Lockdown Day 4: Resilience and Exercise

Exercise is well documented as having a positive impact on mental health and well-being. It releases endorphins, dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine. These are all “happy” hormones that contribute to our well-being.  There are few forms of exercise that suit everybody. You may be the sort of person who likes aerobics or you may be a rugby player. You may be the sort of person who runs marathons. Or just getting off the sofa and going for a walk may be an achievement. 

For me, I have been blessed by YouTube videos and my mum's old exercise bike, which she had hardly used before she became too frail. Morning stretches or 20 minutes on the bike, looking at the view or watching a Netflix box set help to offset my sedentary job.  Some people even use a standing desk. So you might not have a standing desk at home, but using a laptop on the kitchen work surface may be a start. Just make sure your eyes are level of the screen if you want to avoid next train strain and posture is maintained

Whatever we do for exercise there are three main areas that we are trying to improve: 

• Muscular strength and endurance, 
• Cardiovascular capacity 
• Flexibility. 

For this reason it is a good idea to mix up an exercise routine. I’m not just doing the same thing every day, but mixing it up a bit to prevent boredom and make sure that every part of my body is benefiting from the exercise. If you are more of a social exerciser, there are lots of popular shared activities online at the moment. One of my favourites is the sessions that our friend, Shirley, at the Chrysalis studio is continuing to provide. She is a dance and movement psychotherapist and provides services across the local community for a range of different groups including carers and those living with dementia. Check out her Facebook page here.  

Keep exercising, even if it is walking up and down the stairs for 20 minutes or having your own private disco in the privacy of your living room. After all, no one can see!!

God bless!