Sports / Exercise Archives - Andy D’Addario, LPC

February 1, 2021 by Andy D'Addario

At Home Family Physical Fitness Ideas (during COVID-19 and beyond)

As many families continue to shelter in place together, they are finding it challenging to beat the stress and stay in shape. Exercising as a family is one-way families can accomplish both of these goals! And the good news is, there are plenty of ways families can exercise without the need of going to a public gym.

Make Fitness a Game

Take a pack of regular playing cards and turn them into fitness cards. Hearts stand for crunches, clubs push-ups, diamonds for squats, and spades for jumping jacks (or any other exercises you may want to substitute). Have each player take turns selecting a card and doing the activity. So for instance, if someone draws the five of hearts, they need to do 5 crunches.

Go for a Bike Ride

Strap on your helmets, hop on your bikes and take the kids for a nice bike ride around the neighborhood. You can also decide to bike to the library or to the park for a picnic. Just be sure to pick a route that is safe and isn’t too much effort for your child.

Have a Dance Party!

Decorate your living room with a disco ball or other fun string lights, turn on some good tunes, and have a dance party. You can even choose to record yourselves and share your dance party with others on Youtube.

Play Classic Outdoor Games

Chances are over the years your kids have begged you to play certain games like hide-and-seek or kickball. Now is the time to embrace these requests and head outside for some family fun. There is also tag, jump rope, dodgeball, and kick the can.

A Timed Scavenger Hunt

This game will get everyone moving to get some aerobic exercise. Take turns and split the family up into 2 teams. Team A will start by hiding objects around the house or yard. Then team B has 10 minutes to find them all. This means they’ve got to really RUN around looking for all of them. Then swap so Team B hides items and team A has to find them. The team that finds the most items wins and doesn’t have to do the dishes that week.

Go for a Family Walk

Walking is such a great form of exercise and an equally great way for families to connect. Try and build walking into your daily schedule. Maybe after dinner take everyone out for a walk around the neighborhood. If you have dogs, take them, too!

These are just a few ideas you can try with your own family. Get creative to come up with some ideas of your own. While Covid has definitely made our lives more stressful and challenging, the silver lining is that it has helped many of us reconnect with our families. Take this time to do the same and stay fit at the same time.

SOURCES:

October 15, 2020 by Andy D'Addario

4 Stay-Fit Tips for People Who Hate Exercise

Hate exercising? You’re definitely not alone.

It seems that each year, millions of people around the country start off with good intentions, committing to an exercise plan, only to quit completely a few weeks later.

Look, we understand, exercising is not easy. It’s hard work, but it’s hard work that’s really important for your health and overall well-being. And we want to make sure the next time you commit to an exercise plan, you STAY committed.

So, with that in mind, here are 4 tips that will help you stay fit, even when you hate exercise:

Tip #1: Have Fun

No one says you have to go to the gym 5 days a week and do circuit training. If you hate going to the gym, then find something you actually enjoy doing. Do you like swimming? Hiking? Kayaking? Dancing? Playing basketball? There are PLENTY of ways you can get your body moving, condition your heart while building some lean muscle. Find something you love to do and you’ll actually do it more.

Tip #2: Give Yourself Some Time

The science is out and it says that it takes roughly 30 days for a human being to form a new habit. So you can expect that days 1-29 are going to be challenging to ensure you work out. That’s okay. Just be sure to give yourself adequate time to allow this new habit to form. If you do, you’ll find it does indeed get easier to incorporate exercise into your life.

Tip #3: Build Exercise into Your Daily Life

Some people will swear until they are blue in the face that “they just don’t have time for exercising.” Well, you can easily make time if you build exercise into your life. For instance, if you try and spend time with the family each day, why not get the family to go on a family bike ride after dinner?

If you need to spend an hour each day reading through student papers, why not read through them while on the stationary bike? There are ways you can kill 2 birds with one proverbial stone, so look for ways to do it in your own life.

Tip #4: Take Baby Steps

Too many people make HUGE goals that are simply unrealistic. For example, someone may make a goal to lose 40 pounds in 3 months. Well, that’s not only unrealistic, but it’s also not even healthy.

Someone else may have a goal of running a marathon in 3 months. Well, if you’ve never run a day in your life, that’s also not very realistic.

When starting out, set small goals that you can easily achieve. As an example, your first goal may be to consistently swim for half an hour, three days a week for one month. That’s very doable. And when you reach a goal, it gives you confidence in your abilities and energy to keep going and reach even more goals.

