Life is movement and it is very important to have an active lifestyle.
The advantages of being active are countless. It helps you with your studies, health, social life, de-stress, and many other things as well. Did you know that one in every four British has obesity issues? (NHS,2016) Also, per Eurostat (2014), in Europe, this figure comes to 23% with 58.6% of European adults have overweight problems.
Being active and what it means to me
Good Health
Probably most of you already know that an active lifestyle stimulates good health. Unfortunately, health cannot be bought and therefore it is very important to take care of it as soon as possible. Simple exercise even once a week will keep your body in good shape. You know in Belarus we have a saying ‘Strong body has Strong spirit’ and I honestly think this is the case. Exercise will teach how to overcome challenges and ultimately will build up your confidence.
Helps me with homesickness
If you’re an international student or just living far away from home, the chances that you miss your friends or family are pretty high. Of course, it is hard to live in a different country and fit into the new culture. But no matter what your issues are work can help you to overcome them. Here is the very simple rule to remember, try to make yourself as busy as possible and you will not have time to think about anything else. Trust me it works!
This will help you to develop yourself and learn key skills which you can later apply in your further career.
New experience, skills, and network
Personally, I think I’m fairly active person. I run ‘Finance and Trading society’, organising events with other universities, and meeting new people. I should say from my experience it definitely helps me with my further career as I have many things to talk about in my CV or on an interview. Also, this is lots of fun because I’m learning new skills and meeting fascinating people. Knowledge comes from talking and asking questions.
Helps with my studies
The skills you learn by being active such as multitasking or being organised will be very handy when it comes to group work. In my course, we have quite often team projects. Work in teams can be tricky as you need to plan ahead and work along with other people. So, if you’re an active person you will have a slight advantage in teamwork.
Stress and pressure release
Life at university can be full of stress and pressure, especially when you have exams coming up and few deadlines for a course work. When I’m stressed I visit our gym or the swimming pool in Sport central. The good news is all of this in the same building and right on campus. It helps me to clear my mind and release negative energy which occasionally builds up. Also, after the exercise you can chill in Sauna or Steam room, it does help to take tension off your muscles. So, when I come home after this I feel like I was reborn.
I highly advise you to give it try, I’m sure you will enjoy it too!
Healthy eating
It is important not to forget eating healthy, especially if you're always on the run. I know from personal experience the temptation of eating junk food like: burgers, pizzas, sandwiches and other fast food. However, when you’re being active all day your body needs an organic nutritious meal. This takes more time to cook or slightly more expensive to buy but it will help you to avoid becoming overweight, fatigue, diabetes, heart disease as well as many other negative health consequences.
Here is a good free website which helps you to design healthy diets based on your personal preferences. You can choose a vegetarian diet, high fibre, reduced fat, health & vitality and many more. So, please give it a try. You won’t believe how easy it is to live healthy these days!
In conclusion, I would like to summarise advantages of having an active lifestyle.
- Helps to minimise stress and pressure
- Learning new skills and interacting with other people
- Keeps your body in good shape
- Helps you with study
- Teaches you how to overcome difficult challenges
Thanks for reading. I hope you found this article useful and encouraging.
See you on the next one ;)
