Activity, Activity, Activity

Here is three positive effects of being physically active to help your mental wellbeing during the lockdown restrictions 

1 - Try 10 minutes of brisk walking to increase your mental alertness, energy and mood

2 - Being active will help to reduce stress and anxiety 

3 - Your confidence will improve by doing or being more active in due course.

Here are some ideas of what you can do

In line with the government guidelines you can exercise outdoors with people you live with, or within your support bubble, or on your own, or with one person from another household.   Our running group has paired up with members of the group to keep active and support each other. Either walk, jog, run or cycle, just get some fresh air and take advantage of the local area.  Obviously the new tier’s will allow some changes to take place.

   

If you cannot get outside, try out some indoor activities and think outside the box.  There are so many exercises to choose from, such as using online coaching or any of the following:

Yoga. No matter what your needs or abilities are, there's probably a yoga style out there for you. Dancing or dance your way through the housework or just giggle your body.  High intensity training to get that heart rate pumping.  Other activities that you could do from home include pilates, planking, walking or running up and downstairs, weight training with some lunges and stretching. 

It’s never to late to start, but once you do there is no looking back.  At the start you will ache but push through the pain barrier and after the first week your body will start to adjust to your exercise programme.  It’s all about building stamina and as you get stronger you will automatically start to push yourself to the next level.  If you cannot exercise why not at least follow these suggestions:

Fresh Air - It's incredible what a difference getting outside can make. If everything feels like it is getting too much then get outside. Even if it is just for a 10-minute walk, you will feel better for it afterwards

Check in with yourself - We are all guilty of running around making sure everyone else is OK, but often neglect to look after ourselves. Make sure you schedule some me time in, something as simple as a quiet brew or 30 mins in front of the TV can make a difference.  Try Gold as some of the classics will bring a smile back in your are feeling low.

Focus on what you can control - With so much going on with lockdown it is easy to get caught up in the downward spiral of the 'what if' mindset. By focusing on the things in your life which you do have control of you will feel much better, however the stuff you can not control must be brushed to one side for now or forgotten completely.