WE'RE CELEBRATING MENTAL HEALTH MONTH
As May marks Mental Health Month, we at Everlast Boxing want to take a moment to highlight the importance of taking care of our mental well-being. Mental health plays a crucial role in our overall health and can impact every aspect of our lives, from our relationships and work performance, to our physical health and athletic abilities.
That's why it's essential for us to prioritize our mental health and make time for self-care, whether it be through exercise, meditation, therapy, or simply talking to a friend. Exercise is a great way to boost your mood and improve your mental health, and boxing is a particularly beneficial form of exercise. Not only does it provide a full-body workout, but it also helps to release tension, reduce stress, and improve confidence.
At Everlast, we are committed to promoting and supporting the mental health of our community. We understand that mental health is a sensitive and personal topic, but it's time we start talking about it more openly and honestly. By breaking down the stigma surrounding mental health, we can help each other to live healthier and happier lives.
So to highlight the importance of Mental Health Month, our team at Everlast HQ sat with psychologist and Monash University research fellow, Dr Allie Peters to ask her about herself, her work, and what advice she has for practicing healthy habits that can improve our mental state.
TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOURSELF.
I’ve been a psychologist for 13 years in a variety of different settings. I’m currently working as a researcher at the Danny Frawley center, which involves developing, implementing and evaluating mental fitness programs to support mental fitness in high performance athletes.
WHY ARE YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT WHAT YOU DO?
I love the opportunity to be able to develop programs where people can learn techniques of how to handle the natural challenges of everyday life, and also working at enhancing performance through mindfulness.
WHAT IS YOUR TOP TIP FOR PRACTICING MINDFULNESS?
Mindfulness is the strong evidence based treatments to help improve where our mind is and the ability to be fully here. This is so important to develop self awareness, the ability to be fully here and ultimately living life more fully.
Both meditation and exercise is so helpful, however I understand that both requires us to commit and decide on living a life that is healthy.
A technique I recommend when you’re not feeling motivated, is recognising the thought, the way it’s making you feel and figuring out the best way to respond to it. For example, if you’re not motivated to do a workout - instead of staying at home, recognise that you are tired and having that thought, but challenge yourself in choosing to still move your body in a more relaxed workout session. This not only important for you to stay fit and healthy, but it’s also practicing that a thought doesn’t control what you decide to do.
Want to hear more from Dr Allie Peters? Watch the full video here…