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Latest Hub News @ : 22/06/2020 14:22:20
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Monday 22nd June 2020 14:22
Health, Safety & Wellbeing
Men’s Health Awareness Week /
The overall aims of Men’s Health Week are to
Heighten awareness of preventable health problems for males of all ages.
Support men and boys to engage in healthier lifestyle choices / activities.
Encourage the early detection and treatment of health difficulties in males.
The themes for this year included Mental Fitness, Heart Heath, Cancer Prevention, Rethink what you drink and Quit Smoking. We hope you got something from the posts and recommended resources we posted last week on each subject.
To close of Men’s Health Awareness week for 2020 here are a few things for you to consider as part of your daily plan to maintain or improve health this year. These are all small things you can add to your routine and all will have impacts on multiple aspects of your health.
Exercise – as a lot of us continue to work from home the importance of movement has never been more important. Did you know that even consistent low-level movement throughout the day can have hugely beneficial effects on preventing Type 2 Diabetes? What does low level movement look like? In short getting out of that seated position as much as possible, walking, stretching and getting away from the desk and computer and getting outside for even 5 minutes of walking before resuming work. Embrace the concept of exercise or movement snacks, this means instead of taking a break and heading to the fridge, spend those minutes exercising – press ups, bodyweight squats, skipping, jumping jacks, cycling and walking for example are all exercises that can be performed with minimal or no equipment and will ensure your muscles, joints, heart and lungs are getting intermittent mini workouts throughout the day.
Listen top Health Coach Ben Greenfield and Dr. Mark Hyman discuss the Movement/Exercise snack concept. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aA1Iv8FnsUo
Stillness – with so much going on in the world around us and the negativity associated with it, becoming overwhelmed by it all is something that could have a negative effect on us. With the accompanying so called new normal so much has changed in our lives in such a short space of time. Finding quiet time or stillness now more than ever before is so important. Stillness gives us time to reflect, to think, to unwind and properly process the events of the day. Finding stillness in your day can have hugely beneficial impacts on your physical, emotional and mental health. How do you do this? Meditation and mindfulness are the raging topics in the health and wellbeing world now and I have found mediation to be very helpful. But stillness can be found in many other ways, reading a book, going for a walk in nature, going for a mountain hike, a cycle, fishing or enjoying your most favourite hobby. All of these of great ways to help us be present in the moment and bring a sense of calm into our lives.
Listen to this 5-minute video from Ryan Holiday on Stillness and I would also recommend his book Stillness is the Key. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNpKjSRUtI4
Sleep – Is sleep the forgotten component of your health & wellbeing routine? For many of us the answer to this question is Yes. Sleep deprivation has a long-term chronic impact on your health. It is now getting the attention it deserves and is quickly becoming the most important thing you can do for your health every day. Getting proper sleep is more than the number of hours but it’s also even more importantly the quality of that sleep. If your sleep made up of good quality deep and REM sleep? Chances are if you’re waking up tired and not feeling refreshed even after 7-8 hours of sleep, the issue is your sleep quality. The importance of sleep can be summarised as follows, if you have all other aspects of health dialled in but are not getting consistent good quality sleep you will get benefits form your routine but it’s only when your sleep is consistently good does the magic really happen. I’m leaving you with some resources here to view and read to help you learn more about the importance of sleep and putting together a proper daily sleep routine.
Dr Mathew Walker TED talk https://www.ted.com/talks/matt_walker_sleep_is_your_superpower?language=en in-depth article on all things sleep
https://bengreenfieldfitness.com/article/sleep-articles/increase-deep-sleep/ Find out your Sleep Chronotype with this quiz
https://thepowerofwhenquiz.com/