Sport and Medicine in Rome (Galen)

Summary

In the early 21st century, it is recognized that there is an intersection between medicine, physical therapy, and exercise. The Greeks and the Romans attempted to explain this relation in terms of dependence. In other words, for them it was important to ascertain whether sport was part of medicine or if it was an independent art. In this debate, Galen was a decisive figure. First, he separated sport between high-performance and exercise to maintain health. Whereas he despised the first one for being against nature, he recommended the latter for its role in people’s well-being. Furthermore, he explained the relation between sport and medicine as being both parts of the art of health (Hygiene). Healthy persons used exercise to maintain health, whereas sick persons used medicine to regain health. Thus, sport and medicine were conceived as separate branches of the encompassing art of health.