Glossary of Key Terms

What is health?

“The general condition of the body.”

Source: Merriam-Webster dictionary

“A state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”

Source: World Health Organisation

What is health promotion?

“Health promotion is the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve their health.”

Source: Health Promotion Glossary, 1998

What is wellbeing?

“A condition in which someone or something is thriving or doing well.”

Source: Merriam-Webster Dictionary

“Wellbeing is a positive state experienced by individuals and societies. Similar to health, it is a resource for daily life and is determined by social, economic and environmental conditions. Wellbeing encompasses quality of life and the ability of people and societies to contribute to the world with a sense of meaning and purpose.”

Source: World Health Organisation

What is a healthy lifestyle?

“A healthy lifestyle can be defined as a health-promoting behaviour pattern based on available personal choices. […] they might be any habits associated with positive health outcomes as well as the lack of health-harming practices.”

Source: Berkeley Well-Being Institute

Simply put, you build a healthy lifestyle based on the choices you make about your daily habits. The purpose of choosing a healthy lifestyle is to leave you fit, energetic, and at reduced risk for disease.

What are the differences between physical activity, physical exercise and sport?

Physical activity: “Any body movement that is produced by the contraction of skeletal muscles and that produces substantial increases in the body’s energy consumption compared to being at rest.” So any movement of the body made during our day-to-day activity is a physical activity. 

Physical exercise: “A type of planned and structured physical activity, with previous preparation. It is a subset of Physical Activity and consists of repeating certain movements with the aim of improving or maintaining some of the components of physical fitness.” 

Sport: “A form of physical activity subject to specific rules or regulations. It will generally require training or a specific physical exercise programme”. 

Source: Spanish Heart Foundation FEC

What is health enhancing physical activity (HEPA)?

Health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA) is any form of physical activity that benefits health and functional capacity without undue harm or risk.