Tag: stress management

2
Nov
2021

Seasonal Affective Disorder/ Winter Blues – Support for your mental and physical health over winter

Whilst Winter, like all seasons, brings plenty of things to look forward to, many of us find that some aspects of these months affect us negatively. Dark mornings and evenings, colder temperatures and cravings for comfort aren’t always conducive to optimal physical and mental health. Some people even suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), sometimes referred to as winter depression. Other people may not suffer from the condition fully but may notice some of the symptoms discussed below having a negative effect on their everyday life. This blog highlights some of the ways this coming season can affect our health and wellbeing and discusses ways to help deal with these potential obstacles.

20
Oct
2021

Mental Health First Aid Kit – Create Your Own

We all know what to do if we cut our finger, get a mild headache or any other minor physical ailment and we know the importance of getting treatment before a problem potentially becomes more serious. How many of us are treating our mental health the same way though? Just like with our physical health, minor issues can arise at any time or we may simply feel ourselves sliding down the spectrum of optimum mental health. We often recognise physical symptoms of feeling a bit ‘under the weather’ such as sleep disturbances, changes in our appetite, aches and pains, a reduced immune system or generally feeling a bit run down and realise the importance of remedying these before they lead to further issues. It’s important that we also learn to recognise changes in our mental health and emotional wellbeing and have a plan in place to manage them in the same way.

6
Oct
2021

Healthy lifestyle changes – Tracking progress without using the scales

Whilst weight loss is undoubtedly one of the most common health and fitness goals, it is sometimes wrongly viewed as the key determinant of progress when trying to improve our exercise and nutrition habits. One of the most common questions personal trainers gets asked by people who have recently embarked on a new plan is ‘why haven’t I lost much weight?’ There are many possible reasons for this, including the fact that we all lose weight at different rates, you may be building muscle and you could be getting weighed at different times of the day or week and/or using different scales. These are just a few explanations, but the majority (if not all) of the personal trainers I know would urge their clients to explore other ways of measuring progress rather than the often soul-destroying focus of chasing a certain number on the scales. Embarking on a new healthy living plan should leave you feeling energised, proud and encouraged. If the scale is having the opposite effect, consider giving it a break for a while and focusing on other ways of measuring progress such as those below…

21
Jul
2021

Social Media – For Better or Worse…?!

Whether you use social media for business use, your personal life or a mixture of the two, it’s something that’s becoming more and more a part of our everyday life for many of us. Social media has huge benefits including keeping us connected with people we may otherwise lose touch with, sharing our happy moments with others and being part of theirs and seeking advice/ support / education from a wide range of sources. However, like anything good, it can also have it’s downsides, especially if used to excess. Whilst we will all have different experiences of social media and vary in how it affects our wellbeing, this blog shares a few ideas and tips to make sure that social media is a positive for you.

6
Jul
2021

To train or not to train?! Should you exercise when you’re not feeling well?

Training when you feel well is one thing, but when it comes to feeling under the weather for whatever reason, many of us avoid exercise through fear of potentially ‘making things worse’. On the flip side, others try to continue their exercise programme as if nothing is wrong – so who’s right?! Whilst exercise is known to help a wide range of conditions, it’s important to arm yourself with some knowledge regarding when to train and when to rest to make sure you stay as healthy as possible and recover quickly when you’re not feeling your best.

16
Jun
2021

Long Covid – Recovery Tips

This past 18 months have been, for many of us, a challenge like we’ve never experienced before. With health anxieties, changes to our working situation or status and periods of isolation to name just a few specific examples, it comes as a huge relief that lockdown is currently gradually easing and more people are being vaccinated daily in the fight against Coronavirus. Whilst this is certainly a light at the end of a sometimes seemingly endless tunnel, for those suffering the effects of ‘Long Covid’, the challenges may feel far from over. Whilst this is still such a new condition and research into it is constantly ongoing, there are now a few identified tips that are thought to help support recovery. This blog aims to outline some of these.

25
May
2021

Take a deep breath – Breathing tips and techniques for exercise and anxiety/stress management

A whole blog on breathing?! Seems a bit excessive for something we do naturally all day, everyday, right?! Wrong! Breathing is the foundation of our very existence and is inextricably linked to both our physical and mental health. Physical activities such as walking, lifting and cleaning have a clear effect on our breathing as do psychological states such as stress and relaxation. By learning how to control our breath we can help to manage our physical and psychological states to best support us.

4
May
2021

Sleep – Information and Top Tips

When we think of health and wellbeing our minds often turn to our diet and exercise habits but very rarely do we consider sleep and rest in as much detail. In a society where doing plenty of exercise and eating healthy foods is admired, it sometimes feels like running on little sleep makes someone reverd as almost superhuman. Phrases such as ‘burning the candle at both ends’, ‘ no rest for the wicked’ and generally discussing how busy we are are such common parts of our vocabulary we rarely give them a second thought. If you’re keen on making changes to your health and fitness, especially if you’ve tried and failed in the past – this blog aims to discuss why such changes may even start with your sleep habits. Sleep has very many health benefits, both physical and psychological and it’s about time we prioritised it as a basic health habit and not a luxury or afterthought.

20
Apr
2021

Cup half empty?! What is self-care and why is it important?

‘Self-care’ has become something of a buzz word recently (or is it 2 words?!), particularly with the events of the last year forcing many of us to think more deeply about our physical and mental health. Whilst some may think it sounds self-indulgent and unnecessary, this blog aims to outline what it is and why everyone needs it in some form or another – especially at the moment!

12
Apr
2021

Your happiest, healthiest working day

What does your average working day look like? Whilst this will be different for each of us, chances are it’s changed in the last year and may soon be due to change again. Whether where you work has changed, how you do things at work or simply your routine before and after work, it’s thrown many of us from our usual habits and schedules which can feel like low level chaos at times! This is certainly something I’ve struggled with whilst working from home and this blog aims to highlight some things I’ve found useful or know that others have done to help make their working day as healthy as possible. This can also apply if you’re still going out to work or when you go back, although some are more socially acceptable to do in a work setting than others (dance party anyone? I reckon my colleagues would be up for it to be fair!) Taking regular breaks can help to keep our physical and mental energy topped up so that we’re more focused and productive. Below are some ideas for mini-breaks to slot into your days to support the happiest, healthiest you possible even when you’re working hard!