Regional Support Manager, Sarah Barnard looks at the benefits to your wellbeing of being more active and suggests ways you can incorporate it into your daily life.
Very few people would disagree that life has been stressful over the past couple of years. Worries about the health of family and friends, employment, the cost of living… the list goes on. In this sort of climate, even the most resilient of people can start to feel the strain, so, and as we’ve advocated for a number of months, it’s more important than ever to look after our own wellbeing, both mental and physical.
My job can be busy and sometimes can be quite demanding. I exercise regularly and while I enjoy feeling physically fit, I also value the positive effects on my mental wellbeing that exercise has and so I am a great advocate of people being more active. This doesn’t have to mean gruelling sessions in the gym or 10-mile runs, unless that’s your sort of thing, it can be walking the dog or going for a bike ride.
When I say exercise, what I really mean is physical activity. To put it simply, physical activity is anything that uses your muscles and expends energy, so it can include a broad range of things. What’s most important though is that the activity you choose is something you enjoy. If you don’t enjoy it, then it just becomes a slog and you’ll give up on it. If it’s something you like doing, then you’re more likely to find the time to include it in your schedule and keep it up.
Why exercise?
Being more active has lots of benefits. Physically, it improves your heart health as well as your joints and bones. It can help maintain a healthy weight and strengthen muscles, which is important as we get older. But something that’s often overlooked is the benefit to your mental wellbeing.
Studies have shown that being active has a positive effect on someone’s mood. It can increase our self-esteem and reduce stress and anxiety. Going for a walk or a run helps you to feel more awake and alert and research has also shown that adults who include physical activity in their routine experience fewer symptoms of stress than those who don’t.
Exercise has long term benefits, too. It can act as a protection against some of the risk factors for dementia. And for people who have been diagnosed with dementia, it can help to slow down the condition’s progress.
How much exercise should we be doing?
The Department of Health recommends 2.5 hours of physical activity a week, which works out at about five 30-minute sessions. That may sound a lot, but it is quite easy to achieve. If you can’t find a 30-minute slot in your day, you could break it down into three 10-minute sessions instead. You might want to try walking briskly for five minutes, then turning around and walking back. This will soon get your heart pumping and blood flowing and it’s not that difficult to fit in.
All sorts of things count as physical activity, too. Walking, carrying heavy bags and climbing stairs are things that get your heart and lungs working and using your muscles as well as playing sport, gym classes, running, cycling and swimming. Any activity that raises your heart rate, makes you breathe faster and makes you feel warmer counts towards your exercise.
Getting started
Once you’ve decided you want to start being more active, answering a few basic questions might help you find the best way to go about it. Such as, would you rather exercise indoors or outside? Do you want something you can do on your own or would you rather be with a group of people? Would you like to try a new sport or pick up something you used to do? Getting these things straight in your mind can help you find an activity that’s likely to stick and that’s what’s important if you want to reap the benefits of exercise.
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