Ways morning jogging can harm your health

Exercise has a lot of benefits and a common type people do in this country is jogging. Jogging involves trotting or running at a slow, leisurely or steady pace as a form of physical exercise. Many people prefer to jog in the morning to stay fit because it gives them ample time to exercise before […]

Exercise has a lot of benefits and a common type people do in this country is jogging. Jogging involves trotting or running at a slow, leisurely or steady pace as a form of physical exercise.
Many people prefer to jog in the morning to stay fit because it gives them ample time to exercise before going to work and it is often cooler and more convenient after they have rested overnight. Some people jog on daily basis and have even made it a hobby, particularly those on the fat side.
While jogging in the morning as a form of exercise is beneficial, it could be harmful if certain things are not put into consideration or done.
 “When people choose to exercise, the thing behind the mind of an informed person is how to keep the heart as healthy as possible; so that it can perform at the highest or optimal level,” says Mrs Oladunni Ladipo, a physiotherapist and deputy director, physiotherapy department, National Hospital, Abuja.
Our heart is on constant exercise. So the beating of our heart maintains our livelihood because it carries blood and nutrient to every part of the body, according to Ladipo, and many things are involved, such as our limbs taking care of our muscles, ligaments, tendons, and we also need our brain for coordination.
But there are basic things to do before you involve yourself in early morning jogging or any form of exercise at all says Mrs Ladipo.
She said every individual needs to do  medical tests at least once a year especially when you are over the age of 40  adding that  in recent times in Nigeria we may even say below 40 years because of certain things that were hitherto not part of us.
“There should be a pre-assessment before anyone involves him or herself in exercise. Nobody should assume that he or she is okay and begin to jog up and down,” she advised. She explained that regular medical tests involves going to a hospital to see a doctor who will order for your blood pressure to be checked, level of blood, your sugar level and other tests saying that one of the fastest ways to know if something is wrong with you is if your blood pressure is found to be high. The medical expert  will want to know what caused the increase in blood pressure and that will lead to other series of tests.
 “Before a person engages in early morning jogging, he or she should have been certified fit by a doctor,” she says.
“It is also important to note that it is not just to begin to run and jog. For the heart to be effectively protected, there should be structured exercise. There should be an average time and there should be some form of frequency.”
The physiotherapist said that whichever form of physical exercise people decide to do, they should start gradually,  and for it to be effective, it must be done at least three times a week. She warned that people should not just wake up in the morning and begin to jog and run for hours because government has declared a public holiday, especially people who have not been doing exercise or people who exercise today and would not do it for one month or more.
“You can start with thrice a week, like 15 minutes, that is if the doctor says you are fit. You then gradually increase it. Anyone that exercises for the first time, the muscles will complain because you are working the muscles. So there must be a gradual start,” she said.
She adds that informed people or those who go to places where they are supervised by experts, do not just jump or rush into jogging immediately. They do some form of warm ups before jogging.
“When they go in there, the first thing they do is what we call warm-ups; they may be lying down, standing up, and the instructor may say they should flap their hands; like preparing the muscles, then there maybe some flexibility exercise. You can tell them to stretch their hands, up, down, among others, and that will prepare the ligaments and the tendons for whatever they want to do,” she said.
She said the experts also take care of their breathing  like ‘breath in breath out’, and in an aerobic class the instructor says ‘raise your hand up, down’ it is a way of expanding the chest and taking in enough air.
Responding to the case of people who appear fit but slump and die immediately after they finish jogging, she said such people may have an underlying problem that they didn’t know about, or may be aware and are on drugs, and jogging worsened it. She added that while the people could have also died without jogging, it may have been prevented.
What you wear to jog is also important. “I have noticed that a lot of people jog without their costumes. They need the right foot wear and smart clothing – that is not too heavy clothing because you are going to sweat,” says the expert.
She said: “I advise everybody to walk and then go ahead to do brisk walking. Are you heavy? Those who are overweight when they begin to jog, they put a lot of pressure on the knees and ankles so it can make some diseases come earlier than expected, like arthritis.”
She said anyone who wants to jog can meet physiotherapists as they prescribe exercises, adding  that even when a physician sees you and wants you to do exercise, he or she will still refer you to a physiotherapist.
The physiotherapist advises people to go to registered fitness centres and once they entre, they should find out if the centres have first aid boxes. “Ask the person if anything happens to me now, are you a doctor or do you have a doctor you can call?” she advised.
When jogging in the morning, experts also advise people to do the following to stay safe on the routes they jog; stay on the side walk, don’t jog with music to avoid distraction, make sure you can see, vary your jogging routes, don’t post your jogging plans on social media, make sure you can see, ensure you are visible by wearing bright clothes, carry your phone and also jog with others if possible.