Health and fitness at YSJ
How I manage my fitness as a disabled student
Fitness can be difficult to keep up- especially during busy weeks, workdays and assignment seasons. I am someone who has struggled to maintain their physical health while I have been at university. I have various chronic illnesses that make it very difficult for me to manage physical activity on top of my studies and personal work. This is where my love for yoga comes in; and, in turn, how YSJ has helped me to fit this into my schedule.
YSJActive is the sport and recreation community located primarily in the Foss building on campus. They offer inclusive sport, exercise and well-being opportunities of any kind, including different types of yoga- which is what I became most interested in during my first year of university. Yoga has a range of physical and mental health benefits- such as strength training, flexibility and balance; increased energy levels; improvements to mood and stress management. All of these seemed extremely helpful to me as a disabled student, as they are the things I struggle to maintain the most.
There were various sessions available, but I personally enjoyed evening classes at 5pm, as I could fit them in after my lectures. You may take your own equipment, but it is not needed; mats, blocks and extra equipment are always available to borrow for free. In my experience, the classes were a wonderful way to ease into fitness again without stress or intensity. The leaders of the class are lovely and welcoming, and it is open to people of all experience levels. I am definitely still not the most flexible, but there is no pressure- the classes offer lots of accommodations to movement should you need it.
As an addition to yoga classes, there are plenty of green spaces around campus that are amazing for runs and walks. I love the YSJ campus for this reason. Despite now living in a city, the campus spaces have allowed me to connect more with nature while I am exercising, which helps with my motivation on a daily basis. It is so nice to walk to campus and see green everywhere!
In addition to fitness, mental health support has been a key part of managing my health over the last three years. At YSJ, the Wellbeing drop in support has been an amazing way to keep my mental health in check whilst carrying on with my fitness routines. I just self refer using the online form, and drop in whenever I need some extra guidance. You can find the resources you need on the Wellbeing and Welfare page of the YSJ website; everybody is different, and they have options for all experiences, which is really great. Balancing both my physical and mental health has honestly never been easier, and it puts my mind at ease knowing that I have these options available to me. If I could go back and tell my past self, who was so terrified of starting university as a disabled student, that everything would be okay, it would have been a massive reassurance, and I hope that is is for you too!