Joe Wicks on the importance of exercise on mental health | Mental Wellbeing Season – BBC

Joe Wicks on the importance of exercise on mental health | Mental Wellbeing Season – BBC

hello I’m Joe Wix and I’m on a mission to help people feel good look after themselves and really take care of their mental health I’m really proud to be involved in the BBC’s mental well-being season because it’s something I’m so passionate about you know I obviously do a lot in the movement space and with the cooking and nutrition but underlying everything really is mental health as a kid I do remember having a lot of anxiety in my body and a lot of kind of fear and stress around my dad being being a drug addict it was very unstable so one minute he was there then he wasn’t um my mom also had eating disorders and OCD around cleaning so it was quite a confrontational home life that manifested um inside my body and the only way I could release it was through physical exercise so I learned when I ran or did some kind of exercise and you know sport in school I was really able to control my emotions and regulate how I felt cuz what I realized about myself is that my mom and dad had their mental health issues going on and it was like a secret that no one talked about but it was affecting me so much so when one person is struggling with their mental health it affects the whole family and so I always think if I can get a child talking or a parent talking or someone communicating better actually everyone benefits from it and if one person starts exercising or one person falls in love with nutrition and cooking it can really Elevate the whole family I called it the F good challenge CU I really want you to tap into how exercise makes you feel you can get through life on a really unhealthy diet with zero exercise but you’re not thriving and to take care of your mental health you’ve got to be taking care of your physical health they’re so interl I think sometimes it comes down to the basic things are the small little daily winds which I always come back to which is you know sleep movement and putting good food in our bodies I’m always going to be someone that Champions exercise and movement last 15 fast but of course for some people they’re not going to be able to do like a hit workout or a really intense strength training session but the truth is all movement is good for you even the most gentle of walks or doing a bit stretching even some chair based exercise you know just moving and it’s just about finding what works for you little bit you know here and there focus on that small daily winds mentality it doesn’t have to be like a really long intense hour of exercise I think the easiest and most basic way of introducing physical exercise and movement into your life is by walking more you know a lot of people we jump on the bus we get the train like if you can do a bit more walking it’s a it’s a great way of just you know burning some energy making you feel good and if you can do it outside as well I you know getting fresh air and being in the sunlight I think it’s also really important for our mental health I’m also a big fan and kind of proponent of home workouts because I believe that with your body and no equipment in a tiny little space you can actually get yourself moving you can raise your heart rate you can build some strength don’t feel pressure to have a really expensive gym membership or a personal training you know that’s not accessible to most people whereas actually you know jumping on a YouTube video or something or doing a work at home in your living room is really achievable and you can do 10 minutes or 20 minutes it’s done you can do it in your underwear you know do it when the TV’s on go for breakfast and you’re off to work and you’ve done it so there’s loads of ways of incorporating movement into your life I think one thing I’d like to say to anyone out there struggling is you know really lean on this BBC mental well-being season look out for the content because some of the convers ation that had could really help you could be like little light bu moment to really help you on your journey so um yeah I really hope it’s beneficial and supports you and I wish you the best of luck

Fitness coach Joe Wicks (@TheBodyCoachTV) explains why he believes mental and physical health are so intertwined – and shares tips for boosting your mood through movement.

This May, the BBC will bring you documentaries, videos, podcasts and programmes that explore what you can do to look after your mental health and wellbeing – and where to go for further support. Discover more at https://www.bbc.co.uk/topics/c3gv154y89wt

#MentalHealth #iPlayer

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