If you follow these 4 tips, you will be able to stick to an exercise plan and see positive results from your efforts. Who knows? You may even learn to LIKE exercising.

SOURCES:

April 15, 2019 by Andy D'Addario

How Joining a Local Sports Club Could Support Your Mental Health

Whether you like to play soccer, basketball, or softball, joining a sports club is a great way to stay fit and make new friends. Not to mention, a sports club membership can also support your mental health beyond these benefits.

While exercise is known to improve cardio health and help you build strong muscles and bones, exercise can also alleviate symptoms of depression in the following ways.

Endorphins

You have probably heard of endorphins. They are the “feel-good” chemicals your body releases after exercise, among other times. These neurochemicals have been shown to help boost mood and give us a sense of well-being.

Increased Energy

One of the most common symptoms of depression is fatigue or a lack of energy. A person may feel tired and sluggish all the time, even unable to get out of bed. This can exacerbate the depression because there is now guilt and low self-esteem associated with not accomplishing enough.

Exercise rejuvenates the body and gives it energy to combat any fatigue you may have been feeling.

Improves Your Identity

When we commit to an exercise plan, we feel good about ourselves. According to James Blumenthal, a neuroscientist at Duke University who specializes in depression, “One of the positive psychological benefits of systematic exercise is the development of a sense of personal mastery and positive self–regard, which we believe is likely to play some role in the depression–reducing effects of exercise.”

Why Joining a Sports Club is Better Than Joining a Gym

How many of us at some point in our life have bought a gym membership and then not gone to the gym? Plenty!

The great thing about joining a sports club is that it is incredibly fun and social, so we are more motivated to participate. This is the key when it comes to reaping the mental health benefits of exercise – sticking to it!

If you have been suffering with symptoms of depression and have been thinking about joining your local sports club, I encourage you to do so. Ask around town to see what groups may be available. You can also do a quick Google search to turn up clubs in your local area.

If you would like to explore treatment options for your depression, please get in touch with me. I would be more than happy to discuss how I may be able to help.

Sources:

https://psychcentral.com/blog/exercise-to-improve-your-mental-health/

https://psychcentral.com/blog/another-reason-why-exercise-benefits-your-mental-health/

https://blogs.psychcentral.com/coping-depression/2016/03/the-benefits-of-exercise-for-depression/

January 31, 2019 by Andy D'Addario

How to Mentally Recover from a Serious Physical Injury

After sustaining a serious physical injury, most people don’t consider the mental and emotional ramifications of this type of accident. Getting to a hospital and getting immediate medical care is the primary focus, followed by follow-up care and physical recovery. But how does a serious injury affect your mental health?

According to a 2016 study conducted by the peer-reviewed medical journal Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology (SPPE), unintentional injuries have a significant long-term impact on the health of adults. The study indicated that depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder are common post-injury, and that identifying and managing depression after a major injury is essential in clinical care.

If you’ve recently suffered a major injury, you may find yourself forced to stay partially or even completely sedentary, limited to a small range of rehabilitation exercises. Regardless of your pre-injury level of activity, this can make a profound and negative impact on your mental well being. What can you do to regain not just your physical fitness, but your mental health as well?

Stay Positive

Rather than thinking about what you used to be able to do that you can’t do at the moment, stay focused on what you can do, and what you can control. Re-evaluate your objectives and create new goals to strive towards. Something as simple as striving to maintain a modified exercise routine can help you recover from your injury as well as alleviate feelings of depression.

Meditate

To help deal with the physical pain, discomfort and negative emotions that one can experience post-injury, turning to meditation can help. Although you may think that to sit still and concentrate on your breath might amplify your negative feelings, meditation has the opposite effect. Through meditation, you can begin to reduce stress, calm your nervous system and alleviate depression while supporting optimal physical healing.

Journal

Journaling your thoughts and feelings is a great way to connect with forgotten or buried thoughts and emotions. Journaling daily can help you let go of negative emotions, find things you can be grateful for, and remind yourself what makes you truly happy. You might even want to try creating a blog, to share your stories with others who have experienced or are experiencing the same thing, as you chronicle your path to healing.

Therapy

It’s important to understand why you’re depressed and discuss ways to alleviate that feeling. Even if you’re not able to physically go to someone’s office, you can get therapy online by chat, webcam, or on your smart phone. Talking to a therapist can help you overcome the negative emotions you’re dealing with, while providing you with support and encouragement.

Have you suffered from a serious physical injury, and are in need of mental and emotional support on your road to wellness? An experienced, licensed mental health professional can help. Call my office today and let’s set up a time to chat.