Exercise. It can be a love-hate relationship. In the current climate, it is more important than ever. I think we all have an understanding of how beneficial staying physically active is. Our physical and mental health thrives on exercise, and as a general summation the more we exercise the better we feel as humans. This can lead to improved work outputs, more energy to play at home with the kids, and mentally able to function at a higher level.
In short, YES! Exercise is still possible under the current Government directions. As Victorians we need to adhere to restrictions, which can be confusing as restrictions are altered and changed on a regular basis. If you are unsure on what you can and cannot do please check out Gippsland sport & return to play. With these restrictions, many of us are naturally doing even less during this time (i.e. walking to and from the car, walking into another office to talk to a colleague, shorter walks to the kitchen/bathroom, leaving the premises to get lunch, etc.).
What constitutes exercise?
A variety of things can be implemented during our days to increase our current levels. Rach from GippSport’s Make Your Move program, check out mymlatrobe.com, has been taking the team and other employees across Latrobe Valley through movements we can do at our desk. Make Your Move believes any activity is good activity as long as you’re moving. Light stretching at our desks can help put a pause on daily stresses. Increased activity to break up the day reduces time spent sedentary and is proven to have exponential health and wellbeing benefits as well as increasing productivity. With more people working from home and online, we need to be moving and not just sitting and staring at our screens 8+ hours a day.
Who else is lacking motivation during the day?
Who else is lacking motivation during the day? Isolation from work colleagues, family and friends got you feeling down? It’s tough. No structured sport means no training or playing socially and competitively during the week with mates. Do you normally go for a walk during the day? A 10-minute walk at lunchtime or mid-morning helps to break up our time in front of the screen. Ever tried yoga? Now is a great time to give it a go. If you need that little bit of extra motivation why not have a go at GippSport’s 30 minute virtual challenge coming up https://gippsport.com.au/gippsport-virtual-30-minute-challenge/.
A fantastic platform for women and girls to encourage each other and stay motivated is the Gippy Girls Can campaign. #GippyGirlsCan is a social media movement encouraging the women and girls of Gippsland to get active together through community and sporting club led physical activity programs. Gippy Girls Can emphasises community and empowers women and girls of all shapes, sizes, fitness levels and abilities to get active without the fear of judgment. Check out www.gippygirlscan.com
Now is the time to motivate and encourage each other to stay active, wherever possible. For a lot of us, that might involve modified sports in the backyard with your kids. Anything from jumping on a trampoline, to totem tennis or a makeshift mini golf course to get that sports fix will have to do for now. For others at GippSport they love running marathons. Or jumping on their road bike set up in the shed to join their mates on virtual rides around the world. Whatever your passion – do it and try to maintain or establish a routine for your own wellbeing.
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