both mental as well as physical well being. But all agree that physical fitness is what is desirable for all. That is the prime focus of everyone.

When you are young and energetic, it is prudent to invest a little more of your energies to safeguard your health, so as to stay healthy and fit later in life. When you do not have the will and power to indulge in physical activities, especially in old age, even exercises may not have desired effect on your body. This is why it is all the more necessary to engage in all sorts of physical activities when you are young and energetic. There are many types of exercises that do not have much of a difference from regular physical activities, but good for our health. Some examples of these exercises are swimming, cycling, running, and sports such as golf and tennis. If you are the sort of person who detest working out at a gym or dread all those cardio and weightlifting exercises, you can always indulge in the activities described above to get all the health benefits.

What is the difference between Exercise and Physical Activity?

There are a lot of differences between physical activities and exercises. Physical activity and exercises are similar in nature as both require movement of your body, but the differences are glaring.

• Physical activities are good for health, but they can never substitute exercises that are designed to keep you in good shape and also to keep you healthy and fit for a long time.

• Physical activities are of low to moderate intensity and can never match the intensity of vigorous exercises that are of great benefit to our health.

• One cannot say with certainty how long he engages in physical activities with the same intensity whereas it is possible to measure the time one engages in exercises accurately.

• There are no physical activities that can be designed to benefit particular organs of your body specifically whereas you can certainly design an exercise to get desired benefit for your body part. There are different exercises for the abdomen, legs, arm, head, and so on.

• Examples of physical activity are Housework, gardening, moving up and down on stairs leaving elevators, and walking.

• Examples of exercises are cardio exercises, weightlifting, running, etc. If you are not fond of going to the gym, you can engage in swimming, cycling, running, and sports such as golf and tennis. They can also serve as good exercise for your body.

 

Images Courtesy:

1. Gardening via Pixabay (Public Domain)
2. Tennis by  Madchester (CC BY-SA 3.0)