Life during lockdown is certainly a massive change from our normal life. Maybe you would normally attend an exercise class, go to the gym or for a swim as a way to keep fit and active. It may be that you also have a specific programme of exercises recommended by your physiotherapist to work on at home.
As therapists we often see that patient’s general fitness, muscle strength and endurance can diminish over the winter months as we are generally not as active. Therefore, it is even more important during lockdown to keep as active as possible and work on those home exercises and maybe that regular walk.
Motivating yourself to exercise regularly is for many people an ongoing challenge.
Here are a few top tips to help you to keep motivated. Through lockdown …and beyond!
- If it is a daily exercise programme try and do this at the same time every day so that it becomes part of your daily routine. If it’s a programme several times a week, allocate a day and time and add in to your calendar for the week ahead and try to stick to it.
- Break it up into bitesize chunks. Some people prefer to do their full programme in one go. For others this is too much so you could break it up into 2-3 10-minute sessions. Do what works best for you but try to keep to the same routine.
- Record your exercise for a while on a chart or tick it off on your calendar until it is established part of your daily/weekly routine.
- Reflect on how you feel when you have completed your exercises. How did your body feel? How was your mood? Did you enjoy the sense of achievement?
- Set goals for yourself. If you can link doing exercise to achieving what is important to you it can boost you to keep going. Discuss your goals with your physiotherapist.
- Anything is better than nothing. If for whatever reason (and this happens!) you don’t do so well one day, don’t beat yourself up. Get back on track as soon as you can. Start afresh the next day.
You can do it!
And remember that at Heads Up we are here to guide, support, and encourage you to achieve your goals.
We also have a new online exercise group for patients that have been assessed by us. It is a weekly class in standing and sitting aimed at improving general mobility, strength and balance.
Please speak to your physiotherapist or give us a call on 01306 888171 if this interests you and you would like to find out more. We would love you to join us.
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