Dr David Sabgir and Walk with a Doc—every step counts

Abstract

Physical activity is a universal prescription that benefits people of all ages. From childhood to adulthood, movement is important for the human development, health and wellness.1–3 Yet across all continents, populations remain physically inactive leading to a rise in health comorbidities and chronic disease.4–6 Sports medicine physicians are faced with inactive populations in clinical practice and are uniquely positioned to confront this enormous challenge. The integration of exercise medicine and physical activity promotion into training curricula for medical students, residents and sports medicine fellowships is key to facilitate change.7–12 Each step towards physical activity promotion clinically could lead to healthier populations. Dr David Sabgir, an adult cardiologist in Ohio, is a great example of a singular physician who incorporated physical activity promotion into his clinical practice to make a global impact. He grew increasingly frustrated with his inability to effectively change his patients’ inactivity. The thousands of conversations he had with patients regarding the importance of physical activity for health were not fruitful nor were the exercise prescriptions or follow-up …