Improve your mental health

Would you like to improve your mental health? We’ll show you how you can make improvements to your health and fitness to improve your mental health.

Mental health is extremely prevalent in the news these days. The BBC website has a page dedicated to it. And at the current time, with everyone stuck at home due to the coronavirus crisis, it’s easy for your mental health to deteriorate. To be clear, in this post, poor mental health does not refer to diseases such as Alzheimer’s or dementia. Here we’re talking about anxiety, low self-esteem, unhappiness, pessimism, negativity and so on.

If you follow the above link now, during the coronavirus outbreak, you’ll notice something about the stories. A lot of them are of private personal trainers in Northampton” giving tips on how to stay active while you’re stuck at home. Mental health… fitness. It’s not a link that immediately springs to mind.

But the authors of that page obviously recognise the clear link between mental health and exercise. In this post we review the benefits of exercise on your mental health. We also show you how the service we provide, which is a lot more than just exercise, provides additional benefits to your mental health.

What do we do over and above exercise? Well, we

• Are hands on 1-1.
• Provide food coaching.
• Provide support away from the training studio.
• Focus on getting results.
• Have a private studio

As you’ll see from the customer quotes, we have a lot of clients whose mental health has been improved by our approach.

We’ve categorised the benefits to mental health by choosing some words! There’s a section on each word, in alphabetical order.

Achievement

First up and this one happens to be me all over. A lot of what drives me is my desire to achieve great things before I pop me clogs. With achievement comes a sense of pride, a sense of satisfaction. Achieving something is a fist pump moment.

But achieving things doesn’t just happen. You have to work hard at it, you have to be determined and you have to persevere. And so it is with our clients. They’ve had to work hard to achieve what they’ve achieved. And that’s perfect because it instils the idea that if you work hard and you persevere, you can achieve great things. It teaches you not to give up at the first hurdle. And that’ll definitely improve your mental health.

Here are a couple of client quotes:

“The biggest thing I can take back from this is the sense of achievement.”

“Admiring what I’d actually managed to achieve… that’s probably the best feeling I’ve had.”

You see I’m not the only one who is driven by wanting to achieve things!

Calming

A lot of you have stressful jobs. Stressful lives. Coming to exercise helps to release some of that stress. But some gyms, with their crowds and noise, can add to the stress! We have a private studio where you’ll only ever find a handful of people at any one time. That makes the space calming.

But we also oversee very focused sessions. It’s not like an exercise class where it’s all frenetic and you copy the instructor. In our sessions you get 1-1 attention, with structured sessions, taking each exercise one at a time, with cues, in a very structured and focused way. It’s calm! Even though it can be intense, it’s also calm. It’s quiet, it’s spacious, it’s focused, it’s calm.

“You guys keep me calm and sane amidst all the chaos! X.”

Eating disorders

You may not have been expecting this one, but eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia and binge eating are considered mental health issues.

How can we help with that? Because we teach you about food. We show you which foods will help sustain you and avoid energy highs and lows. We help you understand the difference between high calorie low nutrient intake and low-calorie high nutrient intake. And we help you adopt a structured eating regime with regular, moderate calorie intake.

Often these eating disorders are accompanied by, and fuelled by, other mental health issues. As you can see from this post, we help with those too, having a knock-on effect to help eating disorders.

“Just been discharged from the eating disorders team after approx 7 years. Feel strange but positive x.”

Energy

This isn’t strictly a mental health issue but bear with me.

If you’re having sugar highs and lows all day then you’re going to get energy highs and lows. Accompanying this will be highs and lows in your brain chemistry. An example of this is being ‘hangry’. Others may find they feel low when their blood sugar is low, depressed even. Keep your blood sugar on an even keel and you’ll keep both your energy and your brain chemistry on an even keel. You’ll be less likely to have bouts of negativity.

But there’s more than that. Good, nutrient rich healthy food is good for your brain and it’s good for your body. Healthy body, healthy brain, healthy mind. In short, improve your mental health with good tucker! We previously wrote a whole blog on the topic of food and mental health.

You’ll see from our customers that energy and positivity are closely associated with each other:

“My energy levels have been incredible; I’m feeling a lot more positive both inside and out.”

“I am very happy, I feel better, I feel like I have more energy, it’s great, I really like it.”

Happiness

You’ve all heard of endorphins! We feel it’s our duty to ensure clients leave the studio pumped full of endorphins.

But our clients don’t mention that. It’s a given. What they talk about is how their results have made them happy or how they just have a better sense of well-being and happiness.

The second quote in the previous section is one example, but here are two more

“You’ve believed in me so I could believe in myself. I’ve taken away a happier self, and the tools to live a healthier life.”

