By Alex Powell

Two hundred sixty-three pounds. That is what the scale said when Chris Noel, a high school senior, weighed himself on Aug. 17, 2020.

In middle school and in the first few years of high school, Noel said that he was bullied for being overweight. Then in March 2020, the world went into lockdown for the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the initial COVID-19 lockdown, Noel let his weight get out of control due to a lack of exercise and increased eating.

“It was like this huge wall saying, ‘sit on the couch, do nothing all day and eat junk food because you are not seeing anybody so what does it matter,’” Noel said.

It was after that day in August, that Noel decided that a change needed to be made in his physical fitness regimen to improve his overall health.

Noel was not alone. According to the World Health Organization, many people are not physically active enough and up to 5 million people die every year due to inactivity. This number is affected even more by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to COVID-19, it seemed like there was already a lack of physical fitness by the general population.

Brandon Copeland, a personal trainer and gym instructor at High Point University, attributes the lack of exercise to the way kids currently grow up.

“Now, it’s like kids play virtually inside, you know, nobody goes outside to play,” Copeland said. “If you’re not going outside being active, you’re literally sitting down all day. So, you’re slowing down your metabolism as opposed to keeping it up.”

“Now, it’s like kids play virtually inside, you know, nobody goes outside to play. If you’re not going outside being active, you’re literally sitting down all day. So, you’re slowing down your metabolism as opposed to keeping it up.”

Brandon Copeland, personal trainer and gym instructor at HPU

During the uncertain times caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, this has increased this lack of exercise, which was perfectly exemplified earlier by Noel.

In fact, a study from the University of California San Francisco found a dramatic decrease in the number of daily steps taken in the months immediately following the initial lockdown in March 2020.

Copeland suggests that some of this lack of fitness during the pandemic comes from gyms temporarily closing and the COVID-19 concerns after gyms opening back up, but he also pointed out that there was a gym equipment shortage in the beginning of the pandemic.

“You could not find a piece of gym equipment anywhere,” said Copeland. “Everybody was buying it up because if you’re stuck at home, people were like, why not do exercise? So, you couldn’t find the equipment anywhere and if you did, it was completely inflated to where it was almost pointless to get it.”

Christina Powell, a high school nurse, suggests that for some people it may be difficult and frustrating to stay or get back into shape because of lung damage from contracting COVID- 19. If this is the case, she recommends doing what you physically can to gain back that fitness.

“Maybe you’re at the point that you’ve had a COVID-19 infection, and you can’t walk like you could because now you’re having to take an inhaler,” Powell said. “Maybe, you can only walk one block around, walk that one block…maybe in six weeks or six months the light switch will happen for you, and you’ll realize that you didn’t have to take your inhaler that week.”

So, why is it so key for everyone to now improve their physical fitness?

The WHO released telling statistics in 2020 that show that inactive people have a 20% to 30% increased risk of death, which is a significant figure when discussing life and death.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention agrees that physical exercise can help people live longer, help manage weight, minimize health risks and strengthen bones and muscles.

Now, when it comes to COVID-19, your physical fitness could play a pivotal role in the severity of symptoms. Research from the British Journal of Sports Medicine shows that people who were inactive in the two years prior to the pandemic were more likely to be hospitalized, admitted into the ICU, or end up dead.

While many of the physical benefits may be well known, there are also mental benefits to being physically active.

Both Noel and Copeland attest that doing physical activity improves their mental welfare.

Copeland calls it his “me time” where he can step away from his daily life to focus on only himself or even nothing at all. He says this can help the mind reset and get mental clarity.

While Noel calls it his therapy for his stress and anxiety, being physically active also helps him to have a better self-image.

If having good physical fitness is so beneficial for everyone, then why do so many people lack the necessary levels of physical activity to be in better shape?

It takes discipline and motivation to keep up with it.

Copeland suggests it takes more mental strength than just going to the gym and working out because you must have the mentality going into the physical activity to persevere and keep up with a routine.

To overcome this, Powell suggests that each person make attainable goals and to go with a partner when doing physical activity to keep each other accountable.

Lastly, Copeland and Powell propose that nutrition is arguably more important to having good physical fitness than doing a lot of exercise. They emphasize that good nutrition is more about controlling portion sizes than about what foods people eat.

After seeing the overwhelming evidence, the verdict is in: having good physical fitness is the key to happiness and good health. Just take it from Chris Noel.

A year and a half ago, Noel started using the information that Copeland and Powell suggested, and he now weighs 185 pounds, having lost 78 pounds in a healthy way. After seeing his progress, Noel hopes to inspire and help others with the experience he has been through.

“Looking back at pictures of me back from like June of 2020, it looks like I lost another whole person on me,” said Noel. “It’s insane and it makes you feel so good when you see that difference.”

---

Alex Powell is a sophomore at High Point University majoring in Journalism and considering a minor in Political Science. For contact inquiries, please email apowell1@highpoint.edu.