Circling the Isle of Wight until everyone gets dizzy.
I'm always banging on about health being made up of both physical and emotional fitness and for my emotional wellbeing I like to spend time with my family. My Mum, Sister and I now have an annual girly weekend to catch up and chill out. This year my Mum was in charge and she booked us on a 2 night cruise from Southampton to France.
Immediately on our arrival the woman in the piano bar crooned "Crazy" by Patsy Cline. Either we were stunned into silence or she was encroachingly loud but the waiter almost couldn't hear our drinks order. You'd never know how much bingo, eating and dancing you can fit into 2 nights but the most enjoyable aspect of the weekend was the condensed people watching. Hundreds of couples "finding out if they liked cruising" were the perfect fodder for our familial bonding. We spent many shameful hours earwigging into strangers' squabbles and skirmishes. How does this equate to health? Well perhaps it doesn't but for maintaining good quality relationships it certainly provided a do or die environment.
As ever more research is done on quality ageing and longevity it becomes apparent that those who make links outside their own homes fare better in terms of physical health as well as mood. This is true of social media as well as face to face contact. Volunteering, walking and exercise groups all provide a relaxed way to increase social contact outside of the workplace. So if your exercise is done with only your headphones for company, have a look around and see what else is available. My group timetable is here.
Enjoy Good (Mental) Health
