Getting Started
Starting university is a very new and incredible experience for many people. It may the first time you move away from home, do your own laundry, and cook your own meals. You can begin to explore a new found freedom where you can truly dictate what you do and when you do it for the first time as a young adult. University can also be a stressful time of transition, where you are adapting to unfamiliar surroundings and a new way of living.
With all this occurring, it’s very important to take care of your physical and mental health. Having a regular regime of physical exercise can help improve your physical fitness, give you a more rigid schedule, increase your motivation towards tasks and goals, and improve your mental state through the release of different hormones. These are incredible benefits when you consider the only trade off is you might get a little sweaty.
Many people don’t really know where to start with physical exercise and there is a negative stigma around certain areas of the fitness world such as the “gym bro” culture which can be very daunting to first time gym goers. Even as an experienced trainer and former student-athlete I still have negative associations with gyms, so you’re definitely not alone if you feel this way. The aim of my blog is to give you a few helpful tips on way to stay healthy while at university that avoid the mentality of attending a gym and lifting heavy weights (although, for the record, this isn’t a bad way to stay in shape, but it certainly isn’t everyone’s cup of tea). From home workouts to playing sports, there are so many ways to improve your physical health, so if you don’t like one method, try something new and see how that goes. You may discover your new favourite hobby.
Sports
Okay. So let’s start with the overly obvious example that pops up at a university. Sport! For a lot of universities, sport is everywhere. You can avoid it. It plays a massive part in many people’s university experience, creating social circles or hosting charity events to attend. And you might be thinking, “well I’m not very sporty…” or “I didn’t do GCSE P.E” but none of that really matters in university sport. There are sports you may have never heard of and spaces for people of all abilities.
Most sports teams play in a league against other universities called BUCS. BUCS has different tiers, with many universities entering multiple teams, some for people to be competitive and other for more casual players. Many sports are very casual and just play friendly games or have regular training. Badminton is an outstanding example of a sport that incorporates people of different abilities and let’s them play at their own level. You don’t have to run long distances with badminton but you can really work up a sweat with the quick, short burst movements required to play. If you’re not sure what sport to try, sign up to as many as you can to start with. Most reams hold taster sessions for new students at the start of the year. Try a few tasters to help decide which sport is for you.
Yoga
But maybe sport just isn’t for you and you prefer to exercise in peace. If this is the case, Yoga can be a great alternative. Yoga comes from ancient Indian disciplines that focus on strength flexibility and breathing that can enhance your physical fitness and mental wellbeing. Many people have preconceptions of what yoga is and how it is taught, but at its core, it is learning to breathe through movements. This is something you can do by yourself at home. It can be incredibly relaxing while also being physically taxing enough that your body and mind will benefit. There are many apps you can download to learn Yoga techniques or you could take a Yoga class and be taught by an experienced instructor. Either way, you will be able to take part in exercises and dynamic stretches that can increase your strength and flexibility, something that can reduce your risk of musculoskeletal injury. Yoga can be a great way to start your day and get your blood flowing as you wake up, which can help with cognitive function. Try performing a Surya Namaskar, a sequence of twelve exercises that form a fun and intense workout.
Jogging
Something else you might want to try is power walking or jogging. Now going for a jog to keep fit seems obvious and tedious, while power walking feels very 1980’s, but I’m not talking about putting on bright coloured lycra and leg warmers. There are different ways to make running a little more interesting. You can always join a park run which gives you a set time for exercise (we’re more likely to adhere to exercise if it’s scheduled in), it gives you a set distance to run to create goals to beat and it can be a very social experience by running with other like minded individuals. Park runs are often in scenic areas, making for fun runs that certainly beat running on a treadmill at a gym while staring into a mirror.
If continuous running feels monotonous, then try interval running instead. Interval training is incredibly popular and you’ve probably heard it referred to as HIIT or high intensity interval training, which is heavily associated with sports like crossfit. But interval training doesn’t have to be all out insanity, it can be a lot more relaxing if you like. Interval training, simply put, is training at multiple intensities at different times or “intervals”. With running, that means you might rotate between walking, a slow jog and a fast jog. You could hold each interval for 30 seconds, or a minute, or whatever you are comfortable with and repeat the process for as long as you like. Interval training allows you to train different ranges of your cardiovascular system, meaning you will be better able to work harder at different speeds instead of just one speed. It also breaks up the repetitive beat of steady pace running.
Final Advice
On top of these exercise methods you could always join a fitness class, most universities will host their own. You have lots of options here. From circuits to zumba, feel free to try something different. Try to exercise a couple times a week but don’t worry about working out every single day, you’ll burn yourself out and not have enough energy for other things. My best advice would be to always throw yourself into whatever you try and try it for a couple weeks before you make a decision to commit. You may try running and not enjoy it the first time, but go back for a few weeks and see how your feelings change. Trying something new is the first step to creating a new, healthy you.