A History of Health & Fitness ― Implications for Policy Today

This book provides a unique and succinct account of the history of health and fitness, responding to the growing recognition of physicians, policy makers and the general public that exercise is the most potent form of medicine available to humankind. Individual chapters present information extending from the earliest reaches of human history to the present day, arranged in the form of 30 thematic essays covering topics from the supposed idyll of the hunter-gatherer lifestyle and its posited health benefits to the evolution of health professionals and the possible contribution of the Olympic movement to health and fitness in our current society. Learning objectives are set for each topic, and although technical language is avoided as far as possible, a thorough glossary explains any specialized terms that are introduced in each chapter. The critical thinking of the reader is stimulated by a range of questions arising from the text context, and each chapter concludes with a brief discussion of some of the more important implications for public policies on health and fitness today and into the future. The material will be of particular interest to graduate and undergraduate students in public health, health promotion, health policy, kinesiology, physical education, but will be of interest also to many studying medicine, history and sociology.

The author has conducted research, teaching and scholarly writing for the past 50 years in the area of fitness and health at the University of Toronto, and has received the Order of Canada in recognition of his major international contributions in these areas in terms of research, post-graduate teaching and applications of his research to Canadian government health policies. He has previously authored over 100 books and some 2000 peer-reviewed scholarly articles on a wide range of health topics, including a major monograph in this area {"An illustrated history of health and fitness from pre-history to our post-modern world"), published by Springer.