Get moving for World Physiotherapy Day

World Physiotherapy Day, today, is all about moving people into action and being physically active.

The New Zealand Society of Physiotherapists wholeheartedly supports the message that being active for 30 minutes a day has enormous health benefits.

Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) Community Service Team physiotherapist Paula Kenny said the benefits of participating in at least half an hour of physical activity each day were physical and mental. Movement for health was important at an individual level, at an organisation level, and particularly for long-term health.

“There is overwhelming evidence that inactivity causes illness. The World Health Organisation says that physical inactivity causes at least 1.9 million deaths every year,” she said.

The key to motivation was to choose an activity that you enjoyed, she said.

Physical activity was key to reducing the occurrence of chronic diseases such as type two diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some cancers said CDHB Healthy Eating Healthy Action development manager Kelly Johnson.

“Being physically active is so important, and it’s something we take for granted until for some reason we can’t be active. That’s where physiotherapists are so valuable; they help to get you back to the stage where you can safely invest in your own health through physical activity again.”

CDHB has a workplace health initiative to encourage staff to be physically active through walking groups, Pilates and circuit classes, tennis, squash and more.

ENDS