“When I lost the first stone… the feeling was… I can’t tell you! Emotional, euphoric, amazing!”

Mental fortitude

Ok, so it’s two words. Determination. How about that?

This is a really important benefit in my view. We see a lot of clients, when they first start, lack staying power. They lack willpower. They give up too easily. That’s a recipe for underachieving, developing low self esteem and feeling miserable about it.

When our clients first start lifting weights they often end the set when they’ve had enough. They make the decision despite our cues. That point is generally several reps short of what they are capable of. They stop when they approach the edge of their comfort zone but they fear going outside it. They stop before they get there.

We’ll teach you to push on to the end. Push on until you’re well outside your comfort zone, until you physically can’t do any more. And we’ll do it on every exercise and in every workout. We get you used to that. Being outside your comfort zone becomes familiar territory. That’s great for mental fortitude. And it’s a great way to help you improve your mental health.

But pushing to your maximum capability is also the only way to make progress. And with progress comes achievement. Again, it’s that association between effort, determination, perseverance and achievement. Pushing yourself builds that connection. It builds confidence that you can achieve great things and it builds a good work ethic.

None of the people in these quotes believed in themselves before their programmes. They all completed with greater determination and staying power:

“If you are focused, determined, self-disciplined and committed, and with the expert support and advice of this programme, then you can achieve the impossible.”

“It’s just been incredible some of the things I find myself doing. I’m the most surprised person of all.”

“He has gone out of his way to respect my trepidation about doing things that I fear might end up hurting – but has pushed me to go further… and I am amazed at what I have been able to achieve.”

“Admiring what I’d actually managed to achieve… that’s probably the best feeling I’ve had.”

Mojo

If you search for mojo you’ll find this: ‘a quality that attracts people to you and makes you successful and full of energy’. A lot of our clients use the word. When they tell us they have lost their mojo they mean they have lost enthusiasm for life, they don’t like who they have become and how they feel. They’ve lost their spirit, their joie de vivre.

Investing in one of our programmes will always get you results. And that may be enough to find your mojo again. But for others the programme provides a new focus, a new hobby and new habit that they want to continue and which helps them feel good about life again.

Here’s what our clients have said:

“I’ve taken away from the programme… me. I’ve got me back, and I think that’s a massive thing.”

“A new me… that’s what’s come out of it.”

“I’ve found my mojo again!”

“I’ve taken me away from the programme. A new me.”

Positivity

I like this word. Growing up, I was exposed to a lot of negativity. It’s an ingrained and sometimes automatic response that I have been fighting all my adult life. I’ll never be infectiously positive, but I think I do a much better job at energising others rather than de-energising through negativity.

I guess what I’m saying is that I appreciate positivity and the benefits it brings for mental health.

And I’m pleased to say that our programmes create positivity in many ways. When you get a PB in your favourite lift… a fist pump of positivity. When you see your latest ‘after’ photo and compare to the old you… positivity. When you do something you never thought you were capable of… positivity.

Here’s a selection of positive words from our clients:

“Ok cool.  I’m excited about all this!!!! I have been inspired today and went for a half hour walk, about 3600 steps!!!!! And I’ve been more energised and motivated this pm.”

“My energy levels have been incredible; I’m feeling a lot more positive both inside and out.”

“Knee wasn’t happy to relax when I was trying to sleep last night but all good today. No crutches and just walking stick if I have to walk any great distance just in case. Thank you for yesterday it made me feel much more positive. Thank you for being there and boosting me physically and mentally xx.“

“When I lost the first stone… the feeling was… I can’t tell you! Emotional, euphoric, amazing!”

“I like your advice….a balance of acceptance of what is (on rest days) and of celebration of what is possible (on active days). Sounds like an excellent glass half full way of looking at things. Thank you x.”

Sanity

I know that strictly speaking, sanity is the opposite of insanity, which is very much associated with diseases like dementia, say. But in this context our clients are talking about beating stress, chaos and a feeling of being overwhelmed. It’s like the calming effect we discussed earlier.

Here’s the social proof:

“Little achy but in a good way! Thanks so much for still seeing me amidst all the virus chaos! You do wonders for my mental health x.”

“Doing the training with you is keeping me sane in these crazy times!”

“You guys keep me calm and sane amidst all the chaos! X.”

These are all coronavirus related. You can imagine what effect it’s having on people’s mental health! And I’d just like to point out that these quotes came before the current restrictions, so we haven’t put anyone at risk, don’t worry!

Self

This is a big section! And it covers a lot, so let’s break it down.

Self-belief

This is a biggie. So many people lack self-belief. They doubt that they can achieve something they really want. So much so that they don’t try. They’d rather not try than to make a start and fail. They don’t believe in themselves.

