The Ancient Greek would not have been too unfamiliar with some of the health and fitness regimes that are used by people today. The word 'Regimen' was used by the Greeks to describe peoples lifestyles: from which can be derived the word regimented (as in organised). The Greek philosophy of 'Regimen' covered what people ate, drank, the types and amount of exercise that they took and how much sleep they had. 

These ideas were very thorough: it demonstrates that the Greeks knew that lifestyle could affect the quality of life, as evidenced by their development and championing of the Olympics. Such is the quality of the remaining evidence that we can even see that doctors advice differed for those who were rich: and could therefore afford to spend time and money on relaxing, and those who worked or were poorer: and therefore couldn't maintain as healthy a lifestyle as possible.

Examples of source material relating to the 'Regimen' can be found in the activities section or via the external Greek links.