Fran AndralojcSport, Physical Activity & Wellbeing

What will we cover?

• Introduction to Wellbeing• The ‘5 Ways to Wellbeing’• How to implement these into your lifestyle• Wellness Wheel Activity

Dictionary definition of Wellbeing: ‘A good or satisfactory condition of existence; a statecharacterized by health, happiness, and prosperity.’

What are the 5 ways to Wellbeing

1) Connect

2) Learn

3) Exercise/Be Active

4) Acts of Kindness/Giving

5) Notice

Why?

1. Feeling close to others is a fundamental human need

2. Reduces social isolation which is one cause of feelings of depression

3. Humans require positive social interaction to thrive

4. Increased feelings of happiness by building strong connections with others

1. Smile at someone 2. Ask others if you need help with something3. Share things about yourself4. Make time for plans with a friend5. Attend an exercise class or go on a course

Listening HabitsBad Listening Habits

• Fidgeting • Looking at or doing something else• Rushing • Interrupting • Dreaming • Assuming • Identifying

Good Listening Habits

• Physical Listening• Keeping an open mind, don’t judge• Check it out and clarify if you need to • Silence is okay• Be relaxed and aware of your own

body language• Summarise

Listening HabitsBad Listening Habits

Fidgeting – playing with keys, nails, rings or hair when someone is talking to you

Looking at or doing something else – Checking your phone, on social media, looking at emails, making food, clearing up etc..

Rushing – If you give the impression you are in a rush, others will feel you’re unapproachable, they may also feel rushed and unable to express themselves fully

Interrupting – Think you know what they’re going to say, or is what you have to say far more important so why wait for them to finish?

Rehearsing – Busy planning what you’re going to say next, so you don’t actually hear what the other person is saying?

Dreaming – The other person mentions something that triggers a day dream, so you end up thinking of something completely different

Assuming – You assume you know what the other person is going to say, so why do you need to listen?

Identifying – Anything the other person says, just refers you back to how it relates to you and your experiences? Try to focus on what the other person is saying and their experiences too.

Good Listening Habits

Physical Listening – Use of body language, open posture and eye contact shows you are interested

Keeping an open mind, don’t judge – spend your time listening to the full story/question/whatever the other person is saying, before you offer your opinion or reply

Check it out and clarify if you need to – It shows you are actually interested and engaged in the topic, ask questions if you need to

Silence is okay – Not every silence has to be awkward, you don’t need to fill every gap with talking and sound. In fact taking a little time to think and take stock of what the person has said before responding, gives you time to reflect and give the best answer you can.

Be relaxed and aware of your own body language –Tension can be infectious, if you’re tense or sat fidgeting the person speaking to

you will be come easily distracted and possibly feel tense too. Imagine how you’d like to be listened to, and try to do that for someone else.

Summarise: Sometimes it helps to summarise what someone has said to you, to show you’ve taken it in, ae interested and have been listening to them.

Listening(Task)

Turn to the person next to you and talk about what you both did at the weekend.

When you do this, try to focus on really listening to what they are saying and notice if you do any of the points noted in the last slide. It might give you some interesting points to work on in future and help you to better connect with others.

1. Lower levels of depression and anxiety2. Improved health and reduced risk of illnesses such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, back pain, muscular and joint aches and pains as well as

developing or worsening mental health problems. 3. Both immediate and long-term health benefits

4. Most of the time, the benefits far outweigh the risks when it comes to being more active.

6. Stretch at your desk or gently move your body, movements such as shoulder rolls and wrist rolls can help relieve tension

1. Choose the more active over the less active options when possible, e.g. take the stairs not the lift, walk rather than get the bus (or get off a couple of stops early)

2. Get out for a walk, even just a short one, it’ll give you a break from work and a nice change of scenery (plus the added bonus of some fresh air)

3. Take a friend to the gym or an exercise class or try a Yoga class for something more gentle

4. Take up a sport or activity you’re interested in (a great way to connect with others too)

5. Take walking meetings rather than sitting in a meeting room for a change

The Impact of Physical Activity on Mental Health, Stress and Anxiety

74% Campus Active In 2018 UoL Balancing

Life Survey

The Impact of Physical Activity on Mental Health, Stress and Anxiety

https://journals.lww.com/co-psychiatry/Fulltext/2005/03000/Exercise_and_well_being__a_review_of_mental_and.13.aspx

Impacts of Physical Fitness on Mental WellbeingEngaging in regular physical activity has the following emotional benefits:

• Improves mood and reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety

• Significant improvements through PA compared to some psychotropic treatments

• Lower relapse rates from PA than participants taking medication alone

• Health related quality of life appears to be improved through physical activity

• Enhancing the experience of wellbeing and increasing physical functioning for those with poor health

Impacts of Physical Fitness on Mental WellbeingIt may also:

• Decrease stress levels• Improve eating habits• Help regulate emotions• Improve self talk & confidence• Offer a daily routine and weekly schedule• Increase productivity positively affecting workload and studies• Alcohol and substance use reduction• Increase sense of purpose

Physical Activity vs Stress

Stress Cortisol Production Fight or Flight Activated

Physical Exercise Reduction in Cortisol Endorphins Released

1. Experience things afresh, that we may have been taking for granted2. Helps us to connect with ourselves and become more aware of thoughts and feelings

