SPORTS
MEDICINE REHABILITATION SECTION
THE
THERAPEUTIC EXERCISE IN THE
ANTIQUITY
Porfiriadou
Anthi1, Tsourlinis Gregory2,
Iakovidis Paris1, Aftosmidis Demetrios1,
Aggelidou Aggeliki1, Papadopoulos Fotios1
1Alexander Technological
Institute of Thessaloniki, 2Interbalkan Medical Centre,
Greece
The aim of the present work is
the value of exercise as well as its beneficial attributes as they are
presented on main texts of many known writers of Antiquity. Concretely
the work deals with four writers: Plato, Aristotle, Hippocrates and
Galino. Two basic and distinguishable significances are met, the
[paidotribiki] that in greek means – massage on young people
and the gymnastics. Two type of professionals existed: on one hand
those who dealt with children as schoolteachers of gymnastics in the
sector of education and on the other hand those which undertook the
exercise of professional athletes.
As a conclusion of this
present work results the existence of a juxtaposition of ideas of all
four personalities - authors that are analyzed regarding their thoughts
on movement and exercise.
Basic element in all four writers
is the importance of measure and balance, in Greek
“metro”, regarding the body and the soul. Also
gravity is given in the preventive and therapeutic character of
exercise. All four agree also that every movement is not exercise.
Finally
one meets often in texts the need of division of movements in
categories depending on the movement and who makes it (energetic -
passive etc). Also the obligatory supervision by a professional during
the exercise is advised. Naturally the opinion that the exercise is
suggested for all ages is common. Finally the usefulness of
full recovery (massage etc) is also mentioned as important part of the
exercise.
