Although the onset of colder weather and the additional restrictions in place to combat Covid-19 are making it a challenge right now, Moorlands MP, Karen Bradley is encouraging people to be as active as possible over the Autumn and Winter months.
Karen is supporting Sport England’s work to help keep the nation active, and their message is simple – being active and playing sport, where appropriate, is good for your physical health and good for your mental health; being as fit as possible right now is a great way to deal with illness and viruses.
Though there are restrictions in place, this doesn't mean that grassroots sport and physical activity cannot happen – in fact most activities are back up and running with additional safety measures in place.
Sport England want to continue providing support and advice to help people feel comfortable to be as active as possible at this time and are asking people to visit Sport England’s website for further guidance.
Commenting Karen said:
“It is understandable that people are feeling anxious about taking part in sport and activity and some people are worried generally about being around others.
“I really encourage people to do what they can to get or stay active over the coming weeks. Many of us know how much it helps our physical and mental wellbeing and being active will be really important for each of us as we support ourselves and each other through the Autumn and Winter months.”
Over the course of the lockdown period, Sport England has conducted nationwide research to gain an insight into activity levels and attitudes towards being active up and down England, and close to 70% of people say they have used being active to help manage their mental health. However, they are still concerned about recent drop-offs in activity levels and will be doing everything they can to support our communities to get more active.
Sport England Chief Executive, Tim Hollingsworth said:
“Being active is a vital tool to help us cope mentally with the challenges the months ahead will bring and physically to be fitter and healthier, to boost our immunity and to ward off illness.
“We know that people face real challenges right now in their daily lives, whether that’s anxiety about the virus itself, financial concerns or uncertainty about what is or isn’t allowed. Our message is that there has never been a more important time to take some time to be physically active. That might be using your local gym, which will have strict protocols in place to ensure safety, playing football within the regulations or just going for a walk – it all counts.
“We’ve got loads of great resources to help on the Sport England website including tips on how to get started.”
