Fit for Practice – Self-Care and Movement

FIT-FOR-PRACTICE

To say that the past several months has put a strain on the mental and physical health of many adults and healthcare providers would be an understatement. The ongoing pandemic has increased our stress levels in many ways on top of all of our usual responsibilities that our private, social, and work lives bring.

Our mind and bodies have certainly taken a toll, but it is time to get back to the basics. It is time to take time for ourselves. Sometimes it’s hard to justify spending time solely on ourselves. But carving out time for yourself doesn’t have to be challenging.

Just a small amount of time for self-care activities can have a positive impact on your physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing. And when we take time for ourselves, we can have more energy to devote to helping our family, our friends, and our patients.

It is important to spend time for yourself that addresses several different areas, including your movement, restoration, resiliency, and your professional development. Taking time for yourself doesn’t inherently mean spending money treating yourself to feel better. Simple things like getting more sleep, exercising more, and improving your diet can all help you to feel better physically and mentally.

Ever heard of the mantra “If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you”? Take the challenge, and take a look at how you are doing in the different areas mentioned above (movement, restoration, resiliency, and professional development), and strive to make small changes to help you grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and professionally.

MOVEMENT PILLAR

Healthcare practitioners educate our patients on strength and mobility topics every day. But how often do we forget about ourselves and “not practice what we preach”? Are we immune to injury, infection, and disease? I don’t think so. As healthcare providers, we need to stay strong and healthy in order to have a balanced professional and personal life.

The healthcare industry can be stressful – we take on the ailments of our patients at times, working hard to ensure our patients meet their goals. Sometimes this leaves little time to work on our own activity-related goals. But if we don’t take the time for ourselves, we may not be giving our best to our patients, or even our family and friends.

The activity recommendation guidelines for every adult is a minimum of 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity. And further, on at least 2 days per week, we should be performing moderate to high-intensity strength training activity.

A brisk 30-minute walk over our lunch time can help clear the mind and is good for the body! Or try performing exercises with your patients throughout the day to keep you moving. Your mind and body will thank you for the strength and movement! Just like our patients, you’ll notice the benefits that a little extra movement and strength training in your day provides.

For more information on opportunities with Upstream Rehabilitation, click here!