Why Nigerians should take  exercise seriously – Obanikoro, Health experts   

The Representative of Eti-Osa Federal Constituency of the National Assembly, Mr. Ibrahim Obanikoro, together with other health conscious individuals, weekend urged Nigerians to take responsibility for their health by getting enough exercise, possibly walking, eating healthy food and getting enough sleep.

This charge came when a non-governmental organization, NGO, Waka Community International Foundation, collaborated with Q-Life Family Clinic and another NGO, Health Emergency Initiative, HEI to led Nigerians to a walkout session in Lagos.

Participants of the exercise embarked on a 9.4 kilometres walk, which they started from Lekki through Ikoyi link bridge to Falomo and back to Lekki.

Addressing the media, Obanikoro, said exercise is one of the most critical and important aspects of life that the majority of Nigerians ignore.

He said: “We just experienced some kilometers of walking. It is needed to keep us fit and healthy.”

He enjoined the organisers to continue to encourage and tell people how important it is for Nigerians to take time out to walk in order to stay healthy.

Similarly, the founder of Waka Community, Mr Lorenz Mba, said the initiative and the health talk about Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation, CPR, and First Aid is driven by their conviction that since a healthy Nigeria is a wealthy Nigeria, it is worthwhile to inform, educate and persuade Nigerians and indeed the world, to take personal responsibility for their wellness by walking and eating right as well as getting enough 

Quality sleep

He said: “Walking is the oldest and safest form of physical exercise and is non-discriminatory on grounds of age, gender, level of physical fitness or location. 

Walking also has many benefits such as helping maintain a healthy weight and helping lose unwanted and undesirable fat. “Walking helps prevent or manage various conditions including heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, cancer and 

type 2 diabetes. 

“Walking also helps improve cardiovascular fitness, contributes to clearing the mind and boosts our moods. Walking is a low impact exercise and so it is gentle on the ankles and knees.

“We encourage folks to walk indoors or outdoors depending on choice, safety or convenience. 

“Walking is also inexpensive. One can walk bare feet indoors and on beaches. To walk outdoors require nice fitting and affordable running shoes. 

“As we are walking here in Lagos, our members in Abuja are also walking simultaneously. 

“Those unable to join today’s walk in Lagos and Abuja are walking remotely wherever they are in the world and sharing their videos and photos on our social media platforms.”

Also, Executive Director of HEI, Mr. Paschal Achunine, said the day’s walk came after their first outing in the month of May.

Achunine said: “We are here to build consciousness among Nigerians on healthy living. Walking is a very healthy exercise, it is an exercise that is accessible to the young and old, and across gender. It can happen in your home or anywhere else.

“But there are also shared values that necesited our making this journey.

We have heard that so many people die of heart attacks and other emergencies.

What our organisation has done in the last four years is to design a system that ensures that when an emergency happens, instead of taking pictures as a bystander, any Nigerian will know the immediate thing to do, to give the victim chances of survival. We want to change the narrative.”

Speaking on HEI, he said: “A lot of Nigerians die because of medical conditions, especially chronic conditions that require less than 30,000 and below to survive. So we have been working with public hospitals across Lagos especially for children of zero to five.

“We know that one out of five children in Nigeria don’t see their fifth birthday. We have been paying the medical bills of the indigent patients at most Lagos hospitals.

“So, we are here to emphasize the need to prevent falling ill by exercising,” he emphasized.