A recent article in The Times concluded that over half of the UK female population do not undertake any form of daily exercise.
The study referenced in the article questioned a group of over 8,000 women. Its main observation was that COVID restrictions and lockdown fatigue caused many women to stop exercising altogether over the past two years.
The lack of social interaction and reduced access to training facilities caused by the pandemic had a significant impact in lowering levels of motivation to exercise. Another factor that is hugely important was the change in peoples’ daily habits and routines. The two pillars to achieving successful results in any health & wellness programme are daily habits and routines. These two elements create long-term consistency which then generates the desired results.
If you are currently struggling with the motivation to exercise then here are my top tips to get you back at it!
1. Find a training partner – This is a great way to create accountability, support, and enthusiasm. It could be something as simple as going for a daily walk together at a set time of day. Training with a friend should hopefully make exercising a little more fun!
2. Join a club – This can be any type of club that you think you may enjoy that has exercise at the forefront of its agenda! There is a club for everything these days, for example, weightlifting, cycling, running, tennis, football, and touch rugby. These types of clubs can promote a sense of community which is something that has been lacking for many over the last two years.
3. Start your day with a 15-20 minute walk – In my opinion, this is one of the most simple yet powerful things you can do to create a more positive mindset toward exercise. What I love about this is that anyone and everyone can do it. It also requires little time and no equipment.
4. Sign up for a class – There are so many physical group training classes available and the great thing about these is that most will offer at least the first session for free. Don’t be afraid to trial a few before finding what’s right for you.
Apps such as Mindbody will show a list of available classes in your desired area and for your chosen goal. Pilates, yoga, cardio, interval, and weight training are just some examples. I have tried many classes around London and I always enjoy the group camaraderie and simplicity of not having to think about my session format.
5. Take a 15-20 minute evening stroll – Adding this on top of your morning walk is a very simple way of increasing your overall step count for the day, ultimately helping you burn more calories. The morning walk is very effective at energising you for the rest of the day, whilst the evening walk helps calm you down to aid deeper, more restful sleep. For anyone looking to create a more positive mindset around exercise, I find the morning and evening walks to be extremely effective.
Over the coming weeks, I will be looking in greater detail at the benefits of all forms of training for women. There is a lot of misinformation out there and I hope to dispel some myths about weight-training and high intensity interval training (HIIT).
Two other areas of confusion many women face when it comes to fitness are:
1. How to adapt training effectively around the menstrual cycle
2. The benefits of all forms of training when going through menopause
Both of these topics are considered somewhat taboo, however, I feel that these subjects should be talked about more often and with more reliable information. Which is why we will publish two separate articles that will cover these topics in depth.
The COACH LONDON team would like to use this opportunity to inspire women to take up some form of exercise by offering non-members the opportunity to trial the club using a special seven-day pass. This will allow for the use of the gym facilities, along with access to the many classes available, and will also include an introductory consultation with a member of the coaching team to discuss any questions you may have.
For more information or to book your pass please call us on +44 (0) 207 315 4260 or email info@coachlondon.uk quoting reference CL-SN-22. Please be advised that this offer is valid until September 30th, 2022.
Written by Mark Roper, Head of Education and Principal Coach at COACH LONDON.