你的身边有热爱运动健身的人吗？锻炼身体固然对健康有益，但有些人却过分地沉迷于此。

 

Do you like to keep fit? We're always told that regular exercise is good for our body and mind. More and more people are taking up activities that improve their fitness. But is there a risk some of us might get obsessed¹ and overdo² it?

 

Well, for some people, fitness has become an obsession³ as they aim for perfection. And fitness trackers and apps can add to this addiction⁴, especially if someone is driven by achievement and perfectionism. And sharing data on social media means exercising becomes public and competitive, which could cause problems in someone who is vulnerable.

 

Experts say this can lead to a medical condition called orthorexia nervosa, or addiction to 'healthy' eating and over-exercise. Untreated, it can lead to malnutrition⁵ and mental health complications. According to a BBC Worklife article: "Research from scientists at University College London in 2017 found that higher Instagram usage was associated with increased likelihood of developing orthorexia, especially among followers⁶ of the 'healthy eating' influencers."

 

Too much exercise can also take its toll⁷ on someone's physical health as well. Symptoms of over-exercising include injuries such as stress fractures, tendinitis and a low immune system. So how much exercise is too much? Research by the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found the ideal pace to jog was about eight kilometres per hour – and that it was best to jog no more than three times a week or for 2.5 hours in total, showing that moderate jogging is possibly more beneficial than being inactive or undertaking⁸ strenuous⁹ jogging.

 

If you're more of a couch potato than a sprinter¹⁰, this might sound like good news. But for amateur athletes who can't help but push their bodies to the limit, the advice from Martin Turner, a sports and exercise psychologist, is, "it's all about letting go, not being obsessed, learning not to control everything, saying, 'You don't need to be perfect.'"

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