Whilst there may be a lot of changes and disruptions to our regular routines, it is important to continue to remain physically active during this difficult time. You may feel like there are more barriers to exercise than usual, however with the vast range of benefits of exercise the Southside team would like to help you to overcome these barriers and stay safe!
For many of us who are now working from home, our incidental activity levels have most likely dropped as we do not have to walk to and from the car, up and down flights of stairs or even to and from conference rooms or meetings. It can be quite surprising how much those little bits of incidental activity can build up over the course of a day. This means it is even more important to include structured exercise into your daily routine. With gyms still closed, outdoor equipment at risk and restrictions to the number of people you can be with, our choice of exercise may need to become a little more creative!
Tips from our Accredited Exercise Physiologist to stay active:
- Engage in active play with the kids, who are still restricted with many of those extracurricular activities they may usually be involved in. As a family, play musical statues or follow the leader; you can be as creative as you want as long as you’re moving. You can still do this if you don’t have kids too!
- Gardening is another way to get your body moving. Pulling weeds can be very hard work!
- If you are now working from home, use your commute time to dedicate to more structured exercise:
– Go for a walk or bike ride if you feel comfortable to do so.
– Dance in the living room to get your heart rate up.
– Use things you have around the house for strengthening exercises; it can be cans of food, a full washing basket etc.
– Stretch, especially if you are sitting more than you typically would. Prolonged sitting can cause stiffness especially to our neck, chest, back and hips.
– Join an online exercise class. Southside Physiotherapy are currently offering live classes through Zoom!
If you do not know where to start with your exercise program, or have an injury or chronic condition and need guidance on what exercise is safe for you to do, talk to one of the physiotherapists or exercise physiologist at Southside Physiotherapy. Physiotherapy and Exercise Physiology services are still available and you can make appointments.
Let’s get through this together and walk out of it on the other side in better physical health than we came into it!
