16 • Keeping fit & healthy at home Home help
With social distancing set to continue, Mattie Lacey-Davidson speaks to a GP-turned-life coach for top tips on maintaining physical and mental health
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At Home & In Te Garden • Sunday 24 May 2020
t goes without saying that 2020 is a year like no other, and as summer approaches with social
distancing set to remain indefinitely, uncertainty continues. I spoke to doctor-turned-health and life coach Christie Lewis about how to cope with staying home and staying safe over the summer.
Create a morning routine “Try to wake up at your usual time each day and be consistent with it,” advises Christie. “Your body clock needs consistency.” She recommends meditation, exercise, making a healthy breakfast and setting out your intentions for the day. “Whatever your routine, find something that is enjoyable and positive that will help you set the tone for the rest of the day.”
Stick to normal ‘working hours’ Having purpose and structure to your day will help protect your mental health. “If you’re working from home, this will be easier for you, but if you’re not, you’ll need to create your own structure,” Christie instructs. “Set yourself some goals — can you use this opportunity to de-clutter your house, learn a new hobby, sign up to an online course or work on a new business idea? Try to use this time to your advantage.”
GETTY
Whether you want restorative exercise like Pilates and yoga, or strenuous exercise, there’s a home workout for everyone
Keep fit during lockdown
Online fitness provider MoveGB is helping the nation stay fit through lockdown with the launch of its brand new platform, Move At Home
Stay physically active It can be tempting to sit down all day and binge on a new TV show, especially on days where motivation or mental health is dipping. But Christie urges to take regular breaks from sitting: “Keep your body moving. Keeping physically active will help to maintain a healthy mind and body — try to go outside once a day, and exercise when you can. Tere are so many amazing home workouts online for you to keep physically active while self-isolating. Whether you want more restorative exercise like Pilates and yoga, or more strenuous exercise, there’s something for everyone.”
Supplement your health Spending a considerable amount of time indoors or alone can be very unsettling and anxiety-inducing. “Meditation and journaling are effective ways of keeping your mind focused and stress levels low. Supplements may cushion mental health and the vegan brand Life Armour has created a stress-relieving bundle of supplements, which can help you remain calm and balanced.” A healthy body means a healthy mind and vice versa, so adding supplements and vitamins to your diet can help keep you tip-top.
Keep communicating. Communication with friends, family and neighbours is a hugely important thing to do, particularly for those vulnerable to loneliness. Christie recommends organising regular virtual meet-ups via Zoom or Skype, or, if video calls feel like too much for you, simply pick up the phone. @doctorchristielewis
doctorchristielewis.com
Move At Home is available to new members from £1 per week and free to NHS workers, offering access to thou- sands of live-streamed classes from local independent fitness instructors up and down the country as well as on-demand classes. Tere is a class for everyone on the platform, from ballet and yoga to HIIT workouts and dance classes.
Popular
live streamed classes to
get members’ hearts racing include Carnival Fitness, an Afro-Caribbean fitness fusion that incorporates basic dance steps with body-weighted exer- cises and pure carnival vibes. Lively and upbeat class We Are Synthetics is also streaming on the platform — it’s the ultimate ’80s workout experi- ence to sculpt your body like it’s 1986.
Tis classic aerobic cardiovascular workout includes strengthening and toning built into the routine, burning up to 800 calories in 60 minutes. Twerk It Out also offers fantastic booty- burning workouts that will teach you how to pop and dance your way to fitness in your own living room. Tere’s a massive offering of fantastic mind and body classes as
well, from power yoga, flow and medi- tation to pregnancy yoga and online mindfulness. Tese classes are already proving hugely popular in helping those at home take a moment of calm and reflection, as well as remotely reconnect with the community. Move At Home is free to existing
members, offering on-demand work- outs as well as pay-as-you-go live- streamed classes (many of which
offer an initial free taster class). New live stream classes will be added to the platform daily as users can tune in to popular classes up and down the country.
To sign up to Move At Home now, go to
movegb.com
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