LIGHTEN UP!

We all know that exercise releases endorphins. We all know that endorphins make us feel good. And while the days are getting longer, it’s still dark for a lot of the time. And the darker days can make us feel a bit gloomy. So, how can we get those endorphins going without leaving the cosiness of our homes?

The simplest thing to do is just get up out of your chair. If you’re playing/working on a laptop or tablet, try putting the device onto the kitchen work top and standing up while you’re working. You can even walk on the spot while you’re surfing the internet trying to work out which socks to buy someone for Christmas.

Or try the following:

• Rolling your shoulders around – it’s easy, free and generally painless, so what’s stopping you from doing it?
• High knee walking on the spot. Or if walking is too easy and you’ve got no injuries try high knee running. If you’re feeling really enthusiastic do 10 star jumps.
• Belly dancing wriggles. Don’t laugh! Belly dancing and hula hooping are great ways to get your body moving after you’ve been watching TV for an hour.
• Dancing. Any form of dancing is good movement. Try the Charleston in your sitting room, or some disco in the kitchen. Go on, get up out of your chair right now and have a little dance, I dare you!

All of these things are easy to do, and by releasing some exercise endorphins, who knows, you might just reduce the Winter gloominess that so many of us battle with at this time of year.