I. Aerobic exercises

Aerobic exercises are gentle exercises that you can perform at your own pace without the need to gasp for breath. They are essential for everyone at any age. Prophet Muhammad (~ ) used to take his wife 'A'ishah (~ - may Allah be pleased with her) for walks; they even sometimes faced on foot and she won the race once. 63 Dhahabi 62 Jauziyah, 2003. 63 Qardawi, Y. (L?_,W, _;JI .._..... Y.) , 2002c advises in his book Medicine of the Prophet: "Walking after dinner is useful, or instead you can perform prayer (~alat) to let the food settle in the stomach which improves digestion. " 64 Aerobic exercises include walking, hiking, jogging, swimming, bicycling, friendly football or basketball games, gymnastics and many similar activities. These exercises improve blood flow to the brain, which in tum improves memory and general cognitive functions-especially important for the elderly. They also help to improve lung capacity, heart rate, and blood circulation and - if performed regularly - they help to tone muscles and lower blood pressure. When Prophet Job (Ayyoob) was suffering from illness, Allah commanded him to walk or stamp with his feet and to treat the disease with cool water: ~Strike the ground with your foot: This is a spring of water to wash in, cool and a [refreshing] drink) (Quran 38: 42) Aerobic exercises raise your basal metabolic rate (BMR), 65 which contributes an important benefit for dieters. During dieting, the body tends to reduce its BMR as a natural defence mechanism to preserve energy, because it treats the sudden reduction in calorie intake as a case of starvation. These types of exercises are also thought to be the best way to bum body fats and adjust body composition to result in a higher muscle-to-fat ratio. The sources of energy to fuel any activity are body carbohydrates, fats or proteins which are only used when carbohydrates and fats are not available. These fuels should be Dhahabi, S. ((,?-"lll 0~ .:.r. .:r...JI ~ <lll ~ 1.-li), 2004. 64 65 BMR is the amount of calories burnt by the body at rest for digestion , blood circulation, respiration and so on. broken down to give adenosine triphosphate, commonly known as ATP, the body's fuel supply. How efficiently ATP is produced depends on the availability of oxygen to the body. Carbohydrates can be used to supply energy either with or without oxygen; while fats can only be used to supply energy (ATP) in the presence of oxygen66 where the triglycerides in fat stores are burnt for energy supply. At rest, blood can deliver enough oxygen to the cells for aerobic metabolism, so most of the energy is produced from the breakdown of fats. During exercise, the muscles need more oxygen, so if the exercises are not very intense, fats as well as carbohydrates can be used for fuel, which is why these are called aerobic exercises. Conversely, if the exercises are strenuous and of high intensity, oxygen cannot be delivered fast enough to the cells so they are forced to rely on anaerobic metabolism, meaning that they bum only carbohydrates for fuel. 67 Oxygen is transported from the lungs and delivered to the cells via the red blood corpuscles (RBCs). The ability to deliver oxygen is determined by the amount of RB Cs in the blood and the efficiency of the heart's pumping action. That is why with a healthy diet and regular aerobic exercise, you will find yourself capable of spending more time in energy-consuming activities. You need to exercise aerobically for at least 20 to 30 minutes per day, three days a week, to get all the physical and cardiovascular benefits from aerobic activity. 68