Galen A. Morton, MA

In the fifth century BC, the famous Greek physician Hippocrates observed, “All parts of the body, if used in moderation and exercised in labors to which each is accustomed, become thereby healthy and well developed and age slowly; but if they are unused and left idle, they become liable to disease, defective in growth and age quickly” (Kokkinos
&
Myers 2010).

It’s not exactly news that physical activity and exercise have powerful health benefits. Indeed, it’s an insight almost as old as recorded history.

In the fifth century BC, the famous Greek physician Hippocrates observed, “All parts of the body, if used in moderation and exercised in labors to which each is accustomed, become thereby healthy and well developed and age slowly; but if they are unused and left idle, they become liable to disease, defective in growth and age quickly” (Kokkinos
&
Myers 2010).

Common health and fitness terms may seem interchangeable, but there are differences, which are clarified below:

Chronic disease. Booth, Roberts & Laye (2012) define a chronic disease as an ailment slow in its progress (i.e., decades) and long in its continuance, as opposed to an acute disease, which has a swift onset and short duration.