Movement for Good is month-long challenge that aims to inspire people to get active every day.
We all know that moving is important for our health and wellbeing, but putting it into practice can be hard. Our lives have never been more busy - balancing work, family life, household chores and a whole host of other commitments. This means that exercise often falls to the bottom of our to do list.
As physcial activity experts, Edinburgh Leisure have created this challenge as part of our commitment to keeping people active and well. It's designed to give participants a period of focus where they start to makie small consistent changes by being active every day throughout May. This is the start of forming healthy habits so that regular activity becomes part of their daily routine and they build motivation to stay active because they feel good.
Participants are dialing up the GOOD by raising sponsorship to support more people who need a bit more help to be active through Edinburgh Leisure's Active Communities programme, so they too can experience the benefits of an active life.
People like 46 year old Scott, who took part in the Active Communities project - Healthy Active Minds, which supports over 700 people affected by stress, anxiety, depression and low mood each year. Scott says:
I've suffered with depression on and off for over twenty years, but recently I had one of the worst bouts I can remember. I was very low. I heard about Healthy Active Minds, and asked my GP to refer me. A few weeks later, I met my instructor at the gym, she made me feel at ease right away. We had a chat about my goals, set out an exercise programme, then met once a week which gave me something to focus on. Between appointments, I felt confident enough to come on my own knowing I could ask any of the staff for pointers. Since beginning Healthy Active Minds, Ive been able to reduce my medication. I dont pretend that everything is rosy, but the bad days are not as frequent. I'm already having to wear my belt a little tighter, I feel fitter, and people have said I'm looking better too. For me, feeling sociable again is really important and I'm looking forward to palying five-a-side with my pals again. I would encourage anyone who is feeling low to give it a go and get support from the Active Communities team at Edinburgh Leisure".
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