Health & WELLBEING

Great advice to keep you happy and healthy. HOW EXERCISE CAN BOOST YOUR WELLBEING This week, our health writer Jackie Mitchell looks at ways to exercise.

RESEARCH shows that exercise can help alleviate depression and anxiety, as well as aid sleep. It also boosts energy and self-esteem.

“We need to move to activate our feel-good hormones,” Jane Basley, mobility coach and founder of Body Manoeuvres, explains. “These hormones alleviate pain and can induce feelings of pleasure.”

Despite the energy boost exercising gives us, it can make it easier to fall asleep.

“When we are stressed, our bodies release stress hormones such as cortisol, and this can affect the quality of our sleep. Exercise can reduce our cortisol levels, leading to less stress and a better night’s sleep,” Jane says.

Exercise also strengthens our muscles and bones.

“As we age, we naturally lose muscle, so we need to exercise to maintain it,” she adds. “Exercise also increases bone strength, which can help to prevent osteoporosis.

“It improves balance and flexibility and reduces the risk of falling.”

If you haven’t done much exercise before, it can be difficult to get started. However, there are so many activities to choose from.

From dancing to yoga, swimming to t’ai chi, and walking to gym workouts, there are so many ways to stay active.

“Some people are daunted by the thought of exercise because they have bad memories of it,” Jane says, “so finding fun activities to get moving is a start.

“Exercising with friends or in groups leads to social interaction.”

It’s important to take it slowly and to set short-term goals so you feel you have achieved something, which will encourage further effort.

“Physical resilience takes time,” Jane explains. “If you have a health condition, it is probably better to train in a group.

“When you attend a class, make sure you tell the instructor if you have any health issues so they can take this into account.

“You could also consider a personal trainer.”

Strength training using light weights helps to maintain muscle mass, while flexibility exercises such as yoga or Pilates improves range of motion.

“Balance exercises such as standing on one foot reduces the risk of falls, while aerobic activities such as walking and cycling helps with heart health,” Jane says.

To build up your balance, she suggests exercises such as toe taps, walking on your tiptoes, squats, calf raises and walking sideways.

“One of the most important aspects for people is that they move daily,” she explains. “Our learning never stops.

“We may feel we can’t stand on one leg because we haven’t for a long time, but we can relearn how to do this.”

Visit bodymanoeuvres.com for more information.