Be active! It will boost your wellbeing

One of the six ways to wellbeing involves being active. Being active is a great way to maintain your physical and mental health. I find it a great way of improving all aspects of life, including motivation to get out of bed and do things such as revise or go to work. I find going for a run or even just going for a walk really helps to clear your mind.

Being active: how and why?

From my previous experience, being lazy and spending all day at home doesn’t help you to achieve much in the day and generally makes you feel a bit down. Being active is a great way to improve your health. Even if this means running errands or doing homework, or even helping a friend out with their own work. You’ll feel like you are achieving something and ticking something off your list, which is a great feeling at the end of the day.

I have found that joining the gym or joining a sports society at university has helped me, not only in my levels of physical activity, but also in my social life as I’ve met a lot of people along the way. This has been a great change in my life because it’s helped me to make friends and be healthy and active at the same time, which is a great combination for a wellbeing boost!

The science behind being active

Being active helps your brain to release two types of chemicals that enhance your mood in a positive way while you exercise: endorphins and serotonin. Being active also helps you get fit and in shape, and reduces the risk of illnesses such as dementia, obesity, heart and lung disease and some types of cancers.

Support from the wellbeing champions

In my case, I joined the wellbeing champions group because I wanted to feel better about myself, physically and mentally. Being surrounded by people with similar mentality, who want to either become a better person or just simply change their lifestyle and commit to a healthy diet or work out routine, has helped me see the world in a bigger picture: there is always space for improvement, there is always space to improve your physical and mental health, which is a key aspect of taking care of your wellbeing.

Small changes have the biggest impact

Being physically active improves our wellbeing in ways that may not spring to mind at first. It promotes calmness in the body and helps to boost our overall wellbeing. So, if you can and you decide to make a change, be active. By joining a sports society at university or by just going for a run once a week, the small changes are the ones that make most difference in your life.

Written by Student Wellbeing Champion, Anji Dodani.