3. Better recognise signs of stress and anxiety earlier and take steps to tackle them earlier.4. Refreshing to realise other things are going on around you

5. Consuming negative thoughts and feelings aren’t as prominent or as important as they were before.

Taking notice shares a lot of traits with mindfulness.. Mindfulness is described as:

‘Paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, without judgement’

We use elements of mindfulness to take notice. Mindfulness has been proven to be beneficial at reducing anxiety symptoms by:

- a better response to stress awareness, less instinctive action and more thought out actions

- Can shrink the amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for anxiety)

The Amygdala – what’s behind your anxietyThe amygdala is part of the limbic system in our brain, at the end of the hippocampus (which is associated mainly with memory)

The amygdala is such a tiny part of the brain but can seem to do such a big job as it controls the way we react to stimuli or an event that can cause emotion.

It may also be referred to as your ’chimp brain’

Taking Notice: Mindfulness Practise

The 5-4-3-2-1 method can be used to help bring you into the present moment and focus on where you are right now. Use the below, or change it to other things that work for you. Try not to think on it too long, go with whatever you notice – the point is to notice it and continue.

• Count 5 things you can see• Count 4 things you can hear• Count 3 things you can feel

• Count 2 things you can smell• Count 1 thing you can taste

5-4-3-2-1

1. Can boost confidence as well as give you a sense of achievement.2. It keeps your brain functioning on a high level

3. Help with everyday problem solving4. It keeps you moving forwards

5. It offers a goal to work towards

1. If you have any health and fitness goals, this is a great thing to start with, set goals, learn how you can achieve them and put it to practise!

2. Learn new recipes and ways to eat a healthier diet, have a look in cook books or online

3. Learn about yourself, keep a reflective diary, make lists, talk to friends and family, be more self aware.

4. Try learning something unrelated to your job that’s fun, so it feels like a break from work when you’re doing it.

5. Find things to learn that benefit other areas of life, e.g. self-defence

• Increase in positive feelings through helping someone else

• Giving and helping others can stimulate the reward centres in the brain

• Offers a sense of purpose and may help you feel happier and more satisfied

• Giving time to others can help strengthen relationships and build new ones

• It can help get rid of anger and negative feelings and boost positivity

• Smile at someone in the street, they might be having a bad day, and your smile could be just what they need to boost their mood a little

• Spend some time with a friend or family member who could do with some support

• Really listen to people, feeling valued and listened to is really important for people’s wellbeing, sense of self and importance

• If you see someone struggling with something, offer to help

Now you know more about the 5 ways, here are a couple of examples to show you how easy it is to incorporate them into your every day life. It may seem like a lot to take in or add in, but it really is so easy to include and can be done all in one task:

• Learn a new recipe, walk to the shops, notice your surroundings, smile at the shop keeper or a passer buy, cook for your friends

• Go to an exercise class, learn new exercises and techniques, be aware of your body moving and how it feels, engage with others even at first you just say hello to the instructor and let them know you’re trying it out for the first time, help someone out with getting their equipment out or putting it away.

Have a think about what you could do to incorporate these 5 ways into your lifestyle, how many things can you think of that include 3 or more of the 5 ways in one task or activity.?

1) Connect

2) Be Active

3) Take Notice

4) Keep Learning

5) Give

Physical

FinancialIntellectual

Emotional Social

Spiritual

Intellectual: Active participation in scholastic, cultural, and community activities, in order to improve intellectual wellness, it is important to value creativity, curiosity, and lifelong learning.

Social and Cultural: Building and maintaining healthy relationships with family, friends and peers. Respecting and understanding others. Feeling confident and contempt spending time alone and with others

Spiritual: Having an overall sense of peace, having strategies in place to manage stress, anxiety and worry. Understanding yourself, your inner values and beliefs

Physical: Taking up regular activity and maintaining this. Eating nutritious foods and a balanced diet. As well as keeping hydrated. Getting 7-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep a night, managing stress well, avoiding an excess of alcohol, avoiding drugs and having regular health checks.

Emotional: Having a generally positive outlook on life. Accepting yourself and valuing yourself. Knowing and maintaining your own personal boundaries and not over extending yourself. Ask when you need help and recognise and manage stress effectively.

Financial: Developing long term and short term financial goals, living within your means, budgeting effectively.

Maslow created something called the ‘Hierarchy of Needs’ in 1943, highlighting the foundations of what we need to function well and keep

striving for better wellbeing.

His idea was that if the base of the pyramid was unfulfilled, e.g. no basic survival structures such as sleep, food, water and shelter, that we would

find it much harder to achieve things further up the pyramid. Do you have all of these needs fulfilled? If not, which areas do you need to develop or

work on, to reach ‘Self Actualisation’ at the top of the pyramid?

Thank you for listening and I hope you will go away with some useful things you can do to improve your own wellbeing.

Please refer to the back of your booklet for some useful resources on the ‘5 ways to wellbeing’ as well as other self help resources on

improving your health and lifestyles.

For any further questions, or a copy of the postural plan ask or refer to the email address on the back of your work books.