With our guidance, support and encouragement, you’ll achieve your goals. We often have a better sense of what you are capable of than you do. You’ll find yourself doing things you never dreamed of. You’ll discover that you can achieve! And you’ll walk away with self-belief that you can carry forward for the rest of your life.

Here’s what our clients had to say:

“It’s just been incredible some of the things I find myself doing. I’m the most surprised person of all.”

“I achieved my greater fitness, a better belief in myself, that I could actually do it. There was a lot of apprehension in starting the programme because it was something that was totally alien to me. It’s given me the confidence now to go on to actually try more fitness.”

“I did much more than I expected to do, I didn’t believe in myself this much.”

“He instils belief.”

Self-confidence

Without exception, all our clients finish their programmes with improved confidence.

Sometimes this is because they feel they have the confidence to try things without fear of failure. But, just as often, it’s because they feel better about how they look. They have the confidence to wear the clothes that they actually want to wear.

“I walk from the [Life Force Fitness Studio] door to the car and feel smug, …..I feel like I can conquer the world….at that moment I’m quite invincible.”

“You completely gave me the confidence and gave me the support to not be concerned about going forwards. The support was great.”

“Not only have you helped her physically, but also mentally.”

“The self confidence boost this has given me too…. I’m more happy in my own skin.”

“I am so much more confident in myself, can wear my shirts again and am getting up early mornings to exercise regularly too!”

Self-esteem

This one is often seen as the most important driver of mental health issues. Improve your self esteem, improve your mental health. For many of our clients, when they first come to us, self-esteem is low. They don’t love themselves. They don’t respect themselves. But they are stuck in a rut and don’t know how to get out of it.

We help you lose weight. We help you succeed where you might previously have failed, or not even had a go. You’ll adopt new habits and create a new lifestyle for yourself. That will help you maintain your weight, your health and your self-esteem.

Here are some of the things our clients said:

“We both really appreciate what both you and Sam are doing for us and we consider this as a life changing event for both of us. Tracy says it’s the best thing she has ever done and she can’t describe how she feels about herself now.”

“I’ve achieved a body but I’ve also achieved a lot of balance in my mind – I now walk like I deserve to be on the planet.”

“A new me… that’s what’s come out of it.”

“I walk from the [Life Force Fitness Studio] door to the car and feel smug, …..I feel like I can conquer the world….at that moment I’m quite invincible.”

“The support has been physical, mental and spiritual almost.”

“I’ve taken me away from the programme. A new me.”

Well-being

Look this word up and you’ll see it is ‘the state of being comfortable, happy or healthy’. Or how about all three? It’s a general sense of being well, being content.

That’s a natural consequence of exercising and eating healthy food. You feel better! You feel fit, well, more energetic, happier. And with our programmes that’s not transient, it’s permanent. We help you adopt a new lifestyle so you can have the feeling of well-being for life.

“I feel great and I’ll be eternally grateful to Life Force Fitness for the support they have given me.”

“Although I’ve had personal training before as a member of a gym, this is really very different, more focused. The well-being improvement has been tremendous.”

“You’ve been a life saver for me Xx!”

“Thank you so much for today it’s made me feel so much better in myself 😊.”

Support

Yes, you’ve spotted it…. this is out of order, not alphabetical. That’s because it’s not a word that our clients can attribute to themselves, so I’ve tagged it on the end. But support is something we’re good at. And it’ll help you make the changes you need to make. It will help you get through the challenges. It’ll help improve your mental health.

This level of care and support is something you rarely get with other providers of health and fitness. We listen to grumbles in your session. We take your calls and texts outside of the gym. And we provide guidance on random topics through email, weekly reports and monthly check-ins. And our clients really appreciate it:

“Just remember you’re a fantastic fabulous person I wouldn’t have made through the last 18 months without your help 😘xxx”

“If you are focused, determined, self-disciplined and committed, and with the expert support and advice of this programme, then you can achieve the impossible.”

“Hi Sam, just wanted to say a big thank you for today you are such a great support for me physically and psychologically and you are an amazing person 😘.”

“Thanks for your encouragement.  I know I’m not the best person you have to train!  Feeling lucky today so bought a lottery ticket!  Have a good weekend. X”

“Thank you so much for today it’s made me feel so much better in myself 😊”

Summary

A full private programme with Life Force Fitness will help your mental health in so many ways. It isn’t just the exercise. It’s also the success and the ability to succeed, to push outside your comfort zone. It’s the support and the achievement.

With the current crisis and the restrictions it brings, we can’t offer a full programme. But just exercising will bring a bucket load of well-being. If you do anything during this crisis, exercise. Get yourself puffing, release those endorphins and experience a much greater sense of well-being.

When the restrictions are over, if your mental health is in tatters, come and see us and we’ll help restore it.