I thought I’d share this from BBC News, five ways to stay positive through the winter
1 Get Moving
It is vital for your mental health to keep active. It can be difficult in winter but even short periods – ten minutes – can help. You need to get slightly out of breath but a brisk walk, run, energetic tidy of your winter garden will do the job!
2 Stop over-thinking
Adopt habits that help you stop dwelling on problems and going over the same negative thoughts. One trick is to shift your focus from worries to practical problem solving. This could mean some physical activity to help adjust mental gears. Worrying is normal but a study showed that only around 1 tenth of our worries actually materialised into real problems!! Try to recognise you’re over thinking and focus on something else instead.
3 Set a new target
Having something positive to focus on can really help. Learning something new a language or a new skill is one of the best ways to help your mood. If learning to play the piano feels a bit much then start by trying out a new recipe. It doesn’t have to be a big project to help.
4 Talk it over
This year has forced us to be more isolated than is good for us. Maximise the little social contact that is available, a walk or run with friends (within the guidelines) can really work wonders. If you can’t get out then reach out with the phone or online. Choose folks who help!
5 Do it Badly
Cultivate optimism and part of this can be the principle of ‘do it badly’! Some of us wait to do things until we can do them perfectly so on a winter night we might put something off. Accept that almost always doing something is better than doing nothing and jump in and get on with it! Write down three things each day that you are grateful for, focus on what’s gone well and why and it can help to fire up the positive side of your brain.
Keep well SE Fitness xx
