Local NHS staff told "a little a day is the easy way"

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The principal physiotherapist at the South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust has been appointed by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP’s) as a local move for health champion to encourage staff and service users to improve their health and mental wellbeing by taking regular exercise.

The Trust provides mental health and learning disability services to the people of Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield.

In her new role Margaret Freeburn will be encouraging people to increase their levels of physical activity as part of the CSP’s Move for Health campaign.

Move for Health is in support of the Department of Health’s Change4Life campaign and it is now Margaret’s responsibility to get people across the Trust up and moving in whatever way they can.

The idea of exercise can be daunting for many people, but it doesn’t have to be gyms and long distance running, nor does it have to be expensive! Exercise can be something as simple as walking to the shop for a pint of milk or exercising whilst sat down as at a desk.

Physiotherapists recommend that adults exercise at moderate intensity for 30 minutes, 5 times a week, but this could be broken up into three or four smaller chunks. Just being a little more active throughout the day can benefit your health. This could be by multi-tasking; combine a little exercise with housework! Time yourself doing the dusting or vacuuming and when it needs to be done again try get it done faster.

All of us can benefit from being more active and building a little more physical activity into our daily lives. Not only can being active can help you prevent or manage over 20 medical conditions including coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and obesity, but it will improve mental wellbeing.

Margaret has lots of great ideas for the future to get staff moving, including a Nordic walking group, which works a number of core muscles at the same time as legs and arms.

Margaret said: "I hope in this new role I can make exercise more accessible across the Trust and help staff and service users realise that there are different types of exercise to suit everybody’s needs. Even if someone has a physical restriction, exercise can be adapted to their needs and limitations, so there’s no excuse to get up and go!"

Local NHS staff told "a little a day is the easy way"

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