It’s a truth universally acknowledged that when your family gets a week off to spend together, at least one of you will get ill. That’s what happened to our family this week. Ross and I both took the week off work and Leo came down with a cold. I put on my out of office last Thursday evening and by Friday morning I had Leo at the GP surgery to get checked over. He is fine, and it really is just a cold, but the poor wee guy is out of sorts. On Monday, I woke up with a blocked nose and scratchy throat, and so it continued.
Just like the physical strains begin to show when you get some downtime, so do the psychological effects of needing a break. I found myself a bit tetchy this week. Not feeling 100% and looking after Leo who is less contented than usual was taking its toll and something else had upset me. Something that might not usually make me react emotionally, but I was more vulnerable than usual.
I took a course of action when I realised this. I cancelled a non-essential event I had planned – it needed me to be in a positive frame of mind and I wasn’t. I invited a friend around. We had a takeaway for dinner and a great conversation with plenty of laughs. I continued with my plans for Leo. I made sure I got to the gym. The what, now?
That’s right. The gym is about feeling better. Not punishment for eating bad food. Not for losing a dress size. Not because ‘I paid for it, so I better use it’. The gym is somewhere I go because I know it makes me better – physically and mentally. Physically I am becoming stronger and leaner. Mentally I am popping those bubbles of anxiety that arise much more quickly. Blasting through a physical workout releases so much tension and gives you a real feeling of achievement. Those endorphins really are amazing and after a session with Lynn, I am put back together again and ready for anything.
I wanted to share what is on the walls of the Better: Gen Centre because it is so unlike any other gym I have been to where there are mirrors, cheesy quotes or images of slim and attractive people. I don’t really find any of that motivational. At Better: Gen you are surrounded by messages of positivity and evidence of how inclusive and impactful it really is. Lynn’s motivation is improving the wellbeing of her clients and groups and her understanding of the connection between physical activity and both physical and mental health makes her work effective. Her dedication to removing barriers for people to achieve better health makes her work more than effective, it’s transformative. It’s transforming me.
Nicola Donnelly 