Look After Your Physical and Mental Health This Winter with These Exercises
With the days becoming increasingly shorter, the sun setting earlier each day and the weather taking a turn, we are more and more inclined to spend our time inside. However, don’t let these factors put you off embracing the great outdoors in the coming months! Grab those waterproof coats and running shoes, for we have gathered a great list of exercises to try during the winter months. Regular exercise is important not just to physical health, but also mental. After a testing and difficult year for us all, it is important more than ever to be looking after our wellbeing. Whether you are looking to exercise to get in shape, or to simply get out and about after working from home all day, we have just the suggestion for you. Each exercise listed is great whether on your own or with a friend and are suitable for the socially distanced time we find ourselves in currently. Get active while staying safe!
Jogging/Running
Before we get into this, it is important to make sure that you are exercising in safe environments. Where appropriate, make sure that routes are well lit and stick to paths rather than venturing into roads and other potentially unsafe areas. Wearing bright colored clothes is also a great idea, for this will help road users and other people to notice you.
Jogging and running have excellent effects on our health, both physical and mental. Regarding physical health, you can increase your fitness levels while toning up and staying active. Jogging and running has a positive effect on mental health; it can help to alleviate stress and increase the production of endorphins, perfect after an intense day of working from home! A great hobby to take up on your own, there are jogging and running groups available across the country if you are searching for something a bit more social.
Cycling
A favorite pastime of many, cycling is a great exercise for keeping fit and looking after your mental wellbeing, no matter the weather. Whether you are cycling in wet weather, or pedaling along a sun-kissed route, get those cycling shorts on and feel the wind on your skin! With plenty of cycle routes to choose from, you are spoilt for choice. If you are interested in taking up cycling, but do not know much about the different variations of bicycles or related topics, visit blogs like those of Velosurance, who detail all you need to know; from what size frame to select, to the protective gear that you will need. There are also ample amounts of information of how to stay safe on a bicycle in adverse weather conditions, a must read over the coming months. It must be noted, it is essential you ensure that yourself and loved ones wear a helmet while cycling. We don’t want you getting hurt or in an accident! Stay safe and stay seen this winter.
Aerobics
While there are plenty of aerobics sessions which happen in fitness centers, classes held in local parks and outdoor spaces are also extremely popular. Great for increasing your general physical fitness, this is also a great exercise for releasing endorphins and other hormones. While classes are still going on throughout the pandemic, it is worth taking extra precautions when attending a class, especially as we head into the winter months when flu is extremely prevalent. Guidance from the CDC currently states that in-person classes can continue with suitable measures in place, whether that be socially distanced or outdoors. If you are attending an in-person class, ensure you stay a good distance away from other individuals and sanitize your area before and afterward. If you feel more comfortable attending an online class from the comfort of your own home, there are a number available through streaming platforms or through a platform chosen by your fitness provider. Like our other suggestions, this is a great exercise to take up both on your own or with a friend!
Yoga
A less strenuous activity than our previous suggestions, yoga is an exercise that is renowned for physical and mental wellbeing. An excellent way of practicing breathing techniques and for increasing flexibility, yoga also allows us to focus on ourselves in that precise moment; a practice called Grounding. Some studies have shown that the use of yoga in rehabilitation of eating disorders and other mental illnesses, has been efficient. Yoga classes are held at fitness centers all over, and like aerobics, also hold classes outdoors. Once more, you can access a plethora of yoga classes online, ranging from beginner classes right through to the more intermediate. Yoga is a more relaxed activity to pick up this winter, and one that can be practiced as an individual, or as a collective. Take a moment to sit and breathe and make your way through these next few months in a healthy and mindful way.
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