Maintaining Me - Week 1 >>>

Physical
Activity

Welcome to Week One of Maintaining Me, a programme designed to help us develop healthy habits by challenging ourselves to make small positive changes to our lives each week.

This week the focus is on physical activity.

For our first week, we’re all challenged to commit to doing 15 minutes of physical activity everyday. If you want to do more than 15 minutes then of course you can but try to commit to a minimum of 15. And if you’re already quite active, try to still make the commitment to an extra 15 minutes.

The everyday part is important because that’s how we build habits.

Personal Trainer, Dave McCabe has put together a light 15 minute exercise routine that you can follow at home to get you started. The video is available on SharePoint. He has has provided a couple of videos on introductions to training and to his personal training business, Transform Fitness   To view click here.  

How to motivate yourself to change your behaviour

What does make us change our actions? In this 16 minute talk, Tali Sharot reveals three ingredients to doing what’s good for yourself. Dr. Tali Sharot is a neuroscientist at University College London and the director of the Affective Brain Lab. She is a faculty member of the department of Experimental Psychology, a Wellcome Trust Fellow, and currently a visiting Professor at Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on how emotion, motivation, and social factors influence our expectations, decisions, and memories.

Healthy habits - easier said than done right?

Forming healthy habits can be challenging but the key to success lies in not being too hard on yourself. All it takes is a minute.

Sociologist Christine Carter explains the best approach to building new habits in this short 11 minute video.

Having trouble with getting motivated or feeling you left it too late?

Social psychologist Emily Balcetis talks about why some people may find exercise harder than others and how we might make it seem easier.

And just in case you forgot about the many benefits of physical activity:

Exercise also has real specific benefits for brain development and function. Neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki explains what exercise can do for your brain in this short 13 minute talk. 

IMPORTANT: It’s always advisable to check with your GP before starting any new fitness activities. Depending on your fitness levels you may need to start slowly. Please take care and avoid injuries.

Remember to always check that any advice you come across online or in podcasts or books comes from qualified reputable sources before you follow it. Just because it’s online or in print doesn’t mean it’s true.

Podcasts you might find useful:

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You might think you know what it takes to lead a happier life… more money, a better job, or Instagram-worthy vacations. You’re dead wrong. Yale professor Dr. Laurie Santos has studied the science of happiness and found that many of us do the exact opposite of what will truly make our lives better. Based on the psychology course she teaches at Yale — the most popular class in the university’s 300-year history — The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos will take you through the latest scientific research and share some surprising and inspiring stories that will change the way you think about happiness.

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Gretchen Rubin is one of the world’s foremost experts on happiness: she’s sold over two million books on the subject. It’s not exactly hard to guess what her podcast is about, but it’s impressive how many angles she finds on the subject in Happier, which has been running for years and years and shows no sign of slowing down. Sometimes she tackles huge existential issues; often she talks about small delights, like the magic of tidying up a shelf. Not everything in it is going to 100 percent definitely bring everyone who listens joy, but you won’t want for ideas.

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Every week, you’ll find inspirational, intimate and disarmingly-unfiltered conversations about living a fully-engaged, fiercely-connected and purpose-drenched life. From iconic world-shakers like Elizabeth Gilbert, Brene Brown, Sir Ken Robinson, Seth Godin and Gretchen Rubin to everyday guests, every story matters.

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Hand-picked content on personal development, minimalism, finance, health, business, and more with author permission. Think of Optimal Living Daily as an audioblog or blogcast where the best blogs are narrated to you for free. Inspire positive changes in your life on the go.

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Join Emily Abbate, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for a good time. Hurdle is a wellness-focused podcast where I sit down with inspiring individuals to talk about everything from their big wins to how they’ve gotten through some of life’s toughest moments. On the show, you can expect vulnerability, motivation, and candid discussions with everyone from top athletes to aspiring entrepreneurs on what it really takes to follow your passions. My mission is simple: To inspire you to be your best self, move with intention — and have some fun along the way.

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A master-class in personal and professional development, ultra-athlete, wellness evangelist and bestselling author Rich Roll delves deep with the world’s brightest and most thought provoking thought leaders to educate, inspire and empower you to unleash your best, most authentic self.

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All About Fitness is a free podcast that explores how exercise can successfully manage the aging process. From popular fitness programs to recently-developed exercise equipment, discover new trends and evidence-based solutions that can help you slow down the effects of time and stress on your body. No matter your age, learn how to burn calories, build stronger muscles and get YOUR best body straight from the people who conduct the research, invent the products and create the workouts that make you sweat. Host Pete McCall is a master personal trainer, education content creator and blogger for leading fitness organizations including the American Council on Exercise, Nautilus, StairMaster and the National Academy of Sports Medicine.

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Want to drop fat by eating ridiculously well and exercising less? Abel James answers your questions and interviews thought leaders to transform your body, mind, and life with cutting-edge science and common-sense wisdom. Whether you’re into Intermittent Fasting, Keto, Paleo, Plant-Based, Wild, Carnivore or completely clueless, we’re here to help you eat right, train smarter, and transform your body and mind to be your absolute best.

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The Marathon Training Academy Podcast will help you unlock your potential to conquer the marathon and change your life.  Since 2010 Angie and Trevor have shared tips, inspiration, and interesting guests interviews to help listeners run smarter, avoid injury, and go the distance!

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Although the world is becoming mostly sedentary, our bodies still require a wide variety of daily movements in order to work well. Many of us struggle to get regular exercise, but even that can fall short of nourishing the body from head to toe. How can we move more—a lot more—when we have sore, stiff parts and overly busy lifestyles?


Join Katy Bowman M.S., biomechanist, author, and movement educator as she combines big-picture lessons on biomechanics, kinesiology, physiology, and natural human movement with simple and practical solutions and exercises to get all your body parts moving better. Katy’s lighthearted and funny approach helps us all put the movement back in our lives, and the joy back in our movement!