“Take two aerobics classes and call me in the morning.”

Mayor Sanders: "It isn't just about

losing weight."

^{Photo from sandiego.gov/mayor/about}

That’s what you might hear the next time you call your doctor, if the American College of Sports Medicine has its way. May has been deemed “Exercise is Medicine Month” by the ACSM’s Exercise is Medicine Initiative. San Diego’s own Mayor Jerry Sanders has signed a proclamation, making it official for our city.

The goal of the initiative is to persuade everyone to incorporate a little more physical activity into their lives, and to talk with their physicians about the best exercise program for their healthcare regimens.

“Physical inactivity and obesity are two major public health problems, not only in our state and our country, but also across the globe,” Mayor Sanders notes. “I want the citizens of San Diego to understand that physical activity will improve health and wellness. It isn’t just about losing weight. Just a modest amount of activity can impact cardiovascular health and enhance strength and flexibility.”

Mayor Sanders signed the proclamation at the behest of Anthony Carey, the CEO and founder of Function First, a corrective exercise studio in Mission Hills. Well-respected as a much-in-demand health and fitness educator, biomechanics and corrective exercise expert and author, Carey’s program is designed to address chronic pain and musculoskeletal limitations without drugs, surgery, or manipulation. He sees the Exercise is Medicine Initiative as an excellent way to promote this.

“Better nutrition and higher levels of physical activity bring a huge payoff in terms of lower healthcare costs, increased productivity and greater quality of life," says Carey. "Getting more active, eating a bit healthier, incorporating some kind of movement into everyday life – those are the main keys to health, longevity and disease prevention and it doesn’t cost a dime.”

Convincing people to exercise can often be a challenge, but both Carey and the Initiative maintain that patients are more likely to do so when it is prescribed by a physician or other health professional, and when that prescription is specific as to a particular activity or training routine. However, that in and of itself can also be a challenge because many health practitioners aren’t familiar enough with the specifics of exercise to prescribe it as a course of treatment or a preventative health measure.

The ACSM’s Exercise is Medicine Initiative seeks to change that by helping to train and provide resources to physicians and other professionals to allow them to participate in their professional and community settings.

So the next time you’re feeling under the weather, your physician just might tell you to go take a hike. Feeling dizzy? How about a spin class? Stressed from the rat race? Maybe you should try a 5K race. Feeling the weight of the world? Try bench-pressing it. As far as medicine goes, that wouldn’t be a bitter pill to